Poll: If a homeless person begged you for money, would you give it to them?

[mrduckbear]

suppose a homeless person was begging you for money..and i'm not talking sitting on the side and just begging as you pass by, i mean following you and almost harassing you for money. would you give them money after that?

let's see if people would

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Probably not. Are they threatening me with a weapon or some hypothetical friend that's waiting for me at the end of the block?

 

[Vegosiux]

Following and harassing me? Well, no, because that means I either already gave them something, or had a good reason not to.

 

[Random Argument Man]

Following and harassing wouldn't help his/her cause.

Although, I already did gave money to a "homeless" guy. He was looking for cans to recycle, but he always stayed around the Subway across the street from my apartment. I had a few cases of empty beer cans that needed to disappear from my apartment before my date presented herself and he was around. Instead of waiting 3 weeks for my uncle to decide to help me, I gave the homeless guy the beer cans and 5 $ so he could eat something. He kept telling me that he never stuck in that part of town, but he needed to branch out to have more cans. He thanked me and ate his sandwich.

I hoped that he didn't return because I moved from that apartment the next week.

 

[StriderShinryu]

I can't say that I wouldn't ever give them anything as there are always multiple things I would consider, but it would be pretty unlikely for me to give anything. In fact, if they were actually following me around and harassing me I would be more likely to call the police than give them money.

 

[Caiphus]

I sometimes give money to homeless people, depending on whether I've had a good day.

Chasing after me generally probably wouldn't persuade me. Although, I guess it would depend. If they were intimidating I'd be minded to give them 5bux to get them to go away, and to then call the police. If they seemed legitimately distressed, though, then I probably would give them some money.

 

[Lilani]

I really don't like to give anybody who asks for it cash, because I don't know what they're going to spend it on. However, I'm also aware there are people who legitimately need help and resort to begging/panhandling. The thing I learned from somebody to do is to always have a few gift cards to food places on hand, like Subway or something. Right around $10, just enough to get a good meal or two. That way if they do legitimately need money for food you make sure they get it, and if they didn't legitimately need it then all they can buy with that is food.

I've considered doing the same for gas cards, but honestly most of the people I see asking for gas money are parked at WalMarts or places that very obviously don't have gas pumps and are very obviously just trying to get free cash. I can be a bleeding heart and I'm okay with giving random people gift cards at the risk of being scammed, but even I can't bring myself to believe a single one of those people driving around WalMarts and malls asking for gas money. You need some gas in your tank to get home? Be at a gas station and let me personally pump you a few gallons. Don't be driving your supposedly empty vehicle around in circles in the mall parking lot and try to tell me you don't have enough gas to see your dying sister.

 

[Weaver]

I've had homeless people follow and harass me. I was asked every day for money for a year while I walked to work. Often by the same people. One guy was trying to "catch a bus" for at least 10 months. Another meth addict stopped me and gave me a huge story about how he was on dialysis and needed a thousand dollars for his next treatment and begged me to go to the bank and give him tons of money; despite this being Canada and my Provence covering outpatient dialysis under Ontario Health Insurance (which is awesome, by the way, because dialysis is really expensive).

I don't want to make it like I don't care about the homeless, but I'm way more likely to give you money if you're quietly sitting there with a hat on the street then fucking harassing me while I can barely afford rent.

 

[Tuesday Night Fever]

So... I'm probably an asshole here, but no, I wouldn't. The fact that I'm being followed and harassed makes it an especially emphatic no since that sort of behavior should never be encouraged or rewarded.

I regularly participate in donation drives for food and clothing, but I'll never give money. Mostly it's because I don't know where it's being spent, and I don't want to unintentionally be feeding a person's addiction. But I also won't hand out money because panhandlers actually make decent money as it is. In some places they're able to make significantly more than minimum wage if they play their cards right (often manipulation; claiming they're veterans when they aren't, pretending to be caring for a family, etc.).

 

[Treeinthewoods]

Nope, I would buy them food though. Giving them money means wondering if they are going to use it for food or in service to an addiction.

They can't inject a sandwich into their veins.

 

[Zhukov]

Yeah.

I give money when I'm asked. Just whatever I've got on me, which is almost never more than $50.

I'm single, young, employed and childless. If someone has got to the point where they're asking strangers for a couple of bucks then I figure they need it more than me.

If they spend it on drugs or booze or whatever, well, that's on them.

 

[Ryotknife]

If someone is nice to me, generally I'll help out within reason. If they give me attitude or demand money from me, then yea we are going to have problems.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I would have done a year ago but now I live in a city where begging is a serious problem.

You have people approaching you on all of the main streets, outside cafés or bars and sitting on every corner.
When I first moved here, I gave out what I could but when you're confronted with someone asking you for money on every street and two or three people asking you every time you get a coffee, you eventually learn to tune it out.

Yeah, when I lived in a smaller city, I probably would've done, I used to feel insanely guilty for saying no, but I doubt that I would now.

 

[FPLOON]

At first I was going to say "yes"... but, then you added that they're harassing me for money and then my answer immediately switched to "no"...

To be honest, given the situation, if the homeless person was nice enough to ask without the harassment, I would mostly give them some of the food I bought from the supermarket... (At least I know what they're going to do with that food...)

 

[Ticklefist]

I spent a year of my life living on the street. Never sat with a sign but I panhandled a bit. I always used the money to get drunk. Homeless people are pretty well fed unless they're new to being homeless and haven't learned where to go.

So no.

 

[Bertylicious]

Yeah.

I give money when I'm asked. Just whatever I've got on me, which is almost never more than $50.

I'm single, young, employed and childless. If someone has got to the point where they're asking strangers for a couple of bucks then I figure they need it more than me.

If they spend it on drugs or booze or whatever, well, that's on them.

Mate, can you paypal me a tenner? What it is, see, is that my bike lost a gear and my phone is out of battery and I need to get across to Smethwick to see a mate who has a van. I've, like, stashed me bike around an alleyway and I'm hoping nobody will rob it 'cause its fucked, like, so if you could just give me a tenner then I can sort it out.

 

[V4Viewtiful]

No, i'm not stupid, I see them go to McDonalds or Tescos and give'em food.


They ain't getting high on my money!

 

[Scars Unseen]

I'm a month behind on all my bills, my car insurance is about to expire, and my current primary source of nourishment is rice.

No, I would not.

 

[Casual Shinji]

No sorry.

Even if they ask me to buy them a loaf of bread so they can eat, who's to say they won't be back the next week expecting me to buy them another one. I'm sorry, but I can't take responseability for them.

And I'm already weary when someone approaches me to ask directions, so when they actually start asking for money I go full-on paranoid. Yeah, I don't trust strangers.

 

[Zhukov]

Yeah.

I give money when I'm asked. Just whatever I've got on me, which is almost never more than $50.

I'm single, young, employed and childless. If someone has got to the point where they're asking strangers for a couple of bucks then I figure they need it more than me.

If they spend it on drugs or booze or whatever, well, that's on them.

Mate, can you paypal me a tenner? What it is, see, is that my bike lost a gear and my phone is out of battery and I need to get across to Smethwick to see a mate who has a van. I've, like, stashed me bike around an alleyway and I'm hoping nobody will rob it 'cause its fucked, like, so if you could just give me a tenner then I can sort it out.

Man, the beggars must be more creative in your part of the world.

Where I'm from, it's just "money for the bus" or "haven't eaten in a while".