Economics and Homeless People...

Wow, there is a "category" option? Where did that come from? Well, this, I suppose, is categorised as a rant. I like to rant and this is one of my pet peeves; homeless people. They're annoying, they smell, they clutter up our streets and.. uh.. did I mention they smell??

For those of you who live in Singapore, this is what a homeless person looks like:

Oh wait.. That's Nicole Richie and Mary Kate Olsen.. Well, they look like that anyway. So, moving on, the question what do homeless people have to do with the economy? Not a lot, right, they have no purchasing power, very few of them have stock protfolios and even fewer have investment real estate properties (I know, right, where does their money go?!). The rant I have today is one that I have had before, many times and it concerns the economics of the popular homeless magazine "The Big Issue":

That cover seems a little racist, when I call Asian people "little monkey people" they get all defensive and start yelling at me in a language that sounds like they're rolling a tin can down a street. Oh well. Anyway, this "Big Issue" magazine, for those of you who dont know, is produced and printed and entirely funded by the government. It is then given to homeless people to sell on the side of the street for $4 per copy which is extremely steep given it's contents. (Note: I have never bought one but I have seen copies people have bought.. People stupider than myself). Now my gripe with the situation is this:

I pay taxes, right? I live in Australia so my taxes are astronomical. Every year this country has more and more money left over because they insist on a 48.5% income tax rate which is ridiculous. This is OK, though because one day I will live and work in Singapore (18%) and eventually Monaco (0%) so that no greedy government gets it's mits on my cash.. Anyway, my taxes pay for the production costs of this overpriced pile of paper and I am then expected to spend my post tax dollars on it?! Pffft! Get real! Why would I pay for a magazine that I already payed to produce?! Screw that.

Next, I will complain about the socio economic drain these people place on our infrastructure.. After a picture of a kitty to keep you interested.

Now I live in Western Australia, for those of you who dont know. In Western Australia, the only way to be unemployed is to actively not look for a job. As in you have to pretty much turn down offers in the street to stay unemployed. This is another thing that annoys me about homeless people. Why do they not have jobs? There are agencies here that you can walk into and get a job that pays $80k+ per year with no degree and no experience. Sure, you have to move to the mines and do manual labour but what the hell do these people need to be in the city for?! It's not like they have families, friends, lives and obligations. They dont even shower. They're SO desperate for labour at the mines that they will pay your accomodation and food bills, pay you a good salary and give you free transport there and back. So why the hell should I buy a magazine off them in the street? As far as I'm concerned, they are lazy and stubbourn. They have options like the rest of us but they choose to be homeless, they choose to be poor.

Now this brings me back to my point. They are a drain on our resources, they do not support our economy in any way and are literally no more than a pimple on the ass of society. Harsh? Yeah, maybe, but I'm sick of it. If I have to look at them sitting on the street with their stupid cardboard signs and "Big Issue" magazines (which I have already paid for) then i reserve the right to judge them mercilessly and say what I like. The end.