And a good governor doesn't step in and force local governments to do what their citizens don't want done.

Local solutions are better. The citizens, city council, county board, and neighboring cities need to sort this out.

Still, it's a crying shame. Those people will all still be there, only less visible and more at risk.

Very sad.

a Democratic value (but it is a terribly common Democratic practice).

Nobody's criminalizing poverty.

They had a permit granted by the city council to create and maintain a camp. The city council decided not to renew the permit.

No criminal nothing going on there.

I suppose you want the governor or president to go tell the Placerville city council what to do in their own city.

Yeah, that's fucking brilliant.

Now if, on the other hand, there's any state-owned or federal land around, you might have an argument, but this is Placerville, and a camp for homeless folks who could prove 6 months residency.

There's absolutely nothing that can be done about this, or really anything, for that matter. It's really quite a shame that Democrats have no influence in California, I'm sure if they did, some of them might step in.

"The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread." - François-Anatole Thibault

There is nothing new here, nor is your acceptance of punishing "those people". Sadly, your attitude is completely typical.

It's not entirely easy, because many of them have personal issues that set them on the path to homelessness, but taking away what little they have and sending them on their way is utterly inhumane. A truly civilized society provides shelter for everyone, even those, maybe especially those, who are not able to work within the ordinary social framework for any number of reasons; addictions, mental illness, other disabilities, or just plain old wanderlust.

A society that is unable to provide for everyone is a failure.

+100000

and here this group found a way to make it work, in their own society, taking care of each other

Though police say people at Hangtown Haven weren’t to blame for the troubles, crews are to disconnect the camp’s electricity and water supply and pull out its Porta Potties and 38 tents. They’ll soon remove the community service sheds, the warming stove, the used books library and the big-screen TV that served as an outdoor movie theater.

Haven member Jennifer Webb, 39, simply sobbed. “I’m not holding up well at all,” she said.

With its donated tents and supplies, Hangtown Haven provided a refuge while Webb, diagnosed with a schizoaffective disorder, overcame getting “scared to death” by most everything around her. She just recently started to apply for work.

With everything the world has thrown at these folks, they were finding a way to get by.

Don't human beings have a right to exist somewhere? Where are they supposed to go?

I do not think it can hurt to contact Jerry Brown and demand he do something to stop this assault on already suffering human beings.

Governor Jerry Brown
c/o State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: (916) 445-2841
Fax: (916) 558-3160

http://govnews.ca.gov/gov39mail/mail.php

Nice place. Dorms, warm, kitchen. very nice. Of course there are rules to follow which will disinclude many homeless people, but something is being done. And here there are a LOT of homeless people but they don't seem to be in camps or that visible as a group....

It will be permanent and have room for 54 persons, just a few more than the temporary camp in Placerville.

I think it's a better project by far, though requires more funding than the other model (but well worth the extra cost and effort).

The rules are pretty strong there and I know that most people will not want to follow them. I live right by it and I know a number of homeless people around here and NONE of them will go to Utah's place. They will receive Hospitality House outreach but they will continue to go to the woods overnight....No drugs, no alcohol... no lots of stuff and it is very clean and expects to stay that way...... It would be hard to convince me to go there...

Don't get me wrong, I think it is a great idea and the people who made it happen are world's champions, some of them friends of mine, but I am not convinced it is going to be the panacea to homelessness in the area that people think it will be.

It was a very expensive endeavor and will continue to be so.

I wish they would have bought the old Hills Flat property on the Grass Valley Highway and then used that building and create a camp situation where those that cannot abide can go.

....