[nbroyal]

I don't want to be insensitive, but some of these individuals' behavior smacks of privilege. When I think about the fact that someone whose family "owns a major medevac company" is taking up space at a shelter or panhandling on the street, I get really frustrated. These are resources that should be used by those who are really down on their luck and have no other option, not someone/some group who wants to live out their bohemian fantasy.

If I knew I just gave five bucks to someone whose familial net worth trumps mine 100 fold, I'd be irate.

[lutusp]

> When I think about the fact that someone whose family "owns a major medevac company" is taking up space at a shelter or panhandling on the street, I get really frustrated.

Just to play the devil's advocate, given a spoiled kid of wealthy parents on the threshold of adulthood, would you prefer he stay in the ivory tower, or experience the raw life of the street, even if only as a lifestyle tourist?

As it happens, there is a long tradition among the wealthy (not all the wealthy, but some) of making their kids experience ordinary life in advance of making important decisions about the direction of their own life.

[nbroyal]

I see that as a false dichotomy. There are many other options between staying in the ivory tower and playing homeless.

[lutusp]

> There are many other options between staying in the ivory tower and playing homeless.

Yes, there are. But one advantage of "playing homeless" is that you might run into actual homeless people and find out about their lives.

[nbroyal]

I think you could do that just as easily without the lifestyle tourism. Volunteering at a shelter/soup kitchen is something that comes to mind.

[dorkrawk]

I've been fortunate enough to live a comfortable life, but I was able to get some experience living on the street through a volunteer project I did in college working with the homeless in Washington DC. We spent the first 48 hours of our time in DC living on the street with no money. We slept in a church parking lot for 2 nights in snowy weather. We then donated all of our panhandling money not spent on food for those 2 days to the homelessness organization we were working with and spent the rest of the time volunteering in soup kitchens and raising awareness about an upcoming bill regarding homelessness. That certainly changed my perspective on things AND I was able to provide a net benefit for the organizations that help people on the streets.

Sure, living on the streets for 2 days isn't the same as living there for 2 years but there are ways to get perspective without being an unnecessary drain on a system already spread thin.

[js2]

You might find http://www.scratchbeginnings.com an interesting read.