Homeless , why?

Last night Lisa and I bought a pizza and walked into central park to eat it. The light was fading as it was about 9 pm and being in the park at night is a no no because your gonna get your arse mugged. So we are sitting on a bench eating and I'm constantly looking around for signs of trouble. When we had eaten we still had a couple of pieces left in the box. I had noticed a homeless guy lying down in the bushes a little way off so I said to Lisa I wanted to offer it to him. I walked down to him and at first he wouldn't look at me when I spoke to him. Then I half yelled " hey mate, do you want some pizza" he finally turned and looked at me and said that would be nice thank you. He said he was a portrait artist and asks could he do mine as a thank you for the pizza. I politely declined. He said " your an Aussie aren't you" and then started talking to me about show biz Aussies. He also said he was a Musician. I could have talked to him for hours. I wanted to ask him what he was doing in such desperate circumstances but of course it's none of my Business. We said our goodbyes and Lisa and I got out of the park as it was now quite dark. I know this sounds silly but I've been sad ever since I talked with him. I have so much and he has so little.
We have seen so many desperate and homeless people on our trip. Many more than my last visit thanks to the GFC. Not once have I seen anyone talk to, acknowledge or attempt to help them in any way. In America the prevailing attitude seems to be that everyone has the right to succeed. But if you flounder it's your own fault. Americans treat there homeless like they can't see them. Sometimes I give them a buck or two. But you can't help all of them. It's strange but when you are cycle touring, you look a bit like a homeless person and you are sometimes mistaken for one as many of them push bikes with all their worldly treasures hanging on the bike( just like a cycle tourist). It doesn't feel nice when you say hello to a cyclist you pass on a bike path but they look through you like you don't exist.
Sometimes in a temperate place like Santa Cruz there are so many homeless hassling you when you walk down the street that it spoils your experience of that beautiful place. Did you hear what I just said? who the hell am I to complain about someone so desperate to eat that they beg you for 1 cent? It stirs up so many conflicting emotions in me. How can one person have nothing and another person have so much yet they both live in the same 1st world country.
In Australia most of us seem to understand that a little bit of socialism is a good thing. If essential services like health care are controlled by the government then we can all have access to those services. In America many people associate any form of collective or government control as a form of communism. And that's evil. Every man for himself, that's the American way.
Anyway back to my homeless friend in the park. He was laying in the dirt not 100 metres from " The Oak Room" which is a $1000 a plate restaurant on Central Park Ave. He was lying less than 500 metres from Trump Towers. Donald if your reading my blog i want you to know - That's fucked up!

Regards

Mike from iPhone