How do you feel about street people asking you for money

by I quit! 61 Replies latest jw friends

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  Nosferatu

  Years ago there used to be a deaf man who went from one MacDonald's to the next showing a card and selling tiny pencils. Well since I know sign language I stopped him a couple of times and asked if he knew sign language and he would respond Yes. So I would ask him why is he begging. You never saw a man run so fast out of the restaurant towards his big car with 2 girls sitting in it waiting for him. It was a con.

  Lady Lee, I remember that guy! He used to give you a card with the sign language alphabet on it when you gave him money. Before I got my current job, I was somewhat ignorant of how well the province takes care of the disabled. Now, I see everything. They're not rich, but they have their needs taken care of - with exception of those who are under Federal care. Those people get LOTS of money. Most of their houses I go to have large-screen plasma TVs and vehicles to drive around in. But they still drink booze like fish, live like slobs, and don't have jobs. They make more money than I do solely because of their race.
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  chickpea

  same strategy as many others have stated:
  i offer to buy food and bus fare to agencies
  designed to assist the truly destitute....
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  Kenneson

  I work at the Soup Kitchen/Shelter, so I tell them there is no need to be begging. But, just to go down to the Soup Kitchen/Shelter and I give them directions. If they're really interested and hungry, they will find their way there. If you see the same people begging at or near the same spot all the time, they're usually just conning you. There's truly help out there if people want it. After all, they seem to have enough initiative to get to where they beg or panhandle. What really amuses me is that sometimes I see some people who I know frequent the Soup Kitchen/Shelter and I see them across the street with a sign panhandling! They're really wanting booze and/or cigarettes. Most people know that and I doubt that they receive much. They might stand a better chance if they panhandled in another section of the city!
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  JustHuman14

  It depends. We have proffesionals who do that. There was a woman in my country that after she died they found more than 800.000 US dollars in coins in her room!!!

  Unfortunately there are people who like to take advantage of our humanity and earn money by doing nothing. There are gypsies that use small children to ask money. Even if you give money to the child someone else will take the money.

  Once I was in an arab muslim country and while I was walking down the street a small boy, around 5-6 years old asked me for money(He realized I was a foreigner-tall, blonde hair, blue eyes) I gave him 10 pounds(about 3 dollars)he could get at least 4 meals with that money. Then there was a woman middle aged, and was looking at the scene. After I moved few steps from there, she runs on the boy asking to give her the money!!! I wen't back and ask her if she was the mother, bur she wasn't then I told her to leave the boy alone and she left...

  The next morning I was leaving the country and on my way to call a taxi, I saw the little boy sleeping under a tree!!!

  The outcome: I guess I'm lucky. At least I had my parents, I had a house to stay, my children have a house to stay, eat their corn flakes in the morning, go to school, have parents that they love them...

  So if someone asks money I usually do
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  Jim_TX

  I've got mixed feelings about this topic. I realize that there are homeless people out there. I see a few of them in my travels.

  I also see a few people who panhandle at street corners, freeway ramps, parking lots, etc.

  They are not necessarily the same.

  There used to be a fella where I used to live who would come right up on you as you were exiting your vehicle and ask for money. I scolded him one time and told him he should NEVER come up on someone like that - unless he was wanting to get shot or something. Anyway, he would ask for money. I wouldn't give him any... he looked too well off. One time I offered to buy him a meal at Denny's - since we were there anyway. He backed off real fast, saying he was too dirty, etc. He didn't want food - he wanted cash. My ex-wife told me that she knew a woman who knew him - and he owned a nice home on one of the streets nearby.

  I will give money - if their appearance and the circumstances allow - and if I have some to give. My wife is the same way.

  I just know that locally, there is a huge shelter that the city built downtown (I've seen it on the local news), that looks nice and is set up for the homeless folks. There are just some of these people - for whatever reason - that refuse to use it.

  I told my wife that these folks have a good system figured out. They may get like $50 per day - cash. So, if they 'work' two days a week (usually the weekends), then they could have $100 per week. Multiply that by 52 - that's about $5200 of unreported income - tax free.

  San Antonio came in low in a survey recently for cities that contribute to charities. I think that this survey is bogus as I see people all the time at traffic lights handing dollars and change to panhandlers. People want to try to help - if they can. It's just a shame that there are con artists that will take advantage of that. (I saw a lady at Denny's one time order her food, and an order of food - to-go. When she got the to-go order, she walked it outside to a homeless person and give it to them.)

  The police locally have been instructed to talk to these panhandlers - and warn them that if they are spotted again - they will be picked up and taken downtown. I'm not sure if they get arrested - or taken to the homeless shelter. A taxi service with flashing lights.

  Regards,

  Jim TX
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  Lady Lee

  $30-50 daily - every day so that comes to $900-1500 a month - they don't take the weekends off. They just move to different locations

  Then they know where all the soup kitchens are so can go from one to the other and eat all day for free. Some allow them to bring a container to take food with them. Free coffee and donuts can be had almost anywhere if you know where to go and believe me they know where to go.

  Soup kitchens do not just serve soup although the canteens do. Most places they get a 4 course meal, salad, soup, entree and dessert with unlimited coffee. If everyone has been served they get to have seconds or even thirds. They don't go hungry so their $900-1500 isn't going to food.

  There are many places for them to go for free clothing. They just have to keep going back to find things in their sizes. So clothing budget is limited.

  If they live in a room in a boarding house the rent is around $450 a month, heat, electricity and water included. Many live in subsidized housing so they would pay a fraction of what you would pay. For example if a subsidized 2 room apartment goes for $650 a month the person pays only $109. The government pays the rest. So that $900 to 1500 now leaves them with a pretty hefty mad money fund

  So that could leave them with $791 to $1391 a month for their whatevers. Even the lesser amount is more than what I get on disability. Hmmm maybe I have found a new career.
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  Lady Lee

  Nos My deaf guy was in Montreal so maybe he is working his way across the country
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  Satanus

  If they have an address, they generally can get welfare, too. Most of them are screwed up and have habits of some kind; booze, drugs, or they might be supporting/enabling somebody who does those things.

  S
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  undercover

  Somebody posted yesterday, I think it was, that they were going to work at a soup kitchen and help feed the needy. There are charities that one can give to, to help the homeless or hungry.

  You wanna help the needy, that's the way to do it. Don't give bums on the street corner money...they're just gonna go buy a bottle of cheap wine or booze.

  I've tried to offer weekend work to bums holding up signs that say, "will work for food". Guess what - they turned me down. They just wanted a handout.

  It used to be a crime to loiter and beg...what happened to arresting them or least picking them up and taking them to the shelter?
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  Jim_TX

  "$30-50 daily - every day so that comes to $900-1500 a month - they don't take the weekends off. They just move to different locations

  Then they know where all the soup kitchens are "

  Lady Lee - the difference is that I'm not talking about homeless people. I'm talking about some folks - at least locally - who own homes and probably work at a job Monday-Friday - and on the weekends don their 'homeless' clothes that they keep in a bag - and walk down to the street corners begging for money.

  Heck. I work - and make a decent income - but $5000+ extra cash each year - that I don't need to report to the IRS would really come in handy - and I don't mean for booze.

  Regards,

  Jim TX