Conform? To the violent standards of drunks and thugs?
Not the message I get. It's called "living rough" for a reason; it's dangerous! Wow, that's new. But you might note the common element in both these stories; arrests were made. Generally, that is a sign that "the system" disapproves, in this case of thuggery.
Another, bigger issue with your example, from personal experience - I have lived aboard a boat. For years. Now, for those of you far inland, it's called being a liveaboard. In SoCal, it is quite common, not particularly cheap to do even in the very basic student-living way I managed, but... location, location, location. I loved it. This is not like street camping in any way - no one has to move on at 2am, everyone knows their neighbors, by name, often for decades, but just like anyplace it has crime. Yet, it is a true neighborhood, closer than most others I have lived in since. People know who belongs, and they watch out for you... and my "neighborhood" was no fancy millionaires yacht harbour! So the one article is not even remotely relevant to the difficulties our OP has, keeping a low profile. No one has to do that as a liveaboard.
