Here’s a good ethical puzzle for a social problems or public policy class. Is it morally acceptable for New York City to address their homeless problem by providing them a one-way airline ticket. Apparently, the city has saved thousands of dollars by giving indigent residents the option of moving to another city or state.
On one hand, this seems to meet the conditions of market exchange — two parties engaged in a voluntary transaction. And with the city’s unemployment over 10 percent, perhaps helping the homeless move addresses a jobs/labor spatial mismatch? On the other hand, it seems as if the city is “giving up” on its residents. It is presuming that providing social services is an economic drain rather than a human capital investment. More importantly, it is signaling that some residents of the city are more valuables than others.
HT: Planetizen
Comments 2
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist — September 18, 2009
that's horrible. Um, yeah, HEY, NEW YORK CITY, how about directing them to the employment center and try to set them up with a specially assigned worker who'll help them find simple labor jobs, for one thing?
What's wrong with these city authorities? An one-way airline ticket to another city or state? That doesn't address or solve any problems. For instance, it's not any different from let's say, a small town that decides to move its landfills and dump all of it in another town and telling them, "now it's your problem. See ya!"
Lateef — September 18, 2009
Very interesting - it's not obvious to me how this works out in the longer term...but the fact that such a strange and different program is being carried out, and at only $500,000 per year, is an indicator that there is some rationale for it.
New York City improves its per capita income with every impoverished household that leaves the region - I can also see the families themselves benefiting from such drastic and immediate change of environment - once-complacent and impoverished, these families have an opportunity to start anew, in a new setting. So this is bigger than simply providing employment to these complacent heads-of-household -- in fact, sending them to work at menial/manual labor wage rates only increases their problems...rents are very high in NYC - they'd be working just to pay bills, not to invest in their future...a broke family in the Bronx can literally buy a house in South Carolina ($125,000 2 bedroom house in decent neighborhood - paying nothing down after the housing loan tax credit).
I would like to see any stats on this program - anyone know of any?