awwww thats so sad i know that guy i worked with him at teletech hes such a sweetheart THEY HAD THEIR BABY!!! OOOOH CUTE! THEY DONT DESERVE TO BE HOMELESS!!!!

I do feel badly for this family but…....  here i go again…...  they were living in a free shelter before the baby was born.  Now they are living at Samaritan house.  21 & 23 yrs old. Did they not think about having a child when they could not support it?  I am just tired of doing without, of having to pay other peoples way.  I go without alot of things to make ends meet.

ur very right kalgal and my parents are paving my way right now but at the same time they make me help myself too their giving me a hand up not a hand out

Sad situation.  How do we prevent or penalize the impoverished for breeding without ending up paying a higher price ? With the methods available today which can prevent pregnancies is there an excuse for being irresponsible ?  Did society fail to teach the Welch couple or were they just irresponsible in bringing a child into a world in which the Welch couple are unable to cope economically ?  The questions could go on and on and there is a multiplicity of answers.  The fact remains either taxpayers or charities or both are expected to pay for the Welch problem and thousands more.

the real problem is the robin hood for the rich economy we have right now…..

ok so the welch’s were irresponsible…...Montana has the 3rd highest rate in the nation…..not all those people were irresponsible but instead got hammered by a corrupt economy

and 325 a month for a little p.o.s. apartment is also a joke…..

THAT is an affordable rental? 

my family bought a house on 5 acres for 25k in the early 70’s when the average wage was 15, 000 a year….so less than 2 years wage would buy a nice house…..now a nice house is 10 years of wages for an average worker..

we had affordable housing in the 60’s and 70’s before reagan blew up the federal budget, ushered in corporate welfare and basically destroyed the american workforce by leveraging the dollar we have had massive increases in the cost of living - from housing, food, gas,

everything EXCEPT the lower and middle income wages -  those have remained the same - or have droppped…...

but the rich deserve EVERY DOLLAR this country gains in wage increases….

as I;ve said we’ve turned into a fatcat, rich freeloader society where the people who actually make something get hammered but the rich freeloaders WHO CREATE NOTHING get richer on the msiery of others

proving once again that the rich are kind of like a cancer cell on the american society….

fair row u are a nazi i agree with you. but if u have sex u ahve kids so that that and no one can do ne thing about legally hitler already tried

This is what happened in Flathead Valley.
We were there in the early 2000’s and watched it- knowing it would turn into disaster.

We checked on rentals in a neighborhood not far from Sykes around 2002-2003.. The average for a 1 to 2 bedroom at that time was around 450.00 to 600.00/month for a nice little place.

Then there was a flood of Californians - from sports stars to movie stars- followed by real estate agents who purchased land and property and started flipping at prices equivalent to California real estate. At the time about 3-4 times as much as Montana real estate rates.

Out of curiosity, in late 2008, I checked Craigslist for rental rates in the area we had lived.
The rental rates were now $1,100 to $1,800/month.
We all know that local pay and salaries did not raise to compensate for the now artificially extraordinary real estate prices. And everyone acts surprised that this disaster is occurring? Everyone is out to blame the poor? This is insanity, to say the least.

Who should be blamed are the real estate flippers and the local and state government officials who let this continue unabated. Personal housing should never be allowed to be used as an investment tool - ever. This devastation is the only logical result of such actions.

Woody and Benedictine pretty much accurately depict what has happened, but unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your politics, we live in a capitalist society.  It’s their implied solutions I can’t agree with.  Price fixing, however well intended, places our society on a slippery slope toward the type of world I believe Obama envisions.  Let’s just fix prices on everything from housing and health care to durable goods and food. That way we can just avoid all the ‘middle men’ and have the government, the poor, and those who are the political ‘upper crust’.  Stalin and Mao tried and created societies which were a colossal failure. Human misery exists in a capitalist society as well.  It’s just that I would rather be miserable in one that is capitalist rather than run the risk of being miserable in one which is socialist. Taxing the wealthy until you make them ‘even’ is simply not the answer nor is curing the ‘cancer’ of being rich.  Don’t ask me for the solution because I don’t have one.

ya they arent starving for sure and i hope that baby isnt either i wonder if they know about the WIC program….obviously they need all the help they can get

The Commodity Modernization Act of 2001 allowed investors to gamble with mortgages. The CMA overturned laws that had been in place since right after the great Depression. Those regulations were developed to prevent another Depression. Get it? This has nothing to do with ‘Capitalism’, but the ability of financial investors to gamble on failure. In this case ‘failure’ = homelessness.

In order to enjoy the full fruits of Capitalism it obviously must be moderated with regulations to prevent abuses of this kind that can result in a weakened people and nation.

Regulation does not equal ‘socialism’. It equals protection for the greater body of the nation, it’s health, wealth and education - from abuses that would be laid upon it from the few and powerful.

The ability to protect the greater body of the nation (most of us) from abuses of the powerful (feudalism) is what this Country was founded upon. Not ‘Capitalism’.

For years, price locking is done on apartments throughout large cities in the U.S. to prevent those cities from having a burdensome number of citizens on welfare.

Again- this has nothing to do with Capitalism and, if anything, price locking helps assure the success of capitalistic endeavors by affording people with a roof over their heads from which they can join the labor pool.

Capitalism cannot exist without affordable housing for the majority of lower paid workers. Capitalism cannot exist without a strong middle class. You kill these elements - you kill the country.

Growing up poor, hungry, homeless and at times in the foster care system, I always remembered one thing:  If you go to bed hungry and homeless, you wake up hungry and homeless.  Just a thought…

Benedictine wrote:
“Regulation does not equal ‘socialism’. It equals protection for the greater body of the nation,
it’s health, wealth and education…”

Great post!
Thanks.

There is a track into homelessness in America, which hardly exists in other rich democracies like ours.
This is being struck by illness or injury and not having the means
nor the insurance to pay for medical bills.
And then having to sell away the roof over your head, or worse, be foreclosed upon.
This is happening all across our country by the thousands.

In Europe that’s unthinkable. You can’t put people on the street because they sick.
Making sure everybody’s health is taken care of is the bottom line.
That’s an undisputed societal commitment.

But we’ll go even a step further and even make those struck by tragic illness
give up their homes so they can pay up.
That’s pretty sick for a civilized society.
But that’s OK for us, because
it’s not happening to us.
It’s somebody else.

Socialism wears a mask pretending to cover many social problems.  Homelessness is, in many cases, caused by a combination of human greed, misfortune and just plain stupidity.
The European way is wonderful when you’re on tour.  How many Americans apply for citizenship to EU countries ?  How many EU citizens apply for U.S. citizenship ?  Compare the numbers and then tell me which society is more desirable.

Using BC does not guarantee you will not have a child, once you are pregnant and perhaps not in an ideal situation, it does not mean you did not plan well, you can say that about anything.
The point I see from this article is that you should not be realizing that people who work and live in society you see everyday can be homeless or very poor. I lived here in Kalispell when life circumstances suddenly changed with severe health issues for the breadwinner of the family. I paid my rent so I was not homeless, but came close to it, and went without food often.

By Fair Row on 09-24-09
Socialism wears a mask pretending to cover many social problems.  Homelessness is, in many cases, caused by a combination of human greed, misfortune and just plain stupidity.
The European way is wonderful when you’re on tour.  How many Americans apply for citizenship to EU countries ?  How many EU citizens apply for U.S. citizenship ?  Compare the numbers and then tell me which society is more desirable.

So very True!
The bigger point here is Parents teaching their kids the wisdom and Values of what being a responsible person for ones own well being. There are sooooo many ways to get a “hand-up” in this great country! (and Goverment isnt the answer) Good people are!

obviously, there are many reasons for homelessness.  For those truly homeless, there should be the shelters, etc.  Then there are the others who choose irresponsibility.  If the parents and friends are irresponsibile, they do not have the knowledge to teach their children.  Those underage who have chosen to drop out of school, and do not wish to follow the rules at home, they should not be counted in with the homeless, nor should they receive the benefits of those who deserve and so desperately need these programs.  Yes, friends and family are wonderful, but when they cannot or will not step in to help those deserving, the government programs must be there.

I agree to a point Mitch, its when personal iintegrity is lacking and the system is “gamed” by those who wont help themselves. There is also a lot of help that one can get from local Churches and org’s like Salvation army.

Up to this point the citizens haven’t done too well in taking care of their own funds, or the economy wouldn’t be in the financial mess it is in.  I would have to wonder how many would pay off mortgages, and how many would buy new toys and still end up losing their homes.  Give us credit and away we go!

Brent:  30 TRILLION dollars ?  I don’t think so.  Not that we wouldn’t be that stupid. We simply do not have it and could only resort to the printing press much, much more than we have.  That would mean hyper-hyper inflation very quickly.

See you in the woods !

Brent.  There’s a fascinating article on soup in this edition.  I read an AP report that a bowl of soup costs 34 billion dollars. I’m not sure if that’s true or not…but…

So you’re saying a bowl soup does indeed cost $34 billion? Fascinating. That’s good to know. Thanks for the info.

Huh, I wonder what is in that soup?

Brent:

(wink)

Beacon Editors:  Now see what you’ve gone and done with that damn bowl of soup !  And it ain’t French Onion either.

Don’t look at me.  These are Brent’s numbers.

Most of these posts are pretty ridiculous. This couple is to blame for being irresponsible. They were high-school sweethearts who had un-protected sex and brought a child into the world that they could not afford. It would have been cheaper to buy BIRTH CONTROL…now the cycle will continue. The taxpayers are paying for their irresponsible planning, they will raise a child poor, uneducated and bound to make the same poor mistakes as their parents, or worse yet turn to drugs and crime as most do in these situations. It’s not just here, it’s everywhere. Stop blaming the goverment or anyone else for people not taking responsibility for their actions.

Oh, so judgemental. There have been times in my life that I had to wash my families clothes in the bathtub we were so poor. It had nothing to do with being irresponsible, it was life circumstance. Thank fully, we are now in a position in life to buy a house, but it wasn’t always like that. There ARE those less fortunate than us. We aren’t all high and mighty because we have full tummies and a nightly roof over our heads.
  Sure, there are alot of people who use the gov to support them, and have no remorse, and not much pride, but there are also those who are horrified of the thought of a handout, yet at the moment they have no choice. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and try to imagine what they could be going through. Perhaps you’ll think a little differently about other’s misfortunes.

isn’t it unfortunate there are not the resources available to research each and every case thoroughly.  I wish there were nasty jobs the irresponsible could be made to preform to pay back the money they draw from our system.  However I feel all elderly and veterans should not want for anything.  Then of course are those who are uninsured and ill.  What a sad world that the lazy worthless bums can take away from those who really need it.

Judgmental ?  Yes !  Sometimes being so is necessary. And I happen to believe that Nancy is absolutely right.  There is no need to bring a child into the world when circumstances are such the Welch couple were experiencing.  That’s the judgmental point. Not being poor, but taking actions that do not improve your lot, and then afflicting an innocent person with your poverty.  Get real. Use your bootstraps to pull yourself up in this world rather than tread on them.

How do you know they were not using birth control?

Maybe I am being a bit judgemental….I have reason to be. My daughter and son-in-law moved in with us to save money and have put starting a family ON HOLD for the very reasons I mentioned in my earlier post. Common sense and re: MJV24, obviously they did not use the proper precautions since she did get pregnant. There are many choices of birth control, more so now than when I was growing up. We do what we can in these hard times, sacrifice, go without, work jobs you normally wouldn’t think of doing to make ends meet and YES not having children you cannot afford. They were living in a shelter while she got pregnant and they are back there again. Own up and take responsibility, others do it every day.

Mitch says: “I wish there were nasty jobs the irresponsible could be made to preform to pay back the money they draw from our system.”

Our system is in the biggest debt of all time. The systems government employees enjoy all the benefits taxpayers provide. I wonder how to define “the condition of our system”

Mitch: How are you going to collect from the irresponsible establishment that runs this country into the dirt. How much do our children owe and what will they have to show for it?

I’d just like to say, i am so tired of hearing ‘their taking the taxpayers money, etc’. I’ve been
homeless several times throughout my life, and i may be again before i know it, and guess
what? during the times when i was and worked at the same time, guess where MY taxes were
going? the same place as everyone else’s. I would never wish my kids away because i fell on
hard times and it make me ill to hear people berate others because they had the bad grace to
fall on hard times when they had children. Everyone who works (over the table) gets taxes
taken out, EVEN the homeless and low-income.