Tent village volunteers pledge to continue aid efforts for unemployed

Monday 05th January, 03:15 PM JST

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notimpressed at 06:29 PM JST - 5th January

there is work and slavelabour. Everyone deserves to be paid what their work is worth, but its pretty easy for some people to fall through the cracks. That free lunch/ charity is more than that, its a chance for people to get one step up from the bottom. All the people who never know any real hardship in their lives then try to preach about how worthless the unfortunate souls of the world are, well, I hope someone gives you a hand up shoud ever you fall. Not everyone has the family, friends, mental/emotional cpacity or an altruistic society to back them up in times of need. shzt happens, but worse for some. Have a heart..sheesh
Helly at 07:57 PM JST - 5th January

OH YEAH! I totally agree. The current system should be changed so that the company is fined for hire/fire antics. A lot of foreign banks do this with no recourse. I have actually heard them planning out such ideas. I think that if a company let's some one go they should have to pay out the person and not just drop them on their heads.
Athletes at 08:04 PM JST - 5th January

For thousands homeless we can provide free meals & accomodation for a few weeks. For this current economic climate, we require long term plan for supplying them. The more homeless army will come. We may need one year or two years budget for surviving. May be more than that.

Some people think one month or two months will solve this economic crisis. This crisis will be longer and server than 1930s. I am having only one meal a day for saving another meal for homeless. I want to help them until everthing get back to normal.

Therefore, we need some contribution from everyone. Babies can be make the commercial photos for milk powders & nappies.
JinseiNoSensei at 10:53 PM JST - 5th January

How do I get a message through to the organizers and volunteers...? I'm interested in helping a family who'll help me keep up the house and repair rooms. They'd be welcome to stay as long as I can afford to feed them, but I need help too. I wonder how many of them would really consider an offer to earn their way into room and board. The offer is sincere and legitimate. Any ideas...?
BlackFlag at 11:57 PM JST - 5th January

Wait. I thought you were one of the people trying to convince me that the homeless weren't lazy and really wanted to work.

no that was your mistaken interpretation.
BlackFlag at 11:58 PM JST - 5th January

they are not lazy, they want to work but they need CHARITY. you sir are a trolling buffon
usaexpat at 12:25 AM JST - 6th January

The presence of a "tent village" should be both an embarassment and wake up call to the leaders of Japan. This is a country where almost everybody was guaranteed lifetime employment. Things my friends are not looking good.
ca1ic0cat at 03:59 AM JST - 6th January

They used to call tent villages "Hoovervilles." Maybe these are Asojukus? This isn't exactly a charity for the chronically homeless. It is a stopgap for people who, up until recently, were gainfully employed. They know how to do something useful but the recent economic upheval has caused their employers to cut jobs. They got here by no particular fault of their own. Instead of heaping scorn on them we should all be thinking of how lucky we are that we haven't had to joing them...yet.
shiuu at 06:28 AM JST - 6th January

they are not lazy, they want to work but they need CHARITY

If they're actually willing to work, why the near hysterical reaction when I suggest a simple task to cover some of the electricity they're using?
shiuu at 06:36 AM JST - 6th January

Instead of heaping scorn on them we should all be thinking of how lucky we are that we haven't had to joing them...yet.

I'm not heaping scorn on them. I'm suggesting ways in which they can help pay their own way.

However, the "yet" at the end of your statement indicates a certain amount of defeatism on your part. I will heap scorn on that. Everyone needs to recognize that homelessness is not random or inevitable and that if you make sufficient effort, you can avoid it altogether.
Badsey at 06:53 AM JST - 6th January

with the way people are reacting it makes you wonder what they will be saying when the situation gets worse (and it will).

so far I feel the Gov is making good decisions on this issue.

Some of these people may go into work camps (farming help etc) -good cheaper labor so why not use it. Taking advantage of the situation.
Sammi33 at 10:25 AM JST - 6th January

500 homeless living in buildings. Abandoned farms all around the rural areas of Japan. A call for more domestic produce.

The government sees working-age Japanese as little more than slaves anyway, why not kill two birds with one stone?
zhazam05 at 02:01 PM JST - 6th January

There is nolonger ANY protection for the average worker Big BUisness/Japan Picked up on these union busting, american corperations ! Retailers,supermarkets and the like offer only P.T.jobs with very few benefits They really suck like Goldang Vampires!Please,stay on top of this,work your best for your fellow people!thank you.
ca1ic0cat at 10:46 PM JST - 6th January

yet, eh? That's not defeatism, that's unfortuante reality. All predictions are that the economic situation will get worse, not better. Any of us might end up unemployed, which sucks. These people aren't on the street because they want to be any more than any of us would volunteer for a similar situation.

Suggestions that the government use unemployed people to do public works projects are spot on. There is no reason to dole out money without some work in return. It's not likely that any of the currently unemployed are going to find new work until the economy turns around, so better to get the projects going now rather than waiting for social upheval.

But a little sympathy for the people stuck in this predicament is in order. Maybe they could have saved more, maybe they could have gotten a better education. But then again half the population is below median intellegence by definitiion. They need to work too. Doing what?
usaexpat at 12:45 AM JST - 7th January

ca1ic0cat: you are right on, look back to the WPA in the US during the great depression. Parks and infrastructure which survive to this day were built by the unemployed with government money. I said that every country should have had a system like that even before the economy went south. Putting people to work making the country stronger is far better than just giving out money. Let's get creative here people, it's not as though there aren't jobs that could be created for the betterment of the country.