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LA Trying To Hide Their Homeless Problem Before Super Bowl


AmishBengalFan

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Linky: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jan/26/homeless-los-angeles-super-bowl

 

Quote

 

‘Trying to disappear the poor’: California clears homeless camp near Super Bowl

 

Advocates and displaced residents condemn move amid fears for safety: ‘They are just trying to survive’

Sam Levin in Los Angeles @SamTLevin
Thu 27 Jan 2022 01.00 EST

 

Officials in Los Angeles have cleared a homeless encampment near SoFi stadium, where the Super Bowl will take place in three weeks, drawing backlash from human rights groups and the unhoused residents who have been displaced.

 

On Monday and Tuesday, the state transit agency Caltrans shut down the tent community, which visitors would probably have passed on their way to the big game, calling it a “safety issue”.

But some have accused authorities of forcing people out of sight without providing housing or services.

 

“They are just trying to survive,” said Sofi Villalpando, who works with some of the displaced residents. “It feels like [authorities] are removing people so they won’t be seen.”

Dawn Toftee, 57, who was living at the encampment that was cleared, told the Guardian on Wednesday that she lost the couch she had been sleeping on during the sweep and was now sleeping on a blanket on a nearby street where she felt less safe. “Now I’m at this site where I didn’t want to be. There’s been killings and shootings around here … They should let us have our home back.”

 

Toftee said another unhoused resident, who uses a wheelchair, had also lost the mattress he had been sleeping on during the cleanup. She blamed the Super Bowl: “It’s terrible and it’s bullshit.”

 

The controversial sweep comes as elected officials in LA have increasingly launched high-profile encampment shutdowns in response to a worsening humanitarian crisis. There were an estimated 48,000 people living on the streets in LA county at the start of the pandemic, the latest count. The strategy of sweeps, critics say, has prioritized aesthetics and the complaints of neighbors, leading people in established tent communities to be scattered into more dangerous living conditions.

 

“No one wants to take responsibility for what is happening,” said Annie Powers, an organizer with NOlympics LA, a coalition that has organized against the Olympics in 2028 in LA, partly out of concern that it will lead to these kinds of sweeps. “We see this time and time again – with sports capitalism, celebrations or other big events like the Super Bowl or Olympics, the city tries to make the city look better for investors coming from out of town. So they’re very encouraged to try to disappear the poor from the streets.

 

“I have nowhere to go,” added Dawn Wilson (photo), 49, another displaced resident, who said she wasn’t offered housing and was now camping on a sidewalk with her dog. “They don’t care what happens to us. I am tired of being on the streets, and I don’t want to die here,” she said, noting that she had multiple unhoused friends who had died recently. A recent UCLA report estimated that 1,500 unhoused people died while living on the streets from March 2020 to July 2021. “Why don’t they come and spend a day or two out here, and see what we’re going through?”

 

NFL spokespeople did not immediately respond to an inquiry on Wednesday afternoon.

 

And lest you think the homeless problem in LA is just drifters and drug users and losers, a lot of what you would call "normal" people are caught up in the self-inflicted mess that LA and CA have caused....

 

4473.jpg

Dawn Wilson, with her dog, Lily, stands at a homeless encampment beneath a freeway overpass near SoFi Stadium on Wednesday.

Photograph: Frederic J Brown/AFP/Getty Images

 

I know exactly where this is.  This encampment was at the corner of Century and La Cienega.... it's under the 405 and is in a direct path from LAX to Sofi.  

 

 

CALTRAN claims this is just a "routine cleanup".  Yeah, right.  LA is clearly trying to hide their homeless problem.

 

What was once a great city (and state) has fallen so far that I see no hope of redemption.  I won't get into the difference between California politics and my own, but I believe from the bottom of my heart that everything wrong in California starts with their politics and that their misguided policies have led to this downfall.  Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland.... these are warnings to the rest of us that tough decisions must be made, and that the price of compassion is only more suffering.

This is one of many reasons why I decided I would not even attempt to go to a Bengals Super Bowl in LA.  I will not willingly spend one thin dime of my money in that cesspool, knowing of the continued harm and damage that my "contribution" will cause.

 

 

 

 

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They also have a poop in the streets problem, and have an app for poop alerts.  Some how this is not viewed as problem enough to change their outlook on how to run things.  They think their way of doing things should be propagated to the rest of the country, but when you have to "hide" your homeless problem when you have events that draw the eyes of the world to you, is your way of doing things really the way that should be spread.  I don't want poop in the streets.

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Just now, Jungletiger said:

They also have a poop in the streets problem, and have an app for poop alerts.  Some how this is not viewed as problem enough to change their outlook on how to run things.  They think their way of doing things should be propagated to the rest of the country, but when you have to "hide" your homeless problem when you have events that draw the eyes of the world to you, is your way of doing things really the way that should be spread.  I don't want poop in the streets.

 

Actions have consequences, but consequences require actions.  Hiding the evidence of your consequence IS an action, but its a deplorable one.

 

I almost want to wall LA in... maybe the whole state... and just make them stay there until they fix it OR until it all burns down.

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Without this turning into another political thread, as poverty and inequality are near to my heart, homelessness is not a "Red State/Blue State" issue. CA has the most because it the most populated state. Here is your top 10 list.

 

  1. California (151,278)
  2. New York (92,091)
  3. Florida (28,328)
  4. Texas (25,848)
  5. Washington (21,577)
  6. Massachusetts (18,471)
  7. Oregon (15,876)
  8. Pennsylvania (13,199)
  9. Georgia (10,443)
  10. Ohio (10,345)
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17 minutes ago, AmishBengalFan said:

 

Actions have consequences, but consequences require actions.  Hiding the evidence of your consequence IS an action, but its a deplorable one.

 

I almost want to wall LA in... maybe the whole state... and just make them stay there until they fix it OR until it all burns down.

 

Add NY to that as well.

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2 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

Without this turning into another political thread, as poverty and inequality are near to my heart, homelessness is not a "Red State/Blue State" issue CA has the most because it the most populated state. Here is your top 10 list.

 

  1. California (151,278)
  2. New York (92,091)
  3. Florida (28,328)
  4. Texas (25,848)
  5. Washington (21,577)
  6. Massachusetts (18,471)
  7. Oregon (15,876)
  8. Pennsylvania (13,199)
  9. Georgia (10,443)
  10. Ohio (10,345)

 

It is true, about it being a politically blind issue, all I'm going to say is look at that drop off after NY.  Notice though that Cali has NY by 59,187, but the diff from Texas is about 125,430.

Texas though has about 1.9 mil more people than NY, and Cali has more the 30 mil more than both of them.  While I do think population density is a factor, it is not as big as other things going on in those places.

 

And now Ill defer from this thread cause I agree it is drifting away from the team.

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21 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

Without this turning into another political thread, as poverty and inequality are near to my heart, homelessness is not a "Red State/Blue State" issue. CA has the most because it the most populated state. Here is your top 10 list.

 

  1. California (151,278)
  2. New York (92,091)
  3. Florida (28,328)
  4. Texas (25,848)
  5. Washington (21,577)
  6. Massachusetts (18,471)
  7. Oregon (15,876)
  8. Pennsylvania (13,199)
  9. Georgia (10,443)
  10. Ohio (10,345)


Lets send all 10,345 homeless in Ohio to California.  That would be less than a seven percent increase in their numbers.  😎

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To be fair, homelessness is going to be higher in states with higher populations.  Counting the number of homeless noses in a state isn't as effective a measure as finding out the percentage of homeless, IMO.

 

Here's the site I'm using to count those noses:

 

Homelessness Statistics by State

Linky: https://www.usich.gov/tools-for-action/map/

 

Raw Data (# of homeless):

Untitled.jpg

 

And here's the source I'm using for each state's population:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_population

 

Taking just the top-25 states by population, and sorting them by their homeless %:

CA: 1 homeless for every 245 people, or 409 per 100K
NY: 1 homeless for every 332 people, or 301 per 100K
WA: 1 homeless for every 336 people, or 298 per 100K
MA: 1 homeless for every 391 people, or 256 per 100K
CO: 1 homeless for every 586 people, or 171 per 100K
AZ: 1 homeless for every 651 people, or 154 per 100K
MN: 1 homeless for every 719 people, or 139 per 100K
FL: 1 homeless for every 784 people, or 128 per 100K
MO: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
TN: 1 homeless for every 952 people, or 105 per 100K
NJ: 1 homeless for every 961 people, or 104 per 100K
MD: 1 homeless for every 968 people, or 103 per 100K
PA: 1 homeless for every 972 people, or 103 per 100K
GA: 1 homeless for every 1047 people, or 96 per 100K
TX: 1 homeless for every 1070 people, or 93 per 100K
OH: 1 homeless for every 1107 people, or 90 per 100K
NC: 1 homeless for every 1125 people, or 89 per 100K
MI: 1 homeless for every 1167 people, or 86 per 100K
SC: 1 homeless for every 1194 people, or 84 per 100K
IN: 1 homeless for every 1206 people, or 83 per 100K
IL: 1 homeless for every 1228 people, or 81 per 100K
WI: 1 homeless for every 1305 people, or 77 per 100K
VA: 1 homeless for every 1449 people, or 69 per 100K
LA: 1 homeless for every 1468 people, or 68 per 100K
AL: 1 homeless for every 1499 people, or 67 per 100K

 

CA has the most because it's the most populous state.

CA has the most per 100K because of their housing crisis.

CA has the highest frequency of homelessness because of their unwillingness to take decisive action.

 

 

One is free to draw a conclusion regarding WHY CA has inflicted this problem on so many of their citizens, but I note that the top 4 states in this list all share one thing in common.  If you put Oregon in this list (27th in population at 4.237M) they would be in 2nd place behind CA with 1 homeless person per 289 citizens, or 346 per 100K, and would slot right in with CA, NY, WA and MA.

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1 minute ago, AmishBengalFan said:

To be fair, homelessness is going to be higher in states with higher populations.  Counting the number of homeless noses in a state isn't as effective a measure as finding out the percentage of homeless, IMO.

 

Here's the site I'm using to count those noses:

 

Homelessness Statistics by State

Linky: https://www.usich.gov/tools-for-action/map/

 

Raw Data (# of homeless):

Untitled.jpg

 

And here's the source I'm using for each state's population:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_U.S._states_and_territories_by_population

 

Taking just the top-25 states by population, and sorting them by their homeless %:

CA: 1 homeless for every 245 people, or 409 per 100K
NY: 1 homeless for every 332 people, or 301 per 100K
WA: 1 homeless for every 336 people, or 298 per 100K
MA: 1 homeless for every 391 people, or 256 per 100K
CO: 1 homeless for every 586 people, or 171 per 100K
AZ: 1 homeless for every 651 people, or 154 per 100K
MN: 1 homeless for every 719 people, or 139 per 100K
FL: 1 homeless for every 784 people, or 128 per 100K
MO: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
TN: 1 homeless for every 952 people, or 105 per 100K
NJ: 1 homeless for every 961 people, or 104 per 100K
MD: 1 homeless for every 968 people, or 103 per 100K
PA: 1 homeless for every 972 people, or 103 per 100K
GA: 1 homeless for every 1047 people, or 96 per 100K
TX: 1 homeless for every 1070 people, or 93 per 100K
OH: 1 homeless for every 1107 people, or 90 per 100K
NC: 1 homeless for every 1125 people, or 89 per 100K
MI: 1 homeless for every 1167 people, or 86 per 100K
SC: 1 homeless for every 1194 people, or 84 per 100K
IN: 1 homeless for every 1206 people, or 83 per 100K
IL: 1 homeless for every 1228 people, or 81 per 100K
WI: 1 homeless for every 1305 people, or 77 per 100K
VA: 1 homeless for every 1449 people, or 69 per 100K
LA: 1 homeless for every 1468 people, or 68 per 100K
AL: 1 homeless for every 1499 people, or 67 per 100K

 

CA has the most because it's the most populous state.

CA has the most per 100K because of their housing crisis.

CA has the highest frequency of homelessness because of their unwillingness to take decisive action.

 

 

One is free to draw a conclusion regarding WHY CA has inflicted this problem on so many of their citizens, but I note that the top 4 states in this list all share one thing in common.  If you put Oregon in this list (27th in population at 4.237M) they would be in 2nd place behind CA with 1 homeless person per 289 citizens, or 346 per 100K.  OR shares the same problem that CA, NY, WA and MA have.   

 

 

Why stop at the top 4? Seems weird.

 

Regardless there are a whole host of interconnected problems that should be considered. As you mentioned this is not just a "drug user problem", we could talk about mental health and the issues we faced since the late 80s and the things we did with regards to defunding large portions of that area. We could also talk about income inequality and the attack on unions. We could talk about corporate consolidation and the lack of any real trust busting anymore. All sorts of solutions to this issue, that at least would help alleviate it, but that requires that we stop thinking that "Government is the problem." (Thanks Ronnie Ray-gun), and start thinking alot more deeply about about these issues. 

 

Neoliberalism is a cancer.

 

Anyway, as I said this is far too political for this section of the forum.

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14 minutes ago, Jamie_B said:

 

 

Why stop at the top 4? Seems weird.

 

...snip...

 

Anyway, as I said this is far too political for this section of the forum.

 

I only took the top 25 states by population because, well, I was typing everything into a spreadsheet by hand and was making typos.  Decided to stop halfway thru, which ended up excluding outliers (like Oregon).  I should've done all 50.  But because I stopped at 25, the Red/Blue divide fell between #4 and #5.  Had I done all 50 (and PR and DC) the commonality between the most aggregious states and the rest would've likely extended well beyond the top 4.  Perhaps as many as 7 of the top 10.  Don't know, haven't run the numbers yet.

 

BUT.... about politics....   Yeah, probably my bad.  Homelessness is a nationwide problem, but it is concentrated in Blue states due to obvious reasons.  Any discussion of homelessness, or state-sourced issues, will invariably devolve into a right vs left, Red vs Blue, Conservative vs Liberal discussion.... which will lead to arguments and mudslinging.

 

Let's rewind.

 

LA is trying to hide their homeless problem so the world doesn't see it.

 

That's the message.

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In the interest of fairness, I've gone ahead and pulled all 50 states + DC's data and have updated the list below.  I do NOT have homeless figures for Puerto Rico or any of the overseas possessions (Guam, etc) so even tho I have population figures for them all I can't complete the math for those.

 

I've grouped them in sets of ten, from highest homeless rate to lowest.

 

1-10:

DC: 1 homeless for every 108 people, or 925 per 100K
HI: 1 homeless for every 225 people, or 444 per 100K
CA: 1 homeless for every 245 people, or 409 per 100K
OR: 1 homeless for every 289 people, or 346 per 100K
NY: 1 homeless for every 332 people, or 301 per 100K
WA: 1 homeless for every 336 people, or 298 per 100K
AK: 1 homeless for every 376 people, or 266 per 100K
MA: 1 homeless for every 391 people, or 256 per 100K
NV: 1 homeless for every 450 people, or 222 per 100K
VT: 1 homeless for every 579 people, or 173 per 100K

 

11-20:

CO: 1 homeless for every 586 people, or 171 per 100K

---NATIONAL MEAN: 1 homeless for every 593 people, or 169 per 100K--- (341,659,000 population, 575,734 homeless)
NM: 1 homeless for every 635 people, or 157 per 100K
ME: 1 homeless for every 649 people, or 154 per 100K
AZ: 1 homeless for every 651 people, or 154 per 100K
MT: 1 homeless for every 702 people, or 143 per 100K
MN: 1 homeless for every 719 people, or 139 per 100K
FL: 1 homeless for every 784 people, or 128 per 100K
ID: 1 homeless for every 794 people, or 126 per 100K
NE: 1 homeless for every 816 people, or 123 per 100K
NH: 1 homeless for every 823 people, or 122 per 100K

 

21-30;

SD: 1 homeless for every 838 people, or 119 per 100K
DE: 1 homeless for every 850 people, or 118 per 100K
WY: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
MO: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
TN: 1 homeless for every 952 people, or 105 per 100K

---NATIONAL MEDIAN IS NJ, RANKED 26th of 51---

NJ: 1 homeless for every 961 people, or 104 per 100K 

---NATIONAL MEDIAN IS NJ, RANKED 26th of 51---
MD: 1 homeless for every 968 people, or 103 per 100K
PA: 1 homeless for every 972 people, or 103 per 100K
RI: 1 homeless for every 994 people, or 101 per 100K
OK: 1 homeless for every 1007 people, or 99 per 100K

 

31-40:

UT: 1 homeless for every 1045 people, or 96 per 100K
GA: 1 homeless for every 1047 people, or 96 per 100K
TX: 1 homeless for every 1070 people, or 93 per 100K
OH: 1 homeless for every 1107 people, or 90 per 100K
KY: 1 homeless for every 1123 people, or 89 per 100K
NC: 1 homeless for every 1125 people, or 89 per 100K
MI: 1 homeless for every 1167 people, or 86 per 100K
SC: 1 homeless for every 1194 people, or 84 per 100K
KS: 1 homeless for every 1200 people, or 83 per 100K
IA: 1 homeless for every 1205 people, or 83 per 100K

 

41-51:

IN: 1 homeless for every 1206 people, or 83 per 100K
IL: 1 homeless for every 1228 people, or 81 per 100K
CT: 1 homeless for every 1241 people, or 81 per 100K
AR: 1 homeless for every 1273 people, or 79 per 100K
WI: 1 homeless for every 1305 people, or 77 per 100K
WV: 1 homeless for every 1338 people, or 75 per 100K
ND: 1 homeless for every 1440 people, or 69 per 100K
VA: 1 homeless for every 1449 people, or 69 per 100K
LA: 1 homeless for every 1468 people, or 68 per 100K
AL: 1 homeless for every 1499 people, or 67 per 100K
MS: 1 homeless for every 2675 people, or 37 per 100K

 

(I welcome a double-check.... I had to manually key-in all of the numbers and may have transposed digits or made a gross error, but I -think- everything is accurate)

 

The fact that the Mean (the average) is skewed so far from the Median (the middle) shows that the data is in no way uniformly distributed.  The top 11 states account for more than half (341K of 576K) of the homelessness in the nation.  DC's numbers alone are staggering.... nearly 1 in every 100.

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1 hour ago, AmishBengalFan said:

In the interest of fairness, I've gone ahead and pulled all 50 states + DC's data and have updated the list below.  I do NOT have homeless figures for Puerto Rico or any of the overseas possessions (Guam, etc) so even tho I have population figures for them all I can't complete the math for those.

 

I've grouped them in sets of ten, from highest homeless rate to lowest.

 

1-10:

DC: 1 homeless for every 108 people, or 925 per 100K
HI: 1 homeless for every 225 people, or 444 per 100K
CA: 1 homeless for every 245 people, or 409 per 100K
OR: 1 homeless for every 289 people, or 346 per 100K
NY: 1 homeless for every 332 people, or 301 per 100K
WA: 1 homeless for every 336 people, or 298 per 100K
AK: 1 homeless for every 376 people, or 266 per 100K
MA: 1 homeless for every 391 people, or 256 per 100K
NV: 1 homeless for every 450 people, or 222 per 100K
VT: 1 homeless for every 579 people, or 173 per 100K

 

11-20:

CO: 1 homeless for every 586 people, or 171 per 100K

---NATIONAL MEAN: 1 homeless for every 593 people, or 169 per 100K--- (341,659,000 population, 575,734 homeless)
NM: 1 homeless for every 635 people, or 157 per 100K
ME: 1 homeless for every 649 people, or 154 per 100K
AZ: 1 homeless for every 651 people, or 154 per 100K
MT: 1 homeless for every 702 people, or 143 per 100K
MN: 1 homeless for every 719 people, or 139 per 100K
FL: 1 homeless for every 784 people, or 128 per 100K
ID: 1 homeless for every 794 people, or 126 per 100K
NE: 1 homeless for every 816 people, or 123 per 100K
NH: 1 homeless for every 823 people, or 122 per 100K

 

21-30;

SD: 1 homeless for every 838 people, or 119 per 100K
DE: 1 homeless for every 850 people, or 118 per 100K
WY: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
MO: 1 homeless for every 943 people, or 106 per 100K
TN: 1 homeless for every 952 people, or 105 per 100K

---NATIONAL MEDIAN IS NJ, RANKED 26th of 51---

NJ: 1 homeless for every 961 people, or 104 per 100K 

---NATIONAL MEDIAN IS NJ, RANKED 26th of 51---
MD: 1 homeless for every 968 people, or 103 per 100K
PA: 1 homeless for every 972 people, or 103 per 100K
RI: 1 homeless for every 994 people, or 101 per 100K
OK: 1 homeless for every 1007 people, or 99 per 100K

 

31-40:

UT: 1 homeless for every 1045 people, or 96 per 100K
GA: 1 homeless for every 1047 people, or 96 per 100K
TX: 1 homeless for every 1070 people, or 93 per 100K
OH: 1 homeless for every 1107 people, or 90 per 100K
KY: 1 homeless for every 1123 people, or 89 per 100K
NC: 1 homeless for every 1125 people, or 89 per 100K
MI: 1 homeless for every 1167 people, or 86 per 100K
SC: 1 homeless for every 1194 people, or 84 per 100K
KS: 1 homeless for every 1200 people, or 83 per 100K
IA: 1 homeless for every 1205 people, or 83 per 100K

 

41-51:

IN: 1 homeless for every 1206 people, or 83 per 100K
IL: 1 homeless for every 1228 people, or 81 per 100K
CT: 1 homeless for every 1241 people, or 81 per 100K
AR: 1 homeless for every 1273 people, or 79 per 100K
WI: 1 homeless for every 1305 people, or 77 per 100K
WV: 1 homeless for every 1338 people, or 75 per 100K
ND: 1 homeless for every 1440 people, or 69 per 100K
VA: 1 homeless for every 1449 people, or 69 per 100K
LA: 1 homeless for every 1468 people, or 68 per 100K
AL: 1 homeless for every 1499 people, or 67 per 100K
MS: 1 homeless for every 2675 people, or 37 per 100K

 

(I welcome a double-check.... I had to manually key-in all of the numbers and may have transposed digits or made a gross error, but I -think- everything is accurate)

 

The fact that the Mean (the average) is skewed so far from the Median (the middle) shows that the data is in no way uniformly distributed.  The top 11 states account for more than half (341K of 576K) of the homelessness in the nation.  DC's numbers alone are staggering.... nearly 1 in every 100.

DC is a shithole ..the city does nothing for impoverished..

 

The top ten states are under the control of some crazy neoliberal progressives that talk and nothing else..

 

Pelosi and her idiot nephew Gavin Newsome plus Soros's nephew by marriage,  Jerry Nadler are fucking evil beings ..

Theres more than them but you get the picture hopefully..

 

They've turned America into a depressive country..

Hopefully America wakes up and boots their asses out of offices in other states..Soon!

 

California will remain a socialist ( communist) state as long as these eveidoers are alive.. 

 

 

 

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Guess we need to move this to the politics forum now.

 

Wanted to focus on LA being a shithole that has to hide their homeless to try to make the city look better, and to use it to showcase themselves to corporations in hopes that they'll move there - bringing tax $ that the Angelinos can skim and redirect - but that'll turn into a politics rant too.

 

It's a shame that LA is so damn political, and so damn fucked-up because of that.  Oh well.... mods, let's move this thread.

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2 minutes ago, AmishBengalFan said:

Guess we need to move this to the politics forum now.

 

Wanted to focus on LA being a shithole that has to hide their homeless to try to make the city look better, and to use it to showcase themselves to corporations in hopes that they'll move there - bringing tax $ that the Angelinos can skim and redirect - but that'll turn into a politics rant too.

 

It's a shame that LA is so damn political, and so damn fucked-up because of that.  Oh well.... mods, let's move this thread.

Or delete it.

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