The homeless problem

Have you ever noticed that people talk about "solving the homeless problem" instead of "helping homeless people solve their
problems?"

Chronically homeless people tend to have substantial, complex problems.  Some homeless people are dangerous.

There is no excuse for the substantial, complex, dangerous failures of all of the systems that are supposed to help homeless people solve their problems.

Homeless people don't "fall through the cracks."  That phrase implies that homeless support systems have imperfect but functional coherence.  These systems don't have functional coherence, perfect or imperfect.  They will swear with varying degrees of sincerity that they're doing the best they can, and that is not true.

Homeless people are considered flotsam by most of the world.  Homeless support systems not only reflect but perpetuate that perception; they depend on it to excuse their incompetence.