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A '''homeless''' person is a vagrant, someone without the income to pay for shelter, living outside because of incompetence, health, economic recession, overpopulation, natural disaster, anarchy and so forth. Because of sanitation and the tendency of the homeless to accost poor people for money, vagrancy in some places is considered a legal offense for which the victim can be arrested. Synonyms include bum, tramp, beggar and hobo.<ref>A.Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation<br />B.~~~</ref> A number of homeless shelters are located across the [[United States]], usually run by [[religious charities]].  Besides giving shelter, they often have programs for job placement that can help the homeless move back into society. Under [[Barack Hussein Obama|President Obama]] some homeowners received taxpayer dollars to help them keep their homes.<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/11/politics/otherpeoplesmoney/main4858348.shtml CBS News]</ref> Under [[George W. Bush|President George W. Bush]], home ownership was at the highest level ever at almost 70%.<ref>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6902224/ NBC News]</ref>

A '''homeless''' person is someone without the income to pay for shelter, living catch-as-catch can, sometimes outside. The causes are many: incompetence, poor mental health, economic recession. Many poor farms and mental hospitals that once housed these people have been shut down.

 

Refugees from wars or natural disasters are not usually included.

 

Because of poor sanitation and the tendency of the homeless to accost people for money, vagrancy in some places is considered a legal offense for which the victim can be arrested.  

 

Synonyms include bum, tramp, beggar and hobo.<ref>A.Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation<br />B.~~~</ref>  

 

Many homeless shelters are located across the United States, usually run by local government or [[religious charities]].   

 

Besides giving shelter, they often have programs for job placement that can help the homeless move back into society. Under [[Barack Hussein Obama|President Obama]] some homeowners received welfare money to help them keep their homes.<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/11/politics/otherpeoplesmoney/main4858348.shtml CBS News]</ref>  

* Link, B. et al. "Lifetime and five-year prevalence of homelessness in the United States" ''American Journal of Orthopsychiatry'', 1995 [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1615395/pdf/amjph00463-0037.pdf online edition]

==References==

==References==

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[[Category:Sociology]]

[[Category:Sociology]]

[[Category:Social Problems]]

[[Category:Social Problems]]