Anyone who is left to openly suffer under an addiction, mental [or otherwise] illness, or who is left to believe that being homeless is somehow a better life than they might have otherwise, is being abandoned by society.
Addiction is not a choice. Mental illness is not a choice. And having your soul crushed to the point where you find it less humiliating to remain homeless, is not a choice.
In my experience, the only people who truly choose to be homeless are people who have advantages that they give away due to some ideal that they think they'll achieve by living a humbler life. These people might not have a home, but they also aren't disadvantaged the way other homeless are. Making this distinction is important, as it cuts to the heart of real homelessness: an inability to help oneself. And that's why society is supposed to help.
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Anyone who is left to openly suffer under an addiction, mental [or otherwise] illness, or who is left to believe that being homeless is somehow a better life than they might have otherwise, is being abandoned by society.
Addiction is not a choice. Mental illness is not a choice. And having your soul crushed to the point where you find it less humiliating to remain homeless, is not a choice.
In my experience, the only people who truly choose to be homeless are people who have advantages that they give away due to some ideal that they think they'll achieve by living a humbler life. These people might not have a home, but they also aren't disadvantaged the way other homeless are. Making this distinction is important, as it cuts to the heart of real homelessness: an inability to help oneself. And that's why society is supposed to help.