Homelessness is a growing problem across so many cities and towns in our great dominion. And that would include Hamilton, Ont. (population 579,200).

The City of Hamilton estimates that about 1,600 of its residents are homeless, with more than 200 of them living outside. We think those estimates are very much on the low side.

Last year, former Ontario NDP leader and current Hamilton mayor Andrea Horwath called on city staff to come up with a plan for temporary shelters at serviced “sanctioned” sites as Hamilton’s homelessness crisis continues to deepen.

In a recent Hamilton Spectator report, the mayor noted the homelessness crisis has worsened amid an “unprecedented” shortage of shelter beds and affordable homes, which, in turn, has led to “disruptions” of businesses and feelings of unease among city staff.

But in the final analysis, it’s been a lot of talk but very little action.

Rebel News recently visited “The Hammer,” best known for its steel industry and it CFL team, the Tiger-Cats. We ventured downtown as darkness began to take lease. It made for a depressing and frightening venture.

There were entire encampments of homeless people sitting on sidewalks. Several were getting inebriated on booze or getting high on drugs. It did not feel safe.

And in many ways, downtown Hamilton now resembles Flint, Michigan. Ma & Pa stores are papered over, an entire shopping mall near Jackson Square is shuttered and covered in graffiti. The decaying urban environment reminded us of a set of lyrics from Burce Springsteen’s melancholy masterpiece, “My Hometown”:

Now Main Street's whitewashed windows
And vacant stores
Seems like there ain't nobody
Wants to come down here no more
They're closing down the textile mill
Across the railroad tracks
Foreman says, "These jobs are going, boys
And they ain't coming back.”

In the final analysis, our visit made us recall that shocking Privy Council report that was released in April. It painted a dire picture of Canada descending into something out of a dystopian sci-fi novel.

The report, authored by Policy Horizons (billed as a foresight organization within the federal government), pointed to possible future scenarios. Entitled, “Future Lives: Social Mobility in Question,” the report raised alarm bells about how “downward social mobility" might become the norm in the future. The authors lay out a scenario for 2040 – a mere 15 years away – in which wealthy Canadians either leave Canada or live in gated communities whereas the lion’s share of the Canadian people is reduced to foraging and illegally hunting in order to feed themselves.

This report, in our opinion, did not get the media attention it deserved during the federal election campaign. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre certainly made mention of it, but Mark Carney pretty much ignored it.

After our recent visit to Steeltown, a question arises: is this dire 2040 scenario already an entrenched fact of life for too many Canadians in 2025? It would seem so.

As well, another question arises: how does this nation actually address the war on poverty if the Liberal government keeps importing the world’s impoverished masses (and putting them up in swank hotels no less)?

Hopefully Prime Minister Carney – or Brookfield Asset Management – will be able to figure out the answers to these important queries in the months ahead. In the meantime, it would appear that the descent to that 2040 dystopian future is full speed ahead.

PETITION: Fix Our Cities!

22,607 signatures

Goal: 30,000 signatures

Canada's urban centres are spiraling into decay and chaos, with rampant crime, open drug use, and rising poverty turning once-desirable cities into places of fear. From violent knife attacks on Toronto’s public transit to open-air drug markets in Vancouver, these cities are becoming unrecognizable and unsafe, especially for families. Homeless encampments now dominate public parks and playgrounds, where drug paraphernalia litters spaces meant for children. And it’s not just Toronto and Vancouver — cities across the country are suffering as law and order give way to failed progressive policies. Sign our petition and follow our reporters as we investigate the true causes behind this urban decay and reveal what the mainstream media won’t.

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