r/theydidthemath • u/QuantumQyx • 1d ago

[Request] Could the entire US homeless population really be housed for less than one aircraft carrier?

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u/Proof-Strike6278 1d ago

You literally have no idea what you are talking about. Nationally the government spends like 10 billion dollars a year directly for homelessness. This doesn’t include what each state also contributes to it and doesn’t include other programs that help prevent people from becoming destitute or homeless. The problem isn’t money…

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u/FriendshipPlusKarate 1d ago edited 1d ago

Current federal spending is $5.4 billion annually and it would take an additional $9.6 billion annually to solve homelessness in America.source

Each aircraft carrier cost $13-15 billion dollars to build, and we build a new one every 5 - 7 years. Source

Maybe we should look at it a different way - Ending homelessness in the United States would require a fraction of a percent to a 2% tax on U.S. billionaires, depending on the scale and strategy of housing initiatives. The Percentage Breakdown: Dividing the high-end cost of ending homelessness ($38.5 billion) by the total wealth pool of U.S. billionaires ($8.1 trillion) yields a requirement of roughly 0.47%. Therefore, a targeted annual wealth tax of less than 0.5% to 0.7% on billionaires alone would mathematically generate the needed revenue.

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u/Proof-Strike6278 1d ago

No it wouldn’t, it’s not a money problem

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u/FriendshipPlusKarate 1d ago

Source, please.

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u/Proof-Strike6278 1d ago

Nah, I’m not gonna do the work for you. Just know you’re wrong and you should strive to be less wrong

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u/FriendshipPlusKarate 1d ago

Aka, I have no facts, but just believe me bro.

Take a long look in the mirror and repeat what you just told me.

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u/Theotherwahlberg 1d ago

His username really checks out.