Problem, meet solution

One thing you don’t see out here in Singapore is homeless people.  I’m sure there are some here and there, but I can’t imagine a city like this would ever let them be seen by the public.  Part of it probably also comes from the the fact that Singapore is wealthy,  and the government has the resources and motivation to make sure people have homes.  But I think another part of it is how Singapore deals with mental health issues.  In the US, people with mental health problems are on their own.  If they’re lucky, they’ll have a caring family or friends who will look after them. But if they’re poor or have no one in their life, then they have to fend for themselves, and often that means they become homeless.  There’s no way they could ever hold a job or have the ability to manage a lease on an apartment.  We, as the people of the United States, have collectively decided that the best way to handle people with insurmountable mental disabilities is to simply ignore them and just have them wander the streets aimlessly.  In Singapore, they seem to take a much more proactive approach.  Here, the city apparently takes its population of people with severe mental health problems, and has them become taxi drivers. I know, it sounds crazy, (and I’m not even sure that’s actually the official policy) but it kind of makes sense; it takes the mentally ill off the streets, allows them to earn the money for care and medicine, and also gives them a role in society. Sure, there are some problems; you do have to constantly look out for cabs driving double the speeds limit whenever you cross Singapore’s notoriously pedestrian-unfriendly streets.  Even while in a crosswalk, cabs will often speed right up to you, braking in the last minute, their bumpers stopping inches from your knees.  Sometimes they’ll just barrel through an intersection, although some, despite their obvious uncontrolable mental health issues, still have the sense of decency to lay down on their horn to warn oncoming pedestrians that they’re not planning on stopping.  Nothing is perfect, but this system does beat having to awkwardly walk past them on the street as they desperately beg for change, pretending that you’re checking something really important on your phone.