Re: William F. Klepper’s Nov. 29 letter, “It’s not Uncle Sam’s job,� a response to my Nov. 28 letter, “S.V. can do more�:
I wrote about the homeless camp knowing that it would ruffle some feathers. It saddens me that money is the only argument that Mr. Klepper had against aid for the homeless. I never meant to imply that the city should rip his wallet out of his pocket and buy homes for the homeless. I only meant to point out that our city, like so many others, doesn’t address the homeless problem except to make it unlawful. Mr. Klepper’s logic is in the age-old question: “Am I my brother’s keeper?�
Let’s use the “not my problem� logic and stop spending on public projects such as schools, libraries and fire departments. We could save a great deal of tax dollars if we would simply declare these to be someone else’s problem. Those who could afford an education would have an education, and those who could afford a book to read would have a book, and — well, the point is clear. We provide these things because it benefits society as a whole. We all profit from educated citizens and open libraries and, of course, the fire departments.
We have allowed our city to evolve to the point that our own children leave just to find homes. This is because the city isn’t committed to addressing the low-income housing problem that we have here. They need realistic low-income requirements for projects built in the city, with solid rules that would give our low-income citizens access to homes. And, there may come a day when the smiling associate at the local retailer doesn't have to sleep in a car at night. We need to realize that, yes, we are our brother’s keeper.
— Ron Hawley, Simi Valley
Leave a comment