Originally Posted by
indyfabz
We know that he is unemployed and contemplating trying to get "food stamps" so he can see the country on a bicycle. Are you good with that? As I have previously stated, I certainly am not.
I live in the bum capital of the nation. Okay, maybe not the capital, but we do have about ten times the ratio of homeless/housed as the national average and they all seem to pass by my house daily (I live between the river and the mission, which feeds/houses many of them). The riverfront near my house is full of drug addicts on SSI disability (alcoholism is a disability) who smoke and drink all day every day. Thus, I'm not inclined to be super supportive of freeloaders.
However, I wouldn't mind it if our support dollars went to folks who rode their bikes around the country looking for opportunities. At least they are likely to stay somewhat healthy and add some flavor to the places they stop. I've known people in similar situations who did indeed find ways out of them and went on to thrive economically. A couple of them found a trucking firm that was willing to teach them to drive class A trucks and then pay them to drive them 16-hour shifts all summer long. After that job, all other work seemed easy for them. (Said firm was Morningstar trucking in Woodland, CA. They hire people to haul tomatoes all summer while providing housing and kitchens.)