Of course it’s up to the giver to make a judgment call as to whether to give money to the random stranger or not. Why wouldn’t it be? Do you give money to anyone who ever asks for it with no questions asked on your part? What if they want ‘more’ money in case a dollar isn’t considered sufficient by them - do you give that? </p>
<p>But…
…suggests that you must make a decision as to whether to give or not somehow unless it’s driven by having no money on your person or something.</p>
<p>Even the Bill Gates foundation, one of the largest, and other major philanthropic organizations make judgment calls as to where to invest their donation money.</p>
An interesting idea - the businesses near where there are large congregations of beggars could have a ‘donation box’ on premises that clearly states where the money will go to help the people who truly need help and perhaps information passed to the beggars informing them where they can go to find food, shelter, and help with their conditions (even though many of them won’t seek it). People who decided they want to ‘help’ the beggars out front could give those dollars to where it may truly help those who wish to receive true help as opposed to just cash for drugs, alcohol, and cigs.</p>
<p>GGD, karma is formed by intent, and if you make a mistake (though being compassionate is never a mistake) you have endless opportunities to correct it with future actions.</p>
<p>There are lots of panhandlers in w/c’s. They are the invisible people. It is one of the consequences of being in a w/c, even if you aren’t indigent. </p>
<p>Businesses don’t want people to encourage the homeless because they are bad for business. They scare people away or steal.</p>
<p>I don’t give to beggars. I live in Santa Barbara and go to the Whole Foods Momsquad visited. There are a couple of beggars who are always at the exit of that parking lot. It is their spot. We also have a couple who have been in front of the post office for at least 4 years. My friend has a brother who lives in housing for those one step up from homeless. He said quite a number of his neighbors have regular off ramps they beg at. My same friend has a son who is a heroin addict. When her son was homeless she would sometimes drive down to Santa Monica (another city with a large homeless population) and find him and take him for a meal. She wouldn’t give him money. She would bring coats down in the winter and give them away along with socks. Another friend who works in the ER stops and talks with young beggars. She tells them about services and if she will sometimes give them food. One thing she does do is encourage them to use her cell phone to call their Mom to let her know they are alive.
I do give to charities that help the underemployed and families.</p>
<p>That’s good that your friend encourages the young people to call their moms and let her know they are alive. Very kind of her and must make many moms somewhat relieved.</p>
<p>I met a woman whose S keeps getting tripped up on drugs. She’s taken him in time & again, trying to help him clean up. He’s only in his 20s and she isn’t sure how much longer he will be alive. She told him she will always pay for his rehab, no matter how many he’s tried.</p>
<p>By the way, what is W/C in the post above? Water closets or bathrooms?</p>
<p>Today, we were walking from the mechanic to the shopping center and came across quite a few apparently indigent people, but none asked for money. There are a few intersections that are frequented by beggars in our city as well–seems pretty dangerous to me with cars whizzing around.</p>
<p>60% of the heroin addicts we are now treating statewide are between the ages of 18-29. Only seven years ago, the average age would have been in the 40s. Most of them started with prescription opiates, which they got from doctors or dentists themselves, or from mom and dad’s medicine cabinet. </p>
<p>Please remember that when you see a young heroin addict, you are usually also seeing a mom, dad, doc, or dentist at least partially responsible for where they are today. Wish I had quick answers (since I do this professionally). But I don’t. (We have some answers, and are working hard, but we are playing catch-up.)</p>
<p>(I have to note that, at least where I live, beggars who are heroin addicts are still relatively rare. Everything else, but heroin addicts tend to be reclusive.)</p>
<p>You’re making this much more complicated than it is. Just because I don’t make the impossible determination as to whether the person on the corner with crutches is actually break dancing all weekend, doesn’t mean that some situations do not tug at me more than others. It might be just as likely to be based on what I actually have in my wallet. I am President of a Club that has a local food pantry as its dedicated charity so I am involved in helping to raise money and goods for them. I do a lot more for them than I for individuals on the street.</p>
<p>Your not suposed to even look at street people. If they talk to you ignore them. He knew you weren’t from that part and was trying to rob you. They ask for $1 but then they take your perse when you take it out. </p>
<p>It sounds mean but theres alot of people that are tricky thiefs.</p>
<p>I work in Times Square, so there are always panhandlers around and, in the dismal Bloomberg era, the squeegie guys are back, so I have to make this decision every day. My personal choice is to put cash into the instrument cases of people who play one of the instruments that my son plays. I usually put $5 in the case because I feel that they are providing me a service.</p>
<p>I carry ones in my pocket. And i also give to musicians singers and more often women. As for not making eye contact, these are human beings. And i have been helped by a so called beggar, miss your dropped your scarf. </p>
<p>Kollegekid1, how sad you are so afraid. More likely your purse will get pick pocketed while you are not making eye contact and not paying attention to those around you. </p>
<p>Once years ago, i would walk work really early and there was this really old lady sleeping in the same doorway. I would tuck money under her pillow, and leave sandwiches and bananas, etc. I talked to her a few times when she was awake. Anyway. One day she wished me happy birthday. And it was my birthday. Next day she was gone. </p>
<p>Don’t be afraid of people on the street. Many are great people with safety net. Women who ran from abusive relationships. Evicted families. Veterans whose country forgot them. People with mental health issues. Sure there are addicts. But theirs also gaynkids who were kicked out of their homes.</p>
<p>Don’t fear humanity, embrace it. If you don’t want to give cash, give a sandwich.</p>
And many are straight-up scam artists who make more money than honest workers and pay no taxes.</p>
<p>There was recently an expose about that here. Several well-known panhandlers left the street to get into their cars and return to their suburban homes.
The worst I ever saw was a man who physically forced a woman, naked except for a garbage bag, to sit on the corner of 51st Street and 6th Avenue every day collecting cash. People used to give her a lot of money but somehow never caught on to the exploitation. As long as you can make yourself feel good, sometimes that’s enough, I guess.</p>
<p>I give. I’m glad I’m not on the street. If I was, I’d hope someone would give to me without judgment. I assume it is needed for illegal drugs, alcohol, cigarettes more than for food and that is okay with me. </p>
<p>In my early 20’s, my first week in Paris, I lost my wallet to a gang of “begging” children and was then instructed by a priest to keep my donation budget of small bills/coins in a pocket and never open my purse in public… very good advice that I have followed ever since.</p>
<p>For many years I lived in an urban environment with a very large population of homeless. In the mid 80s - early 90s it wasn’t unusual to encounter a dozen homeless individuals, many clearly mentally ill, in a city block. There were also a lot of very violent muggings, seemingly drug related. Things got much better in the later 90s, sadly because there had been so many AIDS deaths.</p>
<p>Since I couldn’t give to everyone, I decided to give to women and especially to those on my every day route. By 2000, there were many fewer homeless and this was my routine on the way from the parking garage to my office. I would give a dollar to the elderly man who was “selling” newspapers he had taken from the box on the corner. Regularly priced 50 cent local paper. Instead of giving directly to the woman outside my coffee shop I would give money to the cashiers to pass on to her so I could stay anonymous. She gave street performances in return for donations and I just didn’t have the time. Also it was impossible to give her larger amounts of money directly, without her looking for you when she was in greater need. The cashiers were very supportive of her and had a continuing relationship with her. I am not as nice a person as those coffee house employees. Also I have mentally ill individuals in my extended family that take all the emotional support I have to give in that particular direction. Outside my lunch spot was a woman who sold single carnations or roses for which I regularly over-paid.</p>
<p>I don’t live in that town any longer and have no regular route. I just keep some dollars in my pocket. Yesterday I gave to two elderly men. Where I live now lots of folks are unemployed through no fault of their own. I much prefer to give directly to people than to an organization. </p>
<p>I am not worried about getting scammed. If someone is begging, I am going to pretty much accept they need the money. There is one exception. In my new locale men beg on the highway median at traffic lights. They have back packs with water and snacks, bright neon caution vests, and work in shifts. An unmarked van drops them off and picks them up. I do not give to these men. If the same men asked me on a city street, I’d give. I obviously have no way to know and really don’t care if they are the same individuals. This idea people make a good living begging seems fantastical to me. How much would they have to collect every day? I refuse to worry about a beggar taking advantage of me … and tend to give … unless it is clear as in the case of the men on the median or gangs of children that someone is probably taking advantage of them.</p>
<p>"In a study of Toronto panhandlers conducted by Robit Bose and Stephen Hwang, panhandlers reported a median monthly income equivalent to US $190-$200. The authors note that</p>
<pre><code>a journalist who briefly lived on the street in Toronto working as a panhandler . . . reported that panhandlers can earn more than $200 per day . . . These differences may be partly explained by the fact that high-earning panhandlers were presumably less likely to participate in our survey, and these individuals may have formed the basis for Stackhouse’s observations. Our results may be more representative of the majority of panhandlers who earn lesser amounts. "
</code></pre>
<p>and…</p>
<p>"Anecdotal accounts suggest a few panhandlers do quite well. For instance, a recent news story tells of Jason Pancoast and Elizabeth Johnson, self-described “affluent beggars” from Ashland, Oregon. The couple estimates they can make $30-40,000 per year from panhandling. They boast earnings as high as $300 per day, and assert they once made $800 in one day. Similarly, a former Denver City Council president claimed to know panhandlers who made hundreds of dollars per week, or even per day. City Councilwoman Elbra Wedgeworth said, “I know some people are making $150 to $300 or $400 a day. There are some people who are in desperate situations but many who are panhandling for a living.” One hesitates to generalize from such stories, though.</p>
<p>In short, it’s pretty hard to get good data on the issue. Michael Scott summarized matters as well as anyone: “Most evidence confirms that panhandling is not lucrative, although some panhandlers clearly are able to subsist on a combination of panhandling money, government benefits, private charity, and money from odd jobs such as selling scavenged materials or plasma.” If I were you, I’d keep my day job. "</p>
I’ve never considered street performers as beggars. As long as they’re passive about the tips I view them as someone performing a service and if you enjoyed that service, i.e. performance, then you might want to tip them for it or not. This is wholly different from someone standing there with the cardboard sign doing straight begging.</p>
<p>btw - another thing I’ve noticed is that I rarely see the “will work for food” signs anymore. Maybe too many passersby were trying to take them up on it literally rather than just handing them cash which of course is what most of them really want in the first place.</p>
<p>I think bank tellers are the ones who know how well they actually do. My mother was a bank teller, and some of the beggers she saw on the street would come in to deposit money into their bank account at the end of the day. She knew what their balances were, and said it was embarrasing. She never said the dollar amount (customer privacy) but was rather offended by the whole deal.</p>