Do you give to homeless/street beggers?

[Jack Burton]

I did...once. Grabbed some gas on the way to an audit. Saw a homeless guy and his dog. Bought the biggest sandwich I could find. When I went out I acted like my stomach was killing me. Didn't want the sandwich to go to waste so I gave it to him. I felt good...for one second...till he went in and bought lotto tickets.

From now on, **** them. I felt bad once. One too many times.


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[Gringo185]

Nope, not a dime. If they really are Veterans (like MANY of their signs say) they can go to the VA and get help. There are an endless number of programs to help Vets get back on their feet. If their sign say they are and they aren't, they deserve to die from hunger.

 

[PSUCOBRA96]

I have no heart, I don't know why but most things like homeless people and puppies don't bother me. You want money, come paint my fence and earn it.

 

[Deceptive]

Nope, gave $5 to some douche s few years back and later that day watched the same **** get into a $50k Benz. This was before the economy tanked. **** me, there are jobs and too many cheats/liars.

 

[GrayGhost03]

i do sometimes, years ago i gave $10 to a homeless guy that was asking for change at 4am on my way to work. its all i had and he was so grateful he offered to give me his beat up 10 speed bike in exchange.

 

[Chum731]

A buddy of mine I went to high school with gave a homeless guy down outside DC his 1,500 Movado watch on Christmas Eve

He felt like it was going to turn the guys life around. There is no freaking way I would ever do that. We always razzed him that he just threw the money on the ground but he always felt good about it :shrug:

I had a couple hit me up when I lived in Atlanta for money on Northside Dr by Georgia Tech one day. They guy looked like a classic hobo that would hitch hike on the railroads with a stick with a handkerchief with all his possessions in it :lol1:

His face had a long fresh scratch down it. It started on his forehead and went down his eyebrow onto his cheek. He said the hood came down on his face and gigged him. He said he needed some money to take the Marta back to his house and get another car to bring some tools back to fix one in the McD's parking lot.

I gave him 4-5 buck in change and he was so appreciative.

I left and went to work. I had to run an errand at lunch and wound up eating right next door to the McD's. And sitting there in the lot was the hobo drinking a beer, smoking a cigarette in the parking lot with his girlfriend. They were laughing and having a grand old time...

I wanted to get out and ask him what happened to his urgent run on the Marta to get the other car but I figured the money went into the beer that was in his hand.

So based on that experience - I don't give people money.

 

[firemanmike]

99.999% no.

 

[jbs$]

Sometimes, if the person is old or appears to have some other real disability. If they appear to be able to work at something, no.

 

[Alberts03cobra]

I try sometimes but I normally don't carry cash..

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[99cobrajn]

Yea, we had guys in town making 50k a year. I dont ever do it, I work to hard for my money and dont give to people that dont want to work. I do donate to big charity.

 

[Kevins89notch]

HELL NO! They are a bunch of lying, lazy, drug addict, system abusers. Now there's about 0.05% of them that really are just down on their luck, but even those people have prior issues that caused their current situation.

 

[C-Tidda]

Sometimes I do sometimes I don't it just depends on my mood.. For the most part I give to the kids raising money for their teams, or to my younger cousins so they can have candy money..

 

[Dsg-shaker]

nope, always worked in the downtown or industrial areas which are littered with homeless or panhandlers, having bad past experience with a few I will not help under any conditions. Maybe if it was a medical emergency and that would be limited.

Hats off to the drifter that pulled a knife on me at my old work.

 

[badws6ta]

HELL no. I hate panhandlers. Got way sick of them when I was a sheriff's deputy. Im not heartless, I used to give them a ride to the shelter or the VA if it was cold out on duty sometimes but that's about it. If they were aggressively bothering people and we get multiple calls about it they would go to jail (It's illegal here.) And I have no sympathy because all of them did it to themselves. They are like the real life equivalent of scammers.

 

[440sprint]

Venice Beach, CA has the highest concentration of beggar scammers of all places I've been. They prey most successfully on tourists from all over the world!

 

[paynecasey]

I don't because your treating the symptom and not the wound.

Your giving him money? Why? Because he is broke. Why is he broke? Because he doesn't have a job. Help him get a job. He doesn't want a job. Let him starve. Lots of people enjoy collecting money sitting on corners.

 

[SID297]

El Paso broke me of it, there it is a begging syndicate. I give to charity now knowing only 30-70% of the money makes it to help people in need.

That's why I've been working to set up a charity where 100% of the money goes to an actual cause.



I'll leave you with two stories:


First, when I was in undergrad I was in my apartment when I get a knock at the door. It was some guy doing the gas scam door to door. I told him I didn't have anything to spare, which was very true at the time. He acted pissed but left. About two weeks later I was in the parking lot of my apartment complex working on my truck. The same guy walks up to me and gives me the some variation of the same story as before. This agitated me a bit, so I basically told him to leave me alone. When he started to get overly aggressive I made sure he saw the 1/2 inch breaker bar I had in my hand. I believe he inferred that I was about to split his wig and he left.

Now here's where it gets really bad. In my complex there was a kid with a mental disability, he could live by himself but was highly susceptible to manipulation. That same guy took him everything he had on several occasions, leaving him unable to pay his rent. The apartment managers (all but one of them was great guys) told the kid's father what was happening. From what I heard he nearly beat the bum senseless. I never saw him again after that.


Second, I was in Chicago for the auto show a few years back. Myself, a friend, and some engineers were out until about 4:00am at this bar that locked the doors and stayed open for us. When we finally decided to turn it in we stepped outside (it was Feb) and started talking about finding some food. None of us knew where to go, but this old homeless guy was setting on the street said he would show us a place close by that was open all night. The old guy had to walk on crutches be we followed him a couple blocks to this great little restaurant. He didn't ask for anything, but some of the guys gave him some cash. I told him to come in with us and have something to eat.

The people in that place had to think that 6 guys in suits having breakfast at 4:00am with an old homeless man were crazy. He was extremely appreciative of the meal and to get in out of the cold for a bit. I was glad we could help each other out.

 

[smokincobra04]

Nope!!! I'd be that way if I didn't wanna work either and I had a drug and alcohol problem.

 

[the gillz]

Its actually illegal where I live to panhandle AND to give to panhandlers...so I don't even worry about it. But it doesn't stop themfrom trying

 

[motoman991]

Hell no. **** those lazy bums.