Logged Dead
Thursday, 15. March 2007, 04:15:46
During the era of Sailing ships, a troublesome or non working crewman would be logged dead. That is, His name would be entered in the ships daily log as having died. The Sailor would then be forced to climb the ships rigging and then not allowed to return to the deck. In time the sailor would no longer be found in the ships rigging.
When a person becomes homeless, he is often labeled as an alcoholic, drug abuser, or mentally ill. It would be interesting to find out how long any person in general, will behave when deprived of shelter (a place to relax or sleep), Hygienic facilities (toilette, shower, and sink); who would not be described as mentally ill, or resort to alcohol? A homeless person also must endure harassment from citizenry who want him out of the public space. On one hand you have a citizenry, who have shelter and access to private hygiene facilities, want to deny access to public to a homeless person who hasn't any alternative. Admittedly I myself feel resentment at times against homeless, who having no alternative, occupy public space. Many Public spaces are designed to eliminate locations for homeless people. While law enforcement officials are pressured to remove the homeless from public spaces.
A homeless person is effectively no longer a citizen. There is a residence requirement to vote. A homeless person when victimized often is denied legal recourse. Try to file a police report without an address or phone number, contact information is often a requirement to seek legal redress. A homeless person is often denied access to personal identification. A major requirement for officially recognized identification is an address. It seems as if there isn't a solution. How can the those who are fortunate, deemed so by a social and legal system; deny those who are less fortunate, protection from the same social legal system?
In a way this custom of logging a person dead continues to this day, in as far as Homeless people are treated. These people who are forced to live on the street, denied a place to sleep, or store their possessions, and often denied legal protection and citizen rights. Today they are logged dead. Tomorrow, they are gone, no longer bothering those who at present, are more fortunate than them.
When a person becomes homeless, he is often labeled as an alcoholic, drug abuser, or mentally ill. It would be interesting to find out how long any person in general, will behave when deprived of shelter (a place to relax or sleep), Hygienic facilities (toilette, shower, and sink); who would not be described as mentally ill, or resort to alcohol? A homeless person also must endure harassment from citizenry who want him out of the public space. On one hand you have a citizenry, who have shelter and access to private hygiene facilities, want to deny access to public to a homeless person who hasn't any alternative. Admittedly I myself feel resentment at times against homeless, who having no alternative, occupy public space. Many Public spaces are designed to eliminate locations for homeless people. While law enforcement officials are pressured to remove the homeless from public spaces.
A homeless person is effectively no longer a citizen. There is a residence requirement to vote. A homeless person when victimized often is denied legal recourse. Try to file a police report without an address or phone number, contact information is often a requirement to seek legal redress. A homeless person is often denied access to personal identification. A major requirement for officially recognized identification is an address. It seems as if there isn't a solution. How can the those who are fortunate, deemed so by a social and legal system; deny those who are less fortunate, protection from the same social legal system?
In a way this custom of logging a person dead continues to this day, in as far as Homeless people are treated. These people who are forced to live on the street, denied a place to sleep, or store their possessions, and often denied legal protection and citizen rights. Today they are logged dead. Tomorrow, they are gone, no longer bothering those who at present, are more fortunate than them.
WIDGETIZE