The hottest Social Services Substack posts right now

The war in Iran is extremely costly — about $900 million a day and potentially tens of billions if it continues.
Those war dollars could fund big domestic needs instead, like LA’s annual homeless services for a day or hundreds of thousands of affordable housing units in a week.
This isn’t a lack of money but a choice of priorities: the government funds military action but often won’t pay for housing, roads, or hospitals, which could save lives rather than take them.

Federal grants totaling about $27 million since FY2021 have funded programs for Minnesota’s Somali community, covering culturally relevant services, education, health research, and food/gardening initiatives.
The University of Minnesota got the largest share (around $14.3 million) for projects like after‑school arts, diversity training, and Autism Spectrum Disorder research that reports higher autism rates among Somali children.
Separate federal investigations have uncovered large welfare and autism‑related Medicaid fraud involving some Somali community members, which raises program‑integrity concerns even though researchers say their surveillance data can’t determine the fraud’s effect on prevalence estimates.

Population decline is a serious issue that affects everyone, including those on the left. It can worsen problems like inequality and burden vulnerable groups more, so it's vital for progressives to care about it too.
Pronatalism, or encouraging higher birth rates, doesn't have to clash with climate goals. We can grow the population while also focusing on clean energy and reducing emissions.
Learning what other countries have done to promote population growth can help. A mix of policies like financial support for families and affordable childcare can be more effective than one-size-fits-all solutions.

Since 2020, the wealthiest 1% of the world's population took nearly two-thirds of new wealth, significantly more than the rest of the population.
Global poverty is worsening while the very richest individuals continue to amass huge amounts of wealth, creating an alarming level of inequality.
Oxfam's report highlights the need for governments to increase taxes on the rich, invest in social services, and address the economic systems that benefit the wealthy.

Foster care systems often fail to provide stable living conditions for children from adverse circumstances, impacting their chances in life.
Research suggests that, on average, foster care does not provide better outcomes for children compared to staying with their birth families.
Human nature and the need for stability suggest that foster children face unique challenges, including a lack of consistent relationships and environments.

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The new budget allows more money for important projects like social housing and green energy, which is a good move.
However, day-to-day spending is mostly staying the same, which means important issues might not get the attention they need.
It's important to think about what each department really needs instead of just labeling them as winners or losers based on budget changes.