OK Smallpeet, are you as rich as Bill Gates? Why not? You make an assumption that says there is no excuse for people to be homeless in Canada. Fine. I believe there is NO EXCUSE for everyone not to be as rich as Bill Gates.
So, are you as rich as Bill Gates? Of course not - you clearly don't have the intelligence (not to mention the compassion, human decency, and even the geeky looks). But perhaps you also didn't get the right breaks. Maybe you didn't have the same family structure that allowed him to pursue his hobby or business. Some people are forced to support infirm or sick parents, or take care of children. Sure, and some of them succeed as well and some don't. Some people cannot work so hard because they are born with congenital heart defects, etc...
What you've done Smallpeet is drawn a line in the sand and said "There's no excuse to go lower than this." Well, I'm just going to raise that line, and say that there's no reason that we all should not be as rich as Bill Gates. Now here's the kicker - for every excuse you provide for reasons why people can't be as rich as Bill Gates, I'm going to tell you it's horseshit, and that anyone can do it, regardless of luck, mental capability, family circumstance, illness or other circumstance. Let's not pay people middle-class wages, so that they're forced to get rich like Bill Gates.
You want to know why homeless people don't go on social assistance or welfare, or get food and shelter? Some are too destitute to even have, remember or apply for a SIN number. All of these programs require cheques to be mailed out which requires a bank account - and bank accounts require addresses and forms of identification to open-up, which many homeless people don't have. Chances are if you look homeless and smell homeless, that white-bread bank manager won't even allow you into the bank, let alone open up and account for you. Perhaps these people have credit problems and know that every penny that goes into their account goes out to someone else. As for food and shelters, there is such a chronic shortage of beds that there are street patrols that go out at night to hand-out food and blankets. Not every person gets a shelter.
Now are there some homeless people who can get through their circumstance, sure there are. Is there someone who will be the next Bill Gates? Sure there is - but the next time you ask yourself why someone still needs to be homeless, remember my voice asking you why you aren't Bill Gates, and also remember it asking why you aren't generally a more nice and considerate person.