Feral people who don’t live by our rules aren’t a problem that we should or can solve. And we can’t tame them, either. Attempting to appeal to the general public with words like “homeless” is a lot like a firefly trying to mate with a lit cigarette: it’ll probably get burned and if we keep using the term homeless to describe feral people, we will too.
The basic clash is that the vast majority of people live within the systems and structures that a few select people control. Feral people, however, do not follow the system’s rules. They don’t care who sits in the Mayor’s chair. They have no interest in district boundaries. And they definitely don’t care about roundtable discussions about homeless people. As far as they are concerned, the streets are their home.
However, domesticated folks think that everyone should be just like them. We’re like the caged bird singing songs about captivity’s greatness. I like having a warm bed, regular income, and a stable roof to protect me from rain and snow. I totally relate to the caged bird’s anthems. But in order to live as I do, I agree to play a game in which someone else creates the rules. I appear in a building at the same time “weekdays” and leave at the same time. I pay for stuff, including a fee for getting to play the game (taxes). And I generally believe the system’s structures will protect me if I dial three specific numbers on my phone.
Feral people, however, don’t really listen to the caged bird’s songs. They live as the day presents itself. Many may be addicted to harsh substances such as meth and fentanyl. If they are, then they don’t even live within the same reality as us domesticated types, much less play the same game as we do. Theirs is a reality of immediacy and ethereal experience. Not of rules and structures.
Therefore, we shouldn’t ty to solve the “homeless” problem. Instead, we should learn that feral people don’t care much for our systems and if we impose our rules upon them, they’ll pack up and split. Then, if there are those who want to join, or in many cases, re-join our game, then we can provide them a path in the form of services. But we can’t solve feral people. They aren’t a problem.
