Homeless People Need Gyms Too

This is one of those stories that would be hilarious, except that it's true. Out on the left coast, some of our elected officials in a particularly uninspiring burst of absurduty have decided the homeless need a new shelter.

Christian Science Monitor Article

"The $17 million state-of-the-art facility boasts a full-sized gymnasium, library, playroom, hair salon, education center, and professional kitchen. "

In L.A., where the shelter is being built, the biggest problem confronting homeless people is that they have messy hair and their abs aren't toned.

There is a reason that homeless people are where they are. Sure, the policy-wonks like to tell us, we could all become homeless, that we're all one paycheck from living on the streets.

This is simply not the case. Even conservative estimates show a majority of homeless people living with a drug or alcohol problem. Many others suffer from mental illness. This is not to say that these people are less deserving of a home, only to more adequately understand the problem so we can find a solution.

If a crack addict doesn't get clean, he won't be able to hold down a job and keep a stable home. Our goal should be to get the homeless clean so that they can become productive members of society. Allowing them to wallow in their condition and be rewarded for it--most Americans don't get to use a free gym--only serves to perpetuate the problem.

Advocates argue that the gym provides a way for those recovering from substance abuse to exercise. Can someone please tell me why they couldn't just walk outside?

Let's put feel-good idealogy aside and deal with the problem at hand. Coddling the homeless is a counterproductive philosophy.

This "shelter" is an egregious waste of taxpayer dollars and an ineffective measure. The fact that this was even considered is asinine. The fact that they went ahead and built it shows just how out of touch some of our representatives are.