Do you give money to homeless people on the street?

Hi people. Its 3:33 am and I can't sleep because I feel sick. So I am thinking about money and "society"

Here are the reasons not to give money to homeless people that I have heard

1. It encourages them to stay the way they are by making it possible
2. They will spen it on alcohol
3. You work hard for your money why shouldn't they?

I think those are excuses personally, but I also don't like to give all my money away. I think if you get in that situation you need help, you are probably too depressed to function adequately, and if it was me I would be happy to get the money. But I don't have millions to give away either.

No. I pay taxes.

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Originally Posted by adoc

No. I pay taxes.

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canada doesn't have homeless people anyway, you don't get to vote.
you can't fix everyone's problems, and you shouldn't give all of your
money away. I've talked to loads of people involved with homeless
advocacy/shelters, and it's generally agreed that the best thing you
can do it donate to an organisation that works with the homeless
rather than making a direct cash handoff. that said, if I have a dollar
or two then yeah, I usually pass it along. it's a small amount of
money to me, usually, and if they acutally are using it for food, or
bus fare back to montreal, then I'd rather they have it than not.

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Originally Posted by din

canada doesn't have homeless people anyway, you don't get to vote.
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You mean that every single person in Canada earns or makes enough money to have his own place? Why so many homeless shelters within this country then?

I rarely give the guy on the street any money. I give larger amounts to tax-exempt organizations like the Red Cross, and then I get to write some of it off my taxes.

What does this have to do with learning Russian, anyway??

They are all druggies and alcoholics. The police should pick them up and dump them in the countryside. I live in the centre of London and there are loads of tramps and general undesirable sorts around.

Don't give them money. Give them a kick in the head.

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Originally Posted by din

canada doesn't have homeless people anyway, you don't get to vote.

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Guess again. Anyways, my post was to distract Biancca from her feeling sick (under-overdose?).

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Originally Posted by chaika

What does this have to do with learning Russian, anyway??

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If I tried to make a lame connection I could say I was curious if people would react differently from different countries including Russia :roll: But that is a stretch.

I am surprised I have not been banned yet for all my off-topicness.

OK I will get back to studying Russian. But thanks for the responses anyway.

I saw a TV report, in which they showed up that beggars pay their own "taxes", part of the money collected that the beggars give away to quite rich and athletically set up men called "быки" (bulls) or, simplier, racketeers. The bulls "keep" places like these and "shepherd" the bums and when the right time comes they take away their share. The racketmen also determine which places the bums have to occupy at the monent and organize their mannings. The worst thing for me is a sort of very unskillful musicians that walk through the carriages in a commute train and sing songs in their drunk, false voices making me bear it all.

well, to steer this topic to Russian, I think there is a small difference in the types of beggars.

It is sad to see all the babushkas standing outside in the freezing cold begging for money. You think she is a lazy alcoholic drug abuser who lives rich on her pension and the money she cashes in on a given day, or a childless widow whoes pension pays a third of her one square centimeter room in the bottom of a pit?

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Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

well, to steer this topic to Russian, I think there is a small difference in the types of beggars.

It is sad to see all the babushkas standing outside in the freezing cold begging for money. You think she is a lazy alcoholic drug abuser who lives rich on her pension and the money she cashes in on a given day, or a childless widow whoes pension pays a third of her one square centimeter room in the bottom of a pit?

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Yea I'll give some small change to beggars and street-performers, but if a gypsy comes my way, POW, right in the kisser!

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Originally Posted by TATY

They are all druggies and alcoholics. The police should pick them up and dump them in the countryside. I live in the centre of London and there are loads of tramps and general undesirable sorts around.

Don't give them money. Give them a kick in the head.

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No offense but this is the way snobs and people of the polite society think about poverty and believe their shиt doesn't smell.

Some beggars are not legitimate. I have been know to personally run a couple of these out of my town.

But some of the organizations you can donate to are not legit either, I think they skim a little off the top

Well, then I guess I'll have to run them out of town too!

When I first moved into the city, I did actually believe the homeless people that we have out here. (sucker). However, since I didn't smoke in the house, they would often approach me on the sidewalk in front of my loft and start in on me, telling me their life stories. They would eventually find a heartstring, pull it, and get some cash.

I stopped because I started actually listening to them. In the course of one week, every single one of the regulars that hang out near my apartment had lied to me at least six times. I started calling their bluff on their stories. One (that I have dealt with here for over a year) even had the audacity to start telling one lady about how he had lost everything--his house, his wife, and his daughter in New Orleans to Hurricane Katrina. I told him "Leave that woman alone. You didn't lose anything in the hurricane, you have been out in front of these apartments for the last year!" He was angry but my god, you should have seen her tell him off--she had really lost family there.

My point is, were it genuine need that forced them to beg, I wouldn't have a problem with helping out, but apparently most of them are beggars by profession. And while I like to hear a good story as much as the next guy, I am not about to pay for one.

Another interesting note is that Little Rock has in the past few years earned the title "Meanest city to the homeless." That's because many cities have programs that give the vagrants fifty bucks and a one-way bus ticket--to Little Rock. We have neither the funding nor the jobs to deal with other cities' problem.

Okay, I am done complaining.

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Originally Posted by jbblack

Another interesting note is that Little Rock has in the past few years earned the title "Meanest city to the homeless." That's because many cities have programs that give the vagrants fifty bucks and a one-way bus ticket--to Little Rock. We have neither the funding nor the jobs to deal with other cities' problem.

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Presumably they use the $50 to buy a bus ticket to somewhere more hospitable to their kind.

I was in New York City going to an interview. On the way, I saw a woman with three dirty children. She asked for some money so that she can feed her kids. I gave here a couple of dollars. I went to my interview, then on the way back, I saw her in a liquor store buying alcohol.
Since then I do not give money to beggers, especially in America where it is so easy to get a job and food is very cheap.

Не подаю.
Деньги - это свобода выбора. Моя соседка попала однажды в ситуацию, аналогичную предыдущей. По дороге в церковь она увидела бомжа и дала ему сумму, эквивалентную двум долларам. А когда шла обратно, увидела его валяющимся среди пустых пивных бутылок. Сами понимаете, какие чувства она испытала.
И я также не так давно смотрела передачу, посвящённую этой теме. То, что у нищих есть "крыша", я знала давно, но услышала такие подробности об этом бизнесе... Например, про колясочников на проезжей части. Их вывозят ранним утром и размещают на определённых точках голодных. До вечера им нельзя есть, чтобы не нужно было везти их в туалет, извините за подробности. Или мамочки с грудными детьми на руках. Зачастую это цыганки. Бывает, что никакого ребёнка в конверте нет, там просто тряпки или кукла. А если и есть, то не её это ребёнок, краденый. И знаете, почему эти дети не кричат? (младенцы ведь вообще шумный, горластый народ) Их поят. Спиртным, снотворным, чем угодно, лишь бы молчали. Что ей до него [ребёнка]? Она видит в нём лишь инструмент для добывания денег. Так откуда же люди знают, что делают добро, отдавая свои деньги? Они ведь не контролируют дальнейший путь этих денег, и таким образом просто способствуют развитию этого бизнеса, наживанию на детях/больных/стариках. Иногда в людях просыпается чувство вины перед теми, кому живётся много хуже, им не хочется выглядеть такими уж эгоистичными в своей одежде неплохого качества, с успехом в работе/учёбе и личной жизни, понимаю. И они пытаются это чувство заглушить подачкой. Но знаете... конечно, сидение с протянутой рукой может принести долларов двадцать в день, но я не верю, что таким образом можно собрать деньги на дорогостоящую операцию. Раз уж хочется помочь тому, кому нечего есть - дайте что-нибудь из еды, булочку какую-нибудь, пакетик сока, но не деньги. Этим людям нельзя распоряжаться деньгами. Вы думаете, бомжата так уж безобидны? Так вот, они бывают наглыми, бывает, что бравируют своим положением. Мальчик, собирающий деньги на светофоре, чуть ли не бросается под колёса. Он чувствует себя здесь как дома, и, как ни в чём ни бывало, бежит дальше, пока перепуганный водитель пытается отдышаться.
Кстати, с некоей долей скептицизма отношусь и к пожертвованиям в адреса детских домов. Кто знает, через чьи руки проходят эти деньги... Но это уже другая тема.

in england i dont give money to them but russia i do - not all the time, but i give stuff to injured war vets and alike when they come on the metro, also to old babushkas sometimes

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Originally Posted by Zaya

Не подаю.

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спасибо за подробный ответ, но ты ничего не говорила о бабушках. Им тоже нельзя дать деньги? Они тоже по пивным магазинам ходят?

2 BlackMage:

Gypsies ask you for money? Didn't even ask me... just tried to steal it.

-tdk

They just try to steal from me too, which is what makes me angry.

I would say the best way to get money out of me is to play some cool music and carry a sign about how you lost your leg in Chechnya.

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Originally Posted by Spiderkat

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Originally Posted by TATY

They are all druggies and alcoholics. The police should pick them up and dump them in the countryside. I live in the centre of London and there are loads of tramps and general undesirable sorts around.

Don't give them money. Give them a kick in the head.

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No offense but this is the way snobs and people of the polite society think about poverty and believe their shиt doesn't smell.

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My shіt may smell, but at least I don't smell like shіt.

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Originally Posted by kalinka_vinnie

спасибо за подробный ответ, но ты ничего не говорила о бабушках. Им тоже нельзя дать деньги? Они тоже по пивным магазинам ходят?

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И по пивным и по водочным...

I very seldom give money to homeless people on the street. I don't think that the money I give them can really help. As some of you have already said, the vast majority of homeless people are alcoholics and druggies. Giving them your money, you automatically provide them with alcohol. There are a lot of poor people in Russia and it's very hard to determine which of them really needs money for treatment. I disagree with TATY that they're all druggies and alcoholics. Some of them really needs money for treatment.

I also saw the TV report mishau mentioned. Even if you feel great pity for homeless and/or disabled people (I do) you should be aware that all the money you gave away to the beggar might get into his owner's hands. That's what really annoys me. I want to help the person I'm giving my money away to, but not his owner.

I agree with kalinka_vinnie that the babushkas standing in the freezing cold are victims of 'perestroika'. Some of them cannot find a job, others just don't want to. That's, imo, the chief reason why there are so many poor 'babushkas' in Russia.

Homelessness, at least in the west, is fundementally a symptom of mental illness. Substance abuse may be a cause of that mental illness, or it may just be another symptom (afterall, there are plenty of drug addicts and alcoholics with a perfectly good roof over their heads). As has been said, giving them money cannot make their situation any better, and may in fact help them to prolong it.

I only wish that every snotty judgemental stuck-up middle-class prick like Tatu would get to experience his own life, or watch that of a friend or family member, fall apart to that extent at least once, just a s a lesson in compassion.

Of course, it's a bit different in countries like Russia where the safety net isn't adequate at present.

I said sometimes 'cause I give to the Redcross a lot, which pisses me off. Their all ringing their bell and they talk about on teh news how they need extra donations 'cause of all the shit that's gone down and since I have a soul (don't tell anyone) I give them quarters, and sometimes dollars if I have them. I usually don't. But I get pissed when I do. 'Cause I give it to them...

We don't have any beggars here, we have homeless people...but no beggars.
At least they've never asked me for money.

Those jinglers on the other hand...I have no clue what I'm talking about.

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Homelessness, at least in the west, is fundementally a symptom of mental illness. Substance abuse may be a cause of that mental illness, or it may just be another symptom (afterall, there are plenty of drug addicts and alcoholics with a perfectly good roof over their heads). As has been said, giving them money cannot make their situation any better, and may in fact help them to prolong it.

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Very true. There are loads of druggies and alcoholics with a perfectly good roof over their heads, especially in highly developed countries.

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I said sometimes 'cause I give to the Redcross a lot, which pisses me off. Their all ringing their bell and they talk about on teh news how they need extra donations 'cause of all the @@@@ that's gone down and since I have a soul (don't tell anyone) I give them quarters, and sometimes dollars if I have them. I usually don't. But I get pissed when I do. 'Cause I give it to them...

We don't have any beggars here, we have homeless people...but no beggars.
At least they've never asked me for money.

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I don't really know if it's possible to donate to the Red Cross in Russia. I guess you can since it's an international organization. But it doesn't really matter because I don't have a clue how I can donate some of my money to the Red Cross. I have a soul too (you can tell whoever you want about it) but I won't donate much money to any charity unless I earn loads of money not to care about the way I spend it.
In my opinion, homeless people are constrained to beg because of having no other chance to live on what they receive from the government.