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RealMainer t1_j4buduo wrote

Reply to comment by biggestofbears in Homeless in Maine, part 2: Struggling to survive even with a paying job by benpinette

In the article it says he also receives food stamps and has Mainecare. He currently buys his food at a Cumberland Farms which is way more expensive than a grocery store, so he gets plenty of food stamps.

$300 a week is more than enough to afford rent. Yes, it sucks that most of your check will go to rent, but that's just how it is right now. There are better jobs out there, but one way or another he became an addict so his options are crap until he gets his life together.

Drugs are the problem. Most of the time they are the cause, not the consequence, of homelessness. People dont become homeless and then resort to drugs, they become addicts, alienate everyone in their life, and then become homeless.

There of course are outliers, but the last study I read reported that over 95% of homeless suffer from either mental illness or addiction.

Ironically the ones who don't suffer from those ailments are choosing to be homeless and no ammount of public assistance is going to make them move into a crumby one room apartment.

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biggestofbears t1_j4bv9sy wrote

You also need a security deposit, usually that's an extra months rent, up front due on the first day. Electricity pricing has skyrocketed. Many landlords now require rental insurance. Food stamps will absolutely help, but grocery shopping also requires both the skill to cook and time to do so - which means he'll also need to buy utensils and cookware, most people working minimum wage jobs don't have the time because they work shit hours.

All I'm saying is that this isn't a simple problem to fix, just saying "there's no homeless problem" is incredibly out of touch.

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ejohnson382 t1_j4fhit2 wrote

I guarantee almost every kitchen in Maine is hiring for a dishwasher right now. I’m not saying this is living the dream by any means, but being in an environment where you can learn some basic cooking techniques, eat for free at work, and probably earn overtime as an hourly employee would solve half of these problems.

There are solutions.

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RealMainer t1_j4bwdfh wrote

When I say there is no homeless problem I am not saying there are no homeless people. It's about the root cause.

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raynedanser t1_j4byc44 wrote

It sounds like you just like to sit on your high horse and judge.

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PNWMunky t1_j4c2wlk wrote

Lol. At some point it’s ok to judge one’s actions. A lot of people in this world. Get your shit together or get out of the way.

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raynedanser t1_j4c3wv6 wrote

It's really not. It's not a good look for anyone.

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PNWMunky t1_j4c42g8 wrote

Lol. I’m not concerned with the optics from Reddit folk.

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raynedanser t1_j4c65wb wrote

Might want to be concerned about real life. It's not a good look, but cling to it on a lame ass attempt to justify it.

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PNWMunky t1_j4c6faa wrote

Justify what? If you’re an addict, get your shit together. My heart bleeds for those with a shred of integrity. Junkies can fuck off.

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Joeistall t1_j4d8rt8 wrote

I hope you get fucked up at work and get prescribed opiates and go on a spiral.

Its always people just like you that struggle the worst to cope when shit hits tha fan.

Its not even gonna be your fault when it does happen and its gonna be hilarious when you encounter people just like you.

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PNWMunky t1_j4devt3 wrote

Been there. Done that. Most injured workers I’ve seen that became addicts started taking more than prescribed from the start. Been on painkillers myself. Shit happens but you do have to deal with the life you made for yourself. People like me? What’s that mean?

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Joeistall t1_j52p13v wrote

Doesnt sound like it. Most older timer blue collar guys I know still working are on something to deal with the pain.

Ignorant lying pos like you is what i mean.

Been on painkillers myself, no issues. But i don't have any predispositions to addiction as well. And I'm smart enough not to be taken advantage of by pill pushing doctors and nefarious companies who have lost multitudes of lawsuits for their majority roles in the opioid crisis.

You keep feeding yourself your weirdo delusional total self reliance mythos.

Im sure that will make your kids talk to you. Lololololol

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raynedanser t1_j4by5jq wrote

Where are you living that $300/week is enough to rent something, anything? that isn't a rat infested shithole?

Drugs are A problem, but not THE problem.

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[deleted] t1_j4cbi4w wrote

>Where are you living that $300/week is enough to rent something, anything?

Rent with roommates....

Yea it won't get you your own one bedroom apartment. But it might get you a room somewhere.

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Joeistall t1_j4d93xv wrote

You know people all over are totally looking to double and quadruple up in rooms. Such a common thing to see in ads for roommates. O wait. No it fuckin isnt. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

No matter how you slice it 60-70% of his income will go to housing.

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[deleted] t1_j4db2pd wrote

>You know people all over are totally looking to double and quadruple up in rooms. Such a common thing to see in ads for roommates

You don't even understand what the term "roommate" means....

Typically it doesn't mean you share literally the same room. It's more renting a place with other people.

Most of the time I've rented have been with roommates... even in the middle of LA I was able to get a place for 800 a month (with utilities and internet included in that).

As others have pointed out, his is less of a money issue... and more of a "I'd rather spend money on drugs" issue.

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lucidlilacdream t1_j4buytx wrote

$300 a week is not more than enough to afford the current rental prices. Yes, this person has a drug addiction. Yes, addiction causes a ton of issues with homelessness and is a major problem and hurdle for a number of people. But, it’s not accurate to say $300 is more than enough. It’s out of touch with the price of the rentals right now.

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RealMainer t1_j4bwdpi wrote

I'm looking on several different rental sites right now to make sure I am not out of touch, and there are dozens of listing for under $1000, some even under $800.

On top of that there are tons of job openings for $15+ an hour. My drug addict brother just got a line cook job for $17 an hour, although he will undoubtedly quit after two weeks like he does all his jobs.

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lucidlilacdream t1_j4c0kky wrote

$300 a week is $1200 a month. If you found a rental for $800 a month, which is nearly impossible in any place 1 hour reach of Portland, you’d have $400 left for all of your bills. Heating alone would eat up that $400. Add a car and you are fucked, and the vast majority of Maine requires a car because we have shit transit. At $1000 you’d have $200 after rent. Most rentals are $1.2-1.6k a month.

You are living in a different time and under a rock if you think $200-400 a month is enough to live in after rent. It’s not 1970, it’s 2023 where eggs cost $6 a dozen and gas is $3.50+ a gallon.

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RealMainer t1_j4c2lej wrote

Plenty of places for rent in Lewiston for around $800. 30 minutes away from Portland.

But not sure what your obsession with Portland is. You know Maine is a huge state right? If you are homeless why would you choose to live in the most expensive city in Maine?

It's not hard to afford rent if you work $30-40 hours a week. Again, it sucks that rent eats up a lot of that, but that's why programs like food stamps, Heap, the rent rebate programs and Mainecare exist.

Sounds like your standards of living are just so impossibly high that you can't even imagine the reality of living paycheck to paycheck like many people do.

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Joeistall t1_j4d9bj6 wrote

Bro you just are clearly not in charge in your own budget.

Eggs have triples in price.

Wtf are you on.

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Bostonbaked20 t1_j4ccg9u wrote

Respectfully I’d like to know where $300 a week "is more than enough to afford rent"? Even making double that amount weekly it's very difficult to afford a decent place to live while also trying to pay for the essentials like food, utilities ect. A lot of folks turn to substances to ease the stress of just surviving. So many use alcohol multiple times a week as well to unwind and cope with surviving the grind of life. We tend to look down more on people turning to drugs rather than alcohol but we all know if alcohol was illegal there would be many people still using it and having to endure risking legal consequences, homelessness to obtain a drink much like people face when using illegal drugs. As a community we need to stop judging and assuming things about each other and turn that energy towards being angry at our government. If people are working a full time job but can't even afford to exist then there is a major problem with the system that the wealthy ruling class created to benefit themselves. How many people grow up in poverty and are able to escape it? The system is designed to keep you poor and in servitude to those who are wealthy. Of course there are people who can change the trajectory of their life after growing up in poverty but we all know how difficult this is. Most people turning to illegal substances daily to cope aren't doing it because it's fun they are doing it to escape an unjust and unfair system. Back in the 40s/50s a guy could work as a janitor and own a nice home and support a family of four on their own. Today a lot of people work multiple jobs and still will never own a house. We all need to be angry at the people who can fix this problem but chose not to because it doesn't benefit their interests rather than judging disenfranchised individuals.

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SecretAsianMaine t1_j4cm16n wrote

$300 a week does not cover rent in Lewiston unless you are in section 8 housing. And you’re still not going to get your money’s worth.

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