Topic: Do you give panhandlers money? - page 2. (Read 930 times)

I'm not sure that the money that I give to the beggar will go to her. There are people in my country who will force others to beg. And then they take from them what they have collected. Therefore, I do not give to beggars. True, it happened a couple of times. Painfully old grandmother asked ... I certainly feel sorry for her.

Actually it really depends there are some panhandlers or beggar that would melt your heart when you help them,and there are some who would really change your mind on helping them since they are so demanding and stubborn and you could see that they are fit to work but too lazy to do it.

It depends. I base it on their appearance. I help those who are too old to get their own job. I'm willing to give something to those who are weak and can't work to sustain their needs. I could only offer food since I'm not rich at all. I just don't want to spoil those who are just lazy to work for themselves. It would only sound like we are pampering them.

I do and I don't care if they spend the money on drugs or alcohol.  Whatever makes them happy, their lives are already really bad and anything to help them escape their harsh reality.  Wealth inequality is getting out of hand  and its only a matter of time before something drastic happens.  Go look at San Francisco, place already looks like a 3rd world country.

I personally donate personal need items all the time.  And as far as food, I often donate non perishable food items to the local food bank.  This way it ensures people who you donate to get the necessities. People do fall on hard times, could happen to any of us, but handing out money to anyone is a gamble, I'd rather donate items.

Next time you see the guy and If you can prove that you are really buying him a sandwich or food for his dogs then let me know.
I'll reimburse you in BTC or Dash the $5 or $10 that you have spent.

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As for myself i don't really give to beggars in my city.
There is almost 0% unemployment for anyone can have a job that pays more than enough for accommodation and food.

However I am always okay to help. (i'm organising saussage sizzle, a duck race, cooking for Ronald McDonald house ...)

A quick (long) story about last Xmas.
Last xmas I was driving back from a friend of mine across the country and someone was hitch hiking.
I could see right away that the man was a homeless (carrying a broken backpack, and a bag, huge untidy beard, 99% used sneakers, dirty pants ....).
The first thing he told me was how sorry he was to bit a bit smelly, he had a shower the previous day but had to sleep outside and the rain got him wet (it was fucking pouring outside). I said that the smell wasn't an issue and that maybe one day I could be the one on foot under the rain.

I took him in my car to what was going to be a very pleasant and interesting 3h drive.
Over the course of the drive I got to know him.

Turn out he was a forestry worker, that got injured and lost a couple of fingers, then he became a cartoonist and had somehow some talent.
But being diagnostic-ed with Crown disease he couldn't work anymore. Surviving on social money and sleeping in the forest for the past 17 years.
He was caring with him, three massive drawing notebook with all his drawings, "his greatest possession" as he called it.
He was going to my city to see his niece and trying to sort some kind of inheritance from a distant uncle.
I pretended to need to refuel to stop at service station and get us coffees, he refused, saying that the drive was more than enough and that he never accepted money or food from people that giving him a ride. After a few minutes of negotiating he agreed to.

The drop off location was supposed to be some kind of park next to a library, where the following day he would organise a shower, then go online to find information about a niece he had in my city that said she would help him. He was also interested to do some research about farms that could potentially give him accommodation in exchange of labour.

I decided otherwise. After a lot of talking I convinced him to come to my house, stays the night in one of the 4 guest bedrooms I have and that were always empty.
Get a shower in the guest bathroom that hasn't been used in months. Gave him one of the disposable razors I have.
I also got rid of half of his old clothes, gave him a pair a sneaker bought over ago and still in their original box, jeans I don't fit in anymore, warm socks. T shirts I don't like...
A sleeping bag i only used once in more than 3 years. A multi tool knife I have never used, a backpack I only used once ....
I basically dumped on him a whole set of good stuff, that for me where just impulsive buys that i don't use but for him it meant so much.

It turns out he had bought a smartphone a few days ago ($49) but didn't know how to use it.
I set it up for him, I even installed spotify so he can listen to Dire strait and the Rolling stones.
We set up and email to keep in touch.

The following day (also a surprise) we went to the hair dresser to celebrate this new "him", obviously i paid, i was happy to pay for that man to look like a new man.
We also bought some fruits so he has food and some more razors to stay tidy.
From homeless to a fully respectable man in just one day.

I dropped him to the library he wanted to go, It took about 10 minutes of negotiation for him to accept the $20 note I wanted to give him. I had to insist that it wasn't charity and that this money was for his next hair cut in 1 months.

A couple of weeks later i got an email from him, the inheritance he told me about finally came through ($15 000).
He gave a couple of grands to his niece that helped him, he bought a RV to be able to drive and sleep in it and kept the rest for rainy days.
He told me that he still had my $20 bill that he kept for the next hair cut and that he was out of the streets.

I haven't had any news since, i wish him best fo luck.
I was so happy i could truly help one person change their life.


I usually give money to charity, but helping people directly is much more rewarding that writing a check.

Wow! What a horrible thing to write about the United States and Canada! I, of course, knew, that in these countries many bums, but that these people extort ganged money and cigarettes - this wildness! There is no such phenomenon in Russia! This is a rarity in Russia. They can stand with an outstretched hand, but do not forcibly extort anything and do not swear. If such bums will meet You in Russia, they can not be afraid. Such people in Russia lose their homes only because of their drunkenness or drug addiction.

That's a very inspirational link ya got there Vod ;-)



 jvanname,
not thinking we'd be friends irl---if we were I'd suggest anger management.

I do not give to support ongoing poor choices, but I do give always when asked to donate or round up at a purchase. 

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/generosity

Maybe your experience with beggars is different from the one I have or some other users have experienced. You should go back and read my two posts about my experience with an old man I sometimes see on the streets. Not really sure why you have all that hate built up inside of you but it's your own choice anyways.
Some bums chose to live on the streets, and some use drugs and alcohol, that is correct. But do you think that some of them were maybe a bit unlucky? Lost their jobs, were late with mortgages and lost their homes, mental illnesses...


We could also stop treating the sick and just let natural selection run its course, who cares.
What about if you or a loved one got hit by a car? Should we just leave you there on the streets and let natural selection run its course? Who cares since you are too weak to stand up you don't really deserve to live, right? 

Everyone who gives panhandlers money is a terrible person. Panhandlers are violent, they ruin the peace, they harass people, and they always break the laws. Stop giving them money. Please stop it. If you give them money, I will no longer be your friend, and I will declare you as an enemy. Instead of giving panhandlers money, we should let natural selection run its course. I hate people who give money to panhandlers. If you want to be charitable, then just destroy money (I will let you figure out how to do this legally) to make everyone else's money valuable in the fairest possible way. You may even give your dollars (as I said, please figure out how to do this legally) as a sacrifice upon the porcelain throne.

Panhandlers have taken NYC and have turned it into a toxic wasteland.

Let's forhet about the "bad" and "lazy druggie" homeless type and focus on the most sincere group.

Giving money to one homeless person is the financial equivalent of that same homeless person going out and buying cigarettes instead of saving the money or getting food and improving their life.

Paying a few bucks makes you all warm and fuzzy and sad.
However, this money will probably never change that person's life, or change the system.
If you really wanted to resolve this issue, there are much more systemic approaches.
Take the same money, invest it into crypto. (yeah, risky, but so is being homeless)
Then invest the winnings into an charity or other infrastructure that can provide a sustainable support system.
It doesn't "feel" as good as seeing the smile on their face, just like a salad doesn't feel as good as a cigarette when you're down on your luck.

It depends. If i like that person and he asks me nicely i might give him something. But most of the times when i meet panhandlers they come straight to me and ask me for money in a rude way so i just tell him to back off until i will get mad

No, I don't give money to beggars because I don't see point of doing that. Most of these beggars just need money to buy alcohol. If you offer to buy them food or something, they just don't accept it. Many of these people are healthy and young - they are capable to work and earn money. But they just don't want to do anything, they are happy about their current lifestyle.
Another question when I see elderly people or people with disability begging for money. It's clearly visible when old people don't have problems with alcohol, but they are forced to beg because their pension is tiny and sometimes it's not enough to buy food, pharmaceuticals and pay taxes. People with disability are in similar situation also. But not cases are same. I know one disabled women from my city who are begging in front of supermarkets, but she is forced to give everything what she gets to local criminals, as I understand she is paying rent fees in such way, because she lives at shack which belongs to these criminals.

I dont, because those fuckers mainly prey on sentiments for a quick buck, and most tend to be demanding. Plus, they're perfectly capable human beings who could walk and talk normally.

Once a foreign beggar approached me asking for some change. When I declined, he started cursing in his dialect.

This is interesting:

Joe Rogan Experience #1250 - Johann Hari 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDpjvFn4wgM&spfreload=1

To be honest I don't give much charity to beggars who smoke or drink alcohol on the streets. If all you have is a few dollars or even cents and you decide to spend that on cigarettes and liquor I tend to look at those people differently. Maybe I am being unfair but if your priority is to smoke instead of buying something to eat then good luck to you.