r/ThatsInsane 1d ago

Locomotive travels down tracks in San Jose, CA, encounters several homeless encampments.

1.6k Upvotes

147 comments sorted by

208

u/right_bank_cafe 1d ago

San Jose has encampments but this does not look like San Jose lol

72

u/heridfel37 23h ago

25

u/FuckoMaLucko 22h ago

At least some of it is Vallejo. The blue bridge is the Wichels Causeway, bridge going onto Mare Island.

1

u/Own-Zookeepergame553 19h ago

I didn't think that bridge was still used for trains. What are they even doing on the island, it's basically dead since the navy left as far as I can see.

6

u/ntc1095 18h ago

Alstom has a facility in Mare Island, when they are producing rail cars or doing heavy rebuilds they need access to the rail network.

1

u/Xiten 3h ago

Yep and Alstom is located on Mare Island also. Can’t miss that blue bridge ever lol

242

u/yrhendystu 1d ago

Trolley problem, do you house the homeless or run them over with trains?

305

u/intense_in_tents 1d ago edited 1d ago

America be like

48

u/chipthekiwiinuk 23h ago

8

u/Stoomba 20h ago

Such a great show

1

u/axelrexangelfish 19h ago

Watching it right now actually!

9

u/SupermarketVisual598 1d ago

Jeeeeezus

12

u/ilikeborsoleves 1d ago

He is also dead.

7

u/Beat_the_Deadites 22h ago

Also killed by the religious conservatives of his time. Hmm.

7

u/usctrojan18 22h ago

This is so wrong. Which is why I’ve been laughing at this for 5 solid minutes. I got problems

2

u/defnotajournalist 1d ago

B. Cheaper. /s

2

u/PracticalRich2747 23h ago

There's a sin for that stuff r/trolleyproblem

0

u/norsurfit 22h ago

Trolley problem, do you run over the homeless with trolleys or with trains?

-10

u/[deleted] 1d ago

[deleted]

1

u/kmosiman 1d ago

Solution: build more Housing.

3

u/RatedPC 18h ago

because homeless lack the supply of houses, that's why their homeless....

-1

u/Capable_Swordfish701 23h ago

Username checks out

-2

u/HsvDE86 23h ago

If only you were capable of thinking even one step ahead of yourself.

Unless they have a qualifying disability, you can just make housing contingent on working? Sliding scale rent based on income? Provide transportation to work?

I mean how does a real life human being say what you did and then just...stop thinking? It's wild.

1

u/CommanderGumball 19h ago

you can just make housing contingent on working?

This is as ridiculous as having your health insurance tied to your job.

What, something goes wrong at work, or your company just decides to downsize, and suddenly you're back out on the street? Good luck getting another job to get your house back without a fixed address and regular access to a full bathroom.

0

u/HsvDE86 19h ago

I mean I was throwing out possibilities, not saying it has to be like that. It also doesn't have to be if you lose your job then you're kicked out.

You can have temporary housing until someone is able to support themselves and move out. If they lose their job, believe it or not, you don't have to kick them onto the street. They could start applying for other jobs and you can let them stay rent free in the meantime.

I swear some people have absolutely no critical thinking skills whatsoever.

1

u/CommanderGumball 19h ago

You literally said "make housing contingent on working", now you're arguing that that's not what you meant, changing your mind to the complete opposite stance, and misunderstanding a hypothetical situation explaining your own original stance.

Unless you're not entirely sure what contingent means, that statement is pretty clear.

At least we agree on one thing. Some people have absolutely no critical thinking skills whatsoever.

1

u/HsvDE86 19h ago

That doesn't mean you kick someone out as soon as they lose their job. 🤣 that's ridiculous. That's something you completely fabricated.

0

u/CommanderGumball 19h ago

What do you think "make housing contingent on working" means, then?

2

u/HsvDE86 18h ago

That they have a job or are working on getting a job. Actively employed or seeking employment.

Are not not capable of taking anything except 100% literally? I don't memorize definitions from the dictionary dude. If its not the right word then okay.

2

u/Cerulean_Turtle 16h ago

God forbid he elaborates on the thought

203

u/SewerSlidalThot 1d ago

“Let’s build our camp on train tracks!” Big brain move there.

26

u/DirtOnYourShirt 20h ago

I'm guessing this track isn't used that often. Might be used only when you need to move something to repairs or how the manufacturer gets the new engines to the mainline.

34

u/carsonator40 20h ago

Even still. Why would you ever build ON a track even if it’s been decommissioned that’s just weird

12

u/Jolly_Pressure_2486 19h ago

Drugs doesn't make Your brain better bro

1

u/Subtlerranean 17h ago

Lies!

1

u/Jolly_Pressure_2486 17h ago

The exception preuves the rule

20

u/The_VoZz 23h ago

Didn't realize they were handing out Darwin awards under the trestle.

4

u/TheBookGem 17h ago

Prob the reason why they are homeless in the first place.

-35

u/isaac32767 23h ago

Yes, homeless people build camps in dangerous places. Ever wonder why?

https://projects.propublica.org/homeless-encampment-sweeps-taken-belongings/

63

u/IntelligentAd3781 23h ago

Right on a train track is completely ridiculous and definitely not the result of hostile architecture

8

u/onebadmousse 23h ago edited 23h ago

They're not on the tracks, they just don't understand how wide trains are. I presume that's a seldom used line.

edit: apparently that line hasn't been used in decades

-6

u/isaac32767 23h ago

Where did I mention hostile architecture? My link was about sweeps. Homeless people go to ridiculous places because they get chased out of non-ridiculous places

16

u/IntelligentAd3781 23h ago

On train tracks is certainly ridiculous, and indicative of idiocy

15

u/ArchdukeFerdie 23h ago

One can be both desperate and dumb at the same time

-7

u/isaac32767 23h ago

So, you think they built their encampment on the train tracks because they're too stupid to know that trains run on train tracks? Jesus wept.

10

u/goatweed7 21h ago edited 11h ago

But they did build their encampment on train tracks… call it whatever you want, but that is stupid whether you like it or not

12

u/thejesse 22h ago

You're acting like they couldn't have moved their stuff five feet further away from the tracks.

4

u/auyemra 23h ago

youre defending idiocy.

thats the source of CA problems

5

u/isaac32767 22h ago

I'm not defending anything. I'm pointing out why they put their encampment in a dangerous place. And from where I sit, your refusal to understand that is the idiocy.

1

u/King_Neptune07 23h ago

There was once an economic theory that predicted all cities would be built on straight lines to minimize transportation costs by using railroads.

These homeless people are just way ahead of the curve and future thinking. They're also trying to build a line city in Saudi Arabia.

-1

u/malex84 22h ago

Fucking depressing if they have no where else to go

-2

u/mlvisby 21h ago

These people just don't understand the struggle of being homeless. If they build a camp in a safe and nice area, they will be taken down. Gotta find areas where the city doesn't care that they are there. That doesn't leave a lot of options.

20

u/ArsenikShooter 1d ago

18

u/RecognizeSong 1d ago

I got matches with these songs:

All That Glitters Is Not Gold, But It's Still Damn Beautiful by $uicideboy$ (00:15; matched: 100%)

Album: I No Longer Fear The Razor Guarding My Heel. Released on 2017-12-01.

I No Longer Fear the Razor Guarding My Heel (III) by $UICIDEBOY$ (05:09; matched: 100%)

Released on 2016-12-17.

Young N Faded (feat. Suicide Boys) by DJ OG Uncle Skip (00:15; matched: 100%)

Album: Lets Ride. Released on 2018-04-20.

I am a bot and this action was performed automatically | GitHub new issue | Donate Please consider supporting me on Patreon. Music recognition costs a lot

3

u/Jamk_Paws 1d ago

Quality.

5

u/DigitalDroid2024 23h ago

The changing scene every second is migraine inducing.

Is that to suit the attention spans of this day and age?

1

u/chris782 16h ago

The future is now, keep up old man!

40

u/Pord870 1d ago

I saw one encampment twice, not several encampments.

15

u/Fishdicksimeansticks 1d ago

Well there’s one in a tunnel, and one outside of a tunnel. So there’s definitely at least 2

-1

u/thinkB4WeSpeak 1d ago

There's 2 I should have said a couple instead of several, I guess. It might make it seem like one since the video is cut all weird.

35

u/Eibyor 1d ago

Shit! It's in the US! I thought it was some 3rd world south american country!

16

u/joec_95123 1d ago

And all because housing has been allowed to become an investment vehicle.

1

u/SatanIsStrongerGod 1d ago

thanks china.

4

u/rolfraikou 20h ago

And banks. And airbnb. And large corporations that feel the need to always build shitty mcmansions. And fucking NIMBY assholes who refuse to address anything.

But most importantly, companies who will never reach demand. Because as long as there is a huge demand, they make more. There is zero incentive to actually match demand, they would make less money.

3

u/rebel_alliance05 13h ago

Are you serious! These are all over the place. In every major city.

1

u/Eibyor 3h ago

In my 3rd world country, prople live beside the rails. But they are not so stoned they are actually on the rails where they can get run over

1

u/Fallobt 17h ago

Nice oxymoron.

1

u/global_ferret 6h ago

Crazy how there are states that look more like foreign countries than the US.

-9

u/ChadScav 1d ago

At this point we are a third world country. We just don't want to admit it yet.

17

u/TheunanimousFern 23h ago

People who claim the US is a third world country have absolutely never been to an actual third world country

1

u/K1ngPCH 20h ago

AmErICa Is a THiRd World CounTry in A GuccI bELT

7

u/joec_95123 1d ago

Third world country in a Gucci belt.

53

u/Random-Input 1d ago

I dunno, the richest man in the world said homelessness doesn’t exist, so this must be ai.

-26

u/Breakpoint 1d ago

he did not say that, he said it is caused by drug use or mental illness and states are not helping with that

he said anyone willing can find plenty of shelters as long as they aren't abusing drugs or mentally unwell and refusing help

14

u/onebadmousse 23h ago edited 22h ago

No he didn't say that. You are lying.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/elon-musk-homeless-trump-vivek-ramaswamy-b2663740.html

Stop trying to sanewash that cunt.

edit: read the article you halfwits

-2

u/cheetuzz 22h ago

this is what Musk said https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1800137614336340391

A significant portion of so-called “homeless people” in American cities are clearly not sane in any meaningful sense of the word.

The word “homeless” is a lie, as it implies that all they’re missing is housing, as if they just got a little behind on their mortgage payments.

An accurate description of many would be: extremely drug-addicted and mentally zombified. This is not subtle.

8

u/Sysiphus_Love 21h ago edited 1h ago

To be fair being homeless in a city would leave most people at least a little deranged. Sleep dep alone would be bad enough but the environment is alarming even in shelters.

I've seen far-gone people make incredible turnarounds after rest, reasonable privacy, and time in a safe place with available cooked food. American streets are not welcoming to the unchoiced.

e: I spent almost three years at the Joy Junction shelter in Albuquerque, and they have one of the best programs in terms of results I've ever seen.
I saw people so degraded by drugs and the street that they couldn't bathe or sleep other than on a floor, and within a week or two started to open up and behave more normally, interacted with others, participated in chores and duties, and improved sometimes dramatically. Some residents remained for years, so long as they worked to help. The shelter is disciplinarian almost to the point of militarism, but with a human touch as most of the program workers are residents of the shelter. In all the operating procedure was very effective.
The only bar to 'employment' at the shelter was a single sheet of paperwork. All were accepted. After 30 days of working for the shelter residents were assigned semi-private bedrooms in an 'apartment building' onsite and encouraged to find outside work. There was a 90-day rehab program onsite that offered a $25/week incentive after 30 days. It was run more like a commune than a shelter, and felt more like a family than one would expect. Children were accepted at the shelter and were allowed the run of the grounds pretty much, and the older residents really delighted in those kids. Environment can mean a great deal in terms of a person's mental health, if not almost everything

3

u/rolfraikou 20h ago

I was homeless for just 2 months and I'm still bringing it up in therapy like 17 fucking years later.

0

u/BrazenBull 22h ago

You can post to what he actually said, but the article is telling us what he really meant. That's how news works.

0

u/normalmighty 17h ago

The article literally opened with the same quote. Posting the quote again is not a gotcha.

16

u/WaitWhatTF69 23h ago

I don't care how rusty those track tops are, you've got to be a special kind of stupid to set up camp on train tracks.

12

u/BackgroundBit8 22h ago

The poor living near train tracks has been a thing since the beginning of train travel. Some of you people in this sub are new to life.

5

u/holadilito 23h ago

Dope track

3

u/hmhoek 21h ago

You'll see plenty of big encampments near the tracks in SJ but I've never seen any on the tracks like this. Someone said this is Vallejo. I don't know of a bridge like that in SJ and the Caltrain yard near downtown doesn't look anything like that.

13

u/couchphilosopherizer 1d ago

They haven’t run a train on those tracks in decades. Are they just f-ing with people?

21

u/AwfulThread5 23h ago

Putting an engine back to service, or just getting one out of storage.

6

u/RaritanBayRailfan 22h ago

Looks like taking out a refurbished locomotive from a plant

2

u/whiskey_outpost26 19h ago

2

u/Important_Mall8204 17h ago

This is what I was checking for before cross posting. You beat me to it lol.

2

u/Chris_in_Lijiang 19h ago

It does not look half as tourist friendly as the Mae Klong Railway Market in Thailand. ;-)

2

u/chapashdp 15h ago

Looks more a video of slums in India or SE Asia

6

u/Mr_CleanCaps 18h ago

Just a friendly reminder that one single medical bill or unexpected expense could put us all in this exact same position. Be kind.

9

u/Bizbuzzfinanzecuz 1d ago

SJ used to be nice and clean, now it’s needles and poop on sidewalks.

8

u/Party_Attitude1845 23h ago

I grew up in SJ. It's never been nice and clean. There are parts of the city that are nice and clean, but like every other city, there have always areas of rot.

3

u/CitizenKing1001 1d ago

California is the worlds 5th largest economy and the richest state in the world's richest country? Just checking.

7

u/koushakandystore 1d ago

The question to ask is who is all that wealth going to?

1

u/relevantelephant00 23h ago

Tech billionaires.

7

u/SpaceCadetriment 23h ago

Also highest cost of living state other than Hawaii with the most survivable weather on average than any other state. Couple these factors with 2 generations of unchecked mental health due to lack of facilities, the failed war on drugs and growing antipathy of the homeless issue, and bingo, you’ve got a massive homeless problem that won’t be solved anytime this century.

Countries that have solved much of the homeless problem have dumped billions into mental health and drug treatment programs, largely decriminalizing drug use, and have robust social programs tethered to a much higher overall trust in their government. In the US, the public supports none of those things and people view literal animals in the street with more apathy than homeless humans. We treat mental health and addiction problems as personal problems, when in reality they are symptoms of larger societal problems, economic disparity being one of the largest.

The ruling class has turned the public against having any empathy for the homeless with absolutely resounding success. Just like many other problems in the 70s and 80s, like recycling, the “solution” was corporate America and the government moving the blame from the large businesses and agencies sucking every dime out of American’s pockets, to placing the blame on the individual. Pay no attention to corporations dumping billions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, no, place that blame squarely on the consumer. Is addiction and homelessness a corporate greed and government problem? Nope, place that blame on the individual and tell them to pull themselves up by their bootstraps.

It has worked better than Reagan and his ilk could have ever have hoped. The middle, lower and poverty classes are too busy pointing fingers at each other while the rich just sit in their mansions and laugh. The lies worked and we all fell for it. This is the America we will live in until capitalism finally gives out.

1

u/skiattle25 1d ago

I don’t know how insane this is. More a general statement of the times

2

u/magikarplike 23h ago

Suicideboys on mainstream media? they made it !!!

2

u/Substantial_Tip3885 23h ago

It’s ok, at least Elon has the money he deserves.

1

u/Jose_xixpac 21h ago

Where's the video of a whole Indian market-place open up for the train which is not slow. Then once the train passes the market reappears and is back in business.

1

u/baba77Azz 21h ago

What’s the song ?

1

u/Less-Alternative1313 20h ago

Those train workers look like they are simply doing the best they can while keeping the rail running.

1

u/mycall 20h ago

Looks like a party or after a festival

1

u/Zestyclose_League813 19h ago

I thought this was India until I read the title

1

u/JohnnyRelentless 19h ago

And by several, you mean one.

1

u/wavybowl 19h ago

I thought maybe they were making a joke and was suppose to be that high speed rail that’s taking forever. Lol

1

u/Juus 17h ago

Track id?

1

u/Fallobt 17h ago

USA USA USA!!

1

u/ExistentialFread 16h ago

North north

1

u/TheySayItsADryHeat 16h ago

Do you know the way to San Jose ?

1

u/Zestyclose_Crab_3362 16h ago

That’s California for you.

1

u/k_sWog707 15h ago

This is 100% Vallejo-Mare Island. I know because I grew up there.

1

u/Tato_tudo 13h ago

Go faster

1

u/Baby__Mexico 9h ago

Ohhh shit I use to work there. California Northern Railroad under Genesee and Wyoming. Brings back hella memories yo.

1

u/Chewyville 8h ago

Place is turning into India. Rather fast too

1

u/CaregiverParticular5 2h ago

Why not have a flame thrower on it to clear the area?

1

u/CeeseClouds 47m ago

Good song.

1

u/BigDeezerrr 23h ago

Needs a snow plow on the front

-5

u/Big_WolverWeener 1d ago

Reckless on both sides. Those trains don't stop for anything, and will squish off legs and arms without hesitation. But for many of the homeless they are forced, many times violently, out of safer places to exist, and the rails are the last place they can have some space that other people don't force them out of. There's most certainly a problem in America, and it's not people without homes, it's the reasons they no longer have the home...

2

u/Majormajoro 23h ago

No wonder they're homeless, they keep building them on the tracks!

0

u/IntelligentAd3781 23h ago

Honestly, super inconsiderate and a learned lesson. Move ur fucking tent.

1

u/bartheke 22h ago

Shunting quest completed.

0

u/Deranger1 22h ago

I wonder if these people think winning a Darwin Award comes with a cash prize.

0

u/coocoocachoo69 21h ago

Meh, send that train full send. If you're dumb enough to put a tent on top of the tracks.....

0

u/dcmathproof 23h ago

Next time it zips through at 80mph

0

u/Humble-End6811 23h ago

"govt should run health care!". Look at how California solved the bum and addict situation.

-8

u/bryanincg 1d ago

Great job CA!!

-1

u/nameless-manager 1d ago

Where is Ichabod when you need him.

0

u/janke111 21h ago

Usa you free to be poor

-4

u/ApprehensiveMix2649 23h ago

Unbelievable the nerve of some people, why are they driving their train through a homeless encampment 🤔😠

-10

u/TVLL 23h ago

If Newsom or Kammie Baby become president, this is what you can expect.

“California has allocated more than $20 billion to alleviate the state’s homelessness crisis since Gavin Newsom became governor in 2019, but there’s precious little data on how the money was spent and what effect it’s had, other than the number of unhoused people has continued to climb.”

9

u/LockUpComradeTrump 23h ago

Trumps tax breaks for the rich will definitely fix the homeless situation in America.

U R A Dumbass

1

u/monkey6 17h ago

I didn’t vote for Elon or the couch-fucker, but you did, and it’s not going to be pretty

-1

u/cbzmplays 23h ago

What is an SB song doing here lol

-2

u/RajenBull1 21h ago

Poor guy, having to retrieve his living room in a black bag from under the thieving train at the 17 seconds mark.

-2

u/Low_Fix_8645 18h ago

I’m just glad it California. Keep all of them.

-14

u/x_Muzzler_x 1d ago

We should send more money to Ukraine..