Re: “Greg Kesich: Mayhew’s campaign against Portland takes a bizarre turn” (Feb. 25):

The back and forth between the state and the city of Portland’s advocates for the shelter and the homeless has been illuminating. I certainly didn’t need to be informed that mental health issues are a reason why many people are in shelters.

In fact, Kesich’s hyperbole about rich people staying in shelters serves only to prove that the “advocates” for the downtrodden in our biggest city would rather engage in a political battle than focus on making sure those among us who are least able to fend for ourselves are able to utilize all of the resources to which they are entitled.

I suspect the funds accumulated in the bank accounts of our wealthiest homeless are the result of their eligibility for government assistance – likely SSI, SSDI and the like. Since these funds were provided to assist them in daily living and avoid falling into crisis, they should certainly be utilized to that end, certainly before putting an additional burden on taxpayers.

But our advocates for the homeless would rather deflect and justify the status quo than acknowledge that maybe it is time to change the way they have been doing things. They put politics ahead of serving their constituents.


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