If you give them money, you're wasting your money.

Here are a couple of the signs I've seen lately:

"Anything helps. 420"

"My dog ate my pizza and my wallet. Please help." (the guy was smoking and threw his cigarrette on the ground while I watched)

One my girlfiend told me about yesterday. "Why lie? I just want a beer. 420"

All of these people looked like they were able-bodied people (walking around with no issues, and no apparent injuries)

For those of you who don't know, 420 is another reference for marijuana.

How we tolerate these people in our society, I don't know....but this is why I will never give monetary assistance to a stranger.

I know its virtually impossable to say Leper, but at a guess, would you say these people were Americans or foreigners.

98% of the homeless people I have seen are caucasian.

Caucasian, that means white, yes.

If you give them money, you're wasting your money.

Here are a couple of the signs I've seen lately:

"Anything helps. 401"

"My dog ate my pizza and my wallet. Please help." (the guy was smoking and threw his cigarrette on the ground while I watched)

One my girlfiend told me about yesterday. "Why lie? I just want a beer. 401"

All of these people looked like they were able-bodied people (walking around with no issues, and no apparent injuries)

For those of you who don't know, 401 is another reference for marijuana.

How we tolerate these people in our society, I don't know....but this is why I will never give monetary assistance to a stranger.

for the sake of clarity, those are panhandlers, which may or may not be homeless.

You can make a pretty good living panhandling in a big city. Anybody that's good at it is making too much money to be homeless.

Caucasian, that means white, yes.
Yes.

You can make a pretty good living panhandling in a big city. Anybody that's good at it is making too much money to be homeless.

I used to work in San Francisco, and on many occasions while standing in line at the bank, I'd see panhandlers also waiting to deposit their daily take. WADS of money. Of course it was mostly all ones, but still...

I know its virtually impossable to say Leper, but at a guess, would you say these people were Americans or foreigners.
Most of them I've seen were Americans, or at least sounded like they were.

Right. Here homeless people are few and far between, in as you can be registered homeless but put in temporary accommodation, longterm temporary that is.

I always lock my doors when I see them. And then they look at me weird because they can hear my doors lock. But whatever. Haha.

I always lock my doors when I see them. And then they look at me weird because they can hear my doors lock. But whatever. Haha.
you shouldn't be driving around with your doors unlocked anyways. the body of the car is stronger during an impact with the doors locked. not much, but that not much could be the difference between you living to tell the tale or not.

most new cars lock the doors automatically at 35mph.

WE have a small part of town that is like that. They are pretty good they don't harass you much at all or at least they have never me. The ones that get to me are the ones that use their kids to get money from you. Society has such a phobia of what a homeless person looks like or acts like and what a panhandler is.
I watched that show pursuit of happyness and it was and eye opener on how society and one person can go from something to nothing to something if they have the fight in them.
I have had nothing and now I have something and I don't take it for granted that it could be go any time if I am not careful.

I always just offer them food. I will gladly feed people. I work so that I can enjoy drinking a beer or going else where from time to time, not so they can.

My friend invited a bunch of homeless people to the park to play Slosh ball (drunken kickball) for his birthday party. We got a keg for home and you had to carry a beer while running bases or playing outfeild. It was damn good fun.

I would guess I give away ten dollars a day to beggars in Vietnam--a VND 10,000 note is worth about 70 cents and in Vietnam will buy a couple good meals. I keep a supply of them in my pocket for just that purpose.

The beggars no doubt are in the business, but they are blind or missing limbs, etc., so I can't imagine what other business they could have. (There are also legions of old women out begging--an old woman without family in Vietnam is really up the creek).

One assumes the men around my age who are missing limbs lost them in the American War fighting for the South, since the government takes care of those who were injured fighting for the North.

The American panhandler is a different thing--he is generally an alcoholic, and we know that the money will be spent on alcohol. This creates a moral dilemma, since we cannot blame him for his alcoholism disease any more than we can blame the injured soldier, but we also do not need to compound the problem.

Many homeless are not able to be hired because of convictions or sex offenders. Also homeless is a problem if they have been evicted from their home for either not being able to pay their rent or criminal problems. In many places if you still owe money to your past renting space another renter will not let you in.
So they may be abled bodied people doesn't mean they are employable.
Also if they are acoholics or drug addicts they wont be able to keep a job.

I never give money to them simply because I do not know where it is going. I do agree with one poster here to offer them some food. There is not much else you can do unless you are rich and can afford to get these people some serious mental and drug rehab to get them back on their feet again.

http://z.about.com/d/politicalhumor/1/0/N/j/bush_the_one_ring.jpg

http://z.about.com/d/politicalhumor/1/0/I/Z/bush_jesusad.jpg

Dont know what those pics had to do with anything.. but i'm sure FT is a grand member if its the "bashin of the christ" webpage or whatever...

98% of homeless people ive seen are black, and when i offered them food they said they were allergic before they even knew what it was i was offering. They just want money for beer and drugs... its sad because not ALL of them do, some of them really NEED help, but they have cried wolf too many times..

Most of the homeless in my city are black too. But panhandlers are only a little more likely to be black than white.

Most of the homeless in my city are black too. But panhandlers are only a little more likely to be black than white.

Yeah, seems like panhandlers are almost always white. The guys who walk up to you on the street are often black. However, I almost never see a Hispanic person begging for money.

for the sake of clarity, those are panhandlers, which may or may not be homeless.

Absolutely right!

I have met quite a few people who are homeless in part because they are too proud to ask for any help, let alone handouts.

In my experience, a real homeless panhandler's sign will be simple. They usually only say something along the lines of, "Hungry." or "Please help."

You can panhandle on the side, even if your not poor. If you live in a big city, you can make a lot of extra money doing it too.

So what is the answer and how does it get fixed and can it be fixed rather then be a social disgrace as most see it. People are so scared of homeless people and panhandlers. I am more afraid to the ones dressed nice that think they can work you in a sneaky sly way.

So what is the answer and how does it get fixed and can it be fixed rather then be a social disgrace as most see it.
Don't everyone jump in all at once now!

Seriously though, if there was a good, repeatable solution to the problem, we'd already be doing it.

But you have to ask yourself though, what is the problem? Is it seeing people asking for money on the streets? 'Cause if it is, that speaks more to your sensitivities than to your actual concern for these people. You just don't want to see it.

Most people on the streets here are East European,at a guess Romanian or Bulgarian,cant be sure,tho from they're dark looks and clothes thats my guess.
They're English isnt good,the women sit in the middle of the footpath,usually holding a baby,begging,if you hanf around and watch for awhile,every now and then a man,same ethnic type,walks over to them and takes any money theyve collected,these guys also do protection for the women,its the same Ireland over,the samt ethnic group doing it.

Most people on the streets here are East European,at a guess Romanian or Bulgarian,cant be sure,tho from they're dark looks and clothes thats my guess.
They're English isnt good,the women sit in the middle of the footpath,usually holding a baby,begging,if you hanf around and watch for awhile,every now and then a man,same ethnic type,walks over to them and takes any money theyve collected,these guys also do protection for the women,its the same Ireland over,the samt ethnic group doing it.

What part of Ireland are you from Paul?

Originally,
Tyrone

Ok, thanks! I have been in Dublin and Limerick but I haven't been that far north yet.

Well, 'up north' has been off the beating track for tourists for years,due to the troubled years,but its catching up fast.I think I read somewhere that its now one of the top ten places to visit.
You got the Giants Causway.
Antrim Coast Road.
Kingdom of Mourne.
Erne Waterway.
Belfast-which is so funny.
You should try it,its a cool place.

Dont know what those pics had to do with anything.. but i'm sure FT is a grand member if its the "bashin of the christ" webpage.....

Good point. I'm not, but only because I haven't run across that website.

Since I view Christianity as the most harmful and destructive affliction (i.e., mental imbalance) to ever befall the human race, I oppose it whenever and wherever I can.

___________________________

The defacto goal of Christianity, the predominant religion in the United States, is the destruction of the core values of a progressive and open society; the ability to think for oneself, to draw independent conclusions, to express dissent when judgment and common sense tell you something is wrong, to be self-critical, to challenge authority, to advocate for change and to accept that there are other views, different ways of being, that are morally and socially acceptable.

I would guess I give away ten dollars a day to beggars in Vietnam--a VND 10,000 note is worth about 70 cents and in Vietnam will buy a couple good meals. I keep a supply of them in my pocket for just that purpose.

The beggars no doubt are in the business, but they are blind or missing limbs, etc., so I can't imagine what other business they could have. (There are also legions of old women out begging--an old woman without family in Vietnam is really up the creek).

One assumes the men around my age who are missing limbs lost them in the American War fighting for the South, since the government takes care of those who were injured fighting for the North.

The American panhandler is a different thing--he is generally an alcoholic, and we know that the money will be spent on alcohol. This creates a moral dilemma, since we cannot blame him for his alcoholism disease any more than we can blame the injured soldier, but we also do not need to compound the problem.


What's it like in Vietnam today? What type of work do you do over there?

Kurt Vonnegut once was once giving a lecture when he said this; (paraphrase)

People I have some bad news and some good news for you.

First the bad news. Aliens have landed in New York City.

Now the good news. They eat only homeless people and minorities and they piss gasoline.

Someone made a good point about not seeing a lot Hispanic homeless/panhandlers. Here in the DC area there are large black and Hispanic populations but also plenty of white people, and the homeless/panhandlers seem to be divided into about half white and half black. Never any Hispanics (or Asians either but there aren't a lot of Asians around anyway). I wonder why that is.

In DC most of the panhandlers and homeless are middle aged men, and pretty much all of the white ones are (or pretend to be) Vietnam vets. And almost all of them seem to have some sort of mental problems. The homeless around here are more often the type that stand on the corner and yell out incoherent conspiracy theories than anything else. Then there's always the women with small children, they are the most pitiful and I always give them money if I see them.