Many Americans, especially older Americans, feel entitled to a specific American experience. They put the work in and do all the right things or whatever and then they get rewarded with a perfect American home in a perfect American neighborhood. The existence of homeless people in their oh so special slice of America both takes away from the perfect fantasy America they deserve, and de-legitimize the system that props it up.

Libs have to reject homeless people because the contradictions of capitalism are so blatantly obvious in their appearance, let alone their experience, that they have to reject them out of hand, before any real arguments get to the table. It's easiest to think of if you imagine them thinking through it backwards.

I know this system is great because it gave me all this great stuff that I definitely deserve, so if this system has done great stuff and homeless people have always existed regardless of the system then it's probably just a fact of life and not a consequence of capitalism. Then once they've decided that homeless people are their own immutable category of people it's pretty easy for them to justify relegating them to the corners of society. Why would those who don't fit into this great society want to be a part of it anyway? Tons of libs have stories about a homeless person that chose to be homeless because they hated to work, or some other reason.

Also when you're so used to the idea of segregation based on class and you think that there is some inherent justice to the class system someone trying to build a homeless shelter in your community is like telling them that they deserve to be homeless.

:cedar-rapids: