The voice of a homeless Republican

A RECENT ISSUE of The Chronicle Review of Higher Education has a poignant glimpse of a shattered life on the homeless front. It was written in 2007 by a 53-year-old Houston man, Brian Lohse, and first appeared in a book Hard Ground by Michael O'Brien and Tom Waits. It says so much about today's human and political landscape that it demands a broader audience.

So here are the words of Brian Lohse:

"I'm formerly a Republican. Back in 1996 in Houston, Texas, I was sleeping in the field looking at the high-rise apartment that I used to live in. I couldn't believe that a few years earlier I had a nice apartment, I was driving a new car, I had an American Express card, a line of credit at the bank. I ate at nice restaurants and wore designer clothes. But now I was sleeping in the fields, eating at soup kitchens, getting clothes with vouchers, and riding the Metro. It did not make sense to me.

"But my problem wasn't logical, it was spiritual. I didn't think there was any such thing as a homeless Republican, but the Lord will get your attention one way or another."