I recently ventured out to downtown Santa Cruz in the middle of the night. I wanted to see what it was like for homeless people in Santa Cruz.

After my experience, I feel a lot of sympathy for these folks. The downtown environment seemed surreal. Totally quiet and most buildings lit up like they were open. Those building stood safe and unoccupied while people curled up in the hidden corners of the downtown area. I wondered to myself what the real crime was that I was witnessing. Despite the fact that these people have no place to call home, most all manage to obey the rest of the laws and don't harm people around them.

We need a real solution to the homelessness crisis. It is a matter of life and death for many of these people.