HOMELESS ORDER SOUNDS HUMANE, BUT …
An executive order signed by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is a microcosm of everything that’s wrong with liberal governance.
The order, which was signed by the Democrat Sunday and takes effect today, requires local authorities throughout the state to force — yes, force — homeless into shelters if the temperature drops below 32 degrees.
Social service agencies, with the help of local police and state authorities if required, will be authorized to drag the estimated 80,000 individuals against their will if necessary into the shelters, which have an estimated 77,000 beds.
Further, the order states, the shelters will be required to extend their hours of operation to be sure the homeless can stay inside when there is “inclement weather which can cause hypothermia, serious injury and death.”
Who will pay the police for the extra manpower it will take? Who will pay for the supplies for the homeless for the extra beds and the amenities they use? How will the agencies pay for the employees or find enough volunteers to staff the shelters? Details, just details. “Our state, which has a beautiful tradition of social progress and community,” Cuomo told New York City news channel NY1, ” should not leave anyone outside in freezing temperatures. That’s called basic humanity.” In reality, it’s just more nanny-state government. The order calls the homelessness roundup an “involuntary placement” of the individuals. However, some homeless have eschewed shelters in the past because they feared falling victim to crime there.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio’s office said in a statement that it supported the order but noted Cuomo actually would have to pass a law to force the homeless into shelters. However, Cuomo said he was ready to defend the constitutionality of the order in court.
A spokesman for the governor later backed off the initial martial law aspect of the order, saying the state’s existing mental hygiene law requires assessments by medical professionals of those who appear to be mentally ill before confinement. But what seems to be at odds is whether homeless will be hauled in, examined, then released if not mentally ill, or whether medical professionals will examine the homeless where they find them and then bring in only the ones they deem mentally ill. Either way, it’s an unworkable mess. The move also clearly has civil rights implications. “Anytime you take somebody off the streets or take them someplace else where they don’t want to go,” said Michael Mayers of the New York Civil Rights Coalition, “your civil rights and civil liberties are an issue.”
Homelessness is a serious matter and is being addressed in a variety of ways in many places but should never become another cog in the we-know-what’s-best-for-you liberal agenda. Of course, this is the same state where former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg attempted to ban 20-ounce soft drinks and set voluntary guidelines on reducing sodium in restaurants and store-bought food.
The state, not surprisingly, is the worst in the nation for personal liberty, according to a 2013 George Mason University study.