
Origami-Style Cardboard Tents for Homeless in Brussels - zonotope
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/30/world/europe/belgium-cardboard-tents-homeless.html
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krisroadruck
I'm absolutely baffled as to why we still have _ANY_ homeless people in any
first world country. The cost to get them all into housing is barely a
rounding error against most countries annual tax revenue numbers. The US, for
instance, takes in about $2.6T/year, there are about 500K homeless people.
Even at a cost of $1000 per month per person to provide each one shelter we
are talking $6B, or 0.23% of the annual tax revenue, or just 1% of our annual
military spending. And mind you $1000 per person per month is on the high
side.

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alphonsegaston
Because the dominant ideology in America (grotesquely) equates Capitalism with
justice. The poor and the weak must suffer and die to prove the rightness of
Capitalism’s ordering principles. And to stand as an object lesson to anyone
who might think about veering to far outside these boundaries.

Rationality doesn’t even begin to enter into the equation in the way you
describe. It’s about reinforcing a system of human sacrifice as insane and
archaic millennia as old pagan traditions for the sake of preserving this
order.

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icebraining
Brussels is not in America, though.

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alphonsegaston
I was referring to the parent’s example and most of Europe adheres to an only
moderated form of this ideology anyway. Germany especially.

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icebraining
> “Cardboards are light, they keep the heat, and _if they don’t get wet_ ,
> they are pretty resistant,”

Yeah, that might be a difficult bit in Brussels, where is rains (or snows) 13
days per month during the winter.

Has any of these kinds of projects (giving portable "tents" to homeless
people) ever had a lasting impact? I remember quite a few articles about their
initial phase, none about their status a year or more afterwards.

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DoreenMichele
The article specifies they hope they will last 2 weeks to a month. I actually
consider that to be a feature, not a bug. When I was homeless, I replaced my
tent every 1 to 3 months for cleanliness reasons. Most homeless people are not
as fastidious as I was in terms of overall cleanliness. My opinion: the lack
of cleanliness worsens health issues and makes their problems more
intractable.

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icebraining
That's a very good point, which I hadn't considered, thanks. The dampness
might even make it more important that they replace the tent.

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DoreenMichele
Yes, mold is a very serious health threat and is common in areas where
homeless people often sleep, especially in bad weather, like under a bridge
near a river. Mold infections are notoriously hard to treat and are probably
underdiagnosed.

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smoyer
People are already building geodesic domes and portable yurts out of plastic
corrugate. If you want it to be more permanent and weather-proof, upgrade to
something water-proof. The plastic corrugate still has an insulation advantage
over even a fabric tent.

[https://www.homedepot.com/p/48-in-x-96-in-x-157-in-White-
Cor...](https://www.homedepot.com/p/48-in-x-96-in-x-157-in-White-Corrugated-
Plastic-Cardboard-10-Pack-WC4896-10/202489118)

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analog31
I remember reading a book by Buckminster Fuller, and he mentioned designing
geodesic domes out of wax coated cardboard. That was decades ago. The assembly
instructions, using a large stapler, were printed on the cardboard. The same
could easily be done with a more modern material such as that corrugated
plastic.

