Top 5 Ridiculous Homelessness Stories in 2009

When it comes to homelessness, there are plenty of stories to make you sad, get you angry, or make you think. But this list is all about the ridiculous. The year 2009 was chock full of ridiculous homelessness moments. Whether it was thwarted attempts to "raise awareness", couture homelessness fashion, or a city's obscene attempts to control its homeless population, this list will have you rolling your eyes and scratching your head. Who knows - maybe 2010 will be the year we quit the charity charade get finally serious about implementing solutions to end homelessness.

5. Fined for sleeping in the woods

In August, a Wyoming district court judge fined a homeless man $50 for camping in a national park. Seems the homeless man had exceeded the five-day camping limit. Is this our new federal precedent for dealing with homelessness? If housing is out of financial reach and one is forced to camp in the woods, slap 'em with a fine? Read more here.

4. Homelessness goes high fashion

Perhaps the most unexpected homelessness-pop culture crossover this year was between homelessness and high fashion. "Homeless couture" was all the rage, showing up on the pages of international fashion mags, the Sartorialist blog, and even Barneys' in-store manikin displays. Some of these homeless-inspired fashion statements were thought to be edgy or thoughtful, but most were just exploiting stereotypes and missed the realities of homelessness entirely. With the help of my thoughtful readers, I bit my tongue, put my disbelief aside, and tried and take advantage of the teachable moment. But really? The idea of homelessness as high fashion is insulting to those struggling who can't even afford a place to live.

3. Denver Mayor wears jammies to fight homelessness

Back in January, the Mayor of Denver staged a demonstration to express solidarity with the city's homeless. Did he take to a shelter? Spend a night on the streets? Well, not really. He wore his jammies to the office for the day. This came just months after the city came under fire for their bizarre efforts to hide the homeless during the Democratic National Convention. Is the mayor so out of touch with his city's homeless that waltzing around in his slippers was the best expression of solidarity he could muster up? Read more here.

2. Canadian city uses feces to repel the homeless

We have seen cities go to great lengths to clear the streets of "unsightly" homeless people; sit/lie ordinances, feeding restrictions, unfriendly benches. But the city of Surrey in British Columbia brought cruelty towards the homeless to an entirely new level, which can be summed up in two words: it stinks. City officials spread rancid bird droppings around the perimeter of a city social services building and trees in a nearby park to deter homeless people from loitering in the area. Pardon the pun, but you can't make this shit up. Read more here.

1. Fur coats for the homeless

PETA makes the list for cloaking a major demonstration as a charitable distribution. Last January, millions of people descended upon Washington D.C. for Obama's historic inauguration. PETA seized this once-in-a-lifetime demonstration opportunity to turn the city's homeless population into walking billboards by distributing "change of heart" fur coats to the city's homeless. The charity claimed they were putting the donated fur to good use by donating them to the homeless. Odd thing is, the coats were nowhere to be found the week before the presidential inauguration when the region experienced a dangerous deep freeze. Read more here.