[ExI] On the Street and On Facebook: The Homeless Stay Wired

[Gary Miller]

[quote]
Well..., I think the need for being informed, connected with other human 
beings and feeling recognized as worthy of respect (even if only on the net) 
is right up there with needing food, clothing & bedding and some sort of 
shelter for the night.

Anna, you have a lot to learn about people.

John
[/quote]

[quote]
Sure, I hear 'Internet Access' is right next to food, clothing and bedding 
on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

Richard
[quote]

Without knowing exactly how widespread this phenomena is, it is strongly 
reminiscent of Gibson's Chiba City.

But my more cynical side tell me that Sex is on Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs 
and with the limited opportunities for legitimate relationships the homeless 
face and the excess of free time the internet is a great source of free porn 
and an opportunity to contact altruistic or naive souls who may seeking a 
soulmate or a opportunity to help the downtrodden.

In fact the other great source for free internet available to the homeless 
includes the Public Library System which in the case of Dallas Texas finds 
that ...

According to an analysis conducted by the Dallas Morning News, about 7.5 
percent of the web pages accessed at Dallas libraries are pornographic. The 
Dallas Public Library system, however, feels strongly about keeping it's web 
pages unfiltered due to the large number of medical and artistic pages (many 
of them constitutionally protected) that are often blocked with pornography 
filters.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/011508dnmetlibraryporn.27bb24d.html

http://filteringfacts.org/2009/03/

Depending on whether you believe that porn is either a healthy outlet or an 
enticement, such free access could be affecting the rate of violent sexual 
crime among the homeless population.

Based upon anecdotal media accounts I can remember and Googling (homeless 
sex crimes)  1,030,000 hits,  it either appears that there is a much higher 
percentage of sexual offenders among the homeless population or a much 
higher percentage of the homeless population resorting to sexual assaults to 
satisfy their hierarchy of needs.

I'm not saying that providing the homeless with free internet lessen or 
worsens the problem but I smell an interesting research study there.

Gary