Poll of the Day > How often do you give money to panhandlers?

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do you even see any around, where you live?

I dont. If I want to help struggling people theres all sorts of centers and churches I can support or volunteer at. Giving money to panhandlers unfortunately just supports crime and contributes to fatal drug overdoses.

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i just saw a panhandler today with his teenage son. and he had a sign saying like this is his son and could you please give etc......

I don't even give a fuck anymore, if they ask me for money, I just give them whatever's in my wallet. I usually don't have much, and I usually don't get asked.

I havent carried cash in years. so, never.

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Never, because it just encourages them and you're never sure where the money is actually going.

AirJordan2345 posted...

do you even see any around, where you live?

Used to have some aggressive panhandlers around here. Supposedly one of them wasn't even too bad off either, since she might have been living with a relative.

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Almost never. Last time I was in the city I found a $5 or $10 bill on the ground about half a block from a musician pan handler, and tossed it in for him since I hadn't even put it in my wallet yet.
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I don't, 'cuz I live in a wholly digital nation.. who even has money?

I just donate time and money to the shelters

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There's one we see when we go to city over.

We don't always give when we do see him, but we do about half the time and when we do we go bigger.

Last time it was $20, and the time before about twice that tbh.

but don't almost all of them get disability or ssi or something?

AirJordan2345 posted...

but don't almost all of them get disability or ssi or something?

My state basically brags about it's high denial rate.

Not a panhandler, didn't even when I was homeless tbh, but some days can hardly get out of bed and got denied for not filling out paperwork that was requested multiple times on my end and I never received.

So around here at least... That's debatable...

If I have a few $1 bills and/or loose change and I can give em something without holding up traffic around me, I will give em $3 or what coins I have. More often than not, I simply use up my paper money and forget to put more in.

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Giving money to pan handlers / beggars is extremely dangerous. Anyone who has ever lived in a city would know that.

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Never. From filthy bums with amusing signs to people begging for funeral expense money for some kid that supposedly died. None of them get money from me.


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Not very often. There are so many of them where I live and if you give them money they'll try to hit you up every day.

I have in the past on ocassion. Never seen any here.

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ultra magnus13 posted...

Almost never. Last time I was in the city I found a $5 or $10 bill on the ground about half a block from a musician pan handler, and tossed it in for him since I hadn't even put it in my wallet yet.

Never really considered street musicians panhandlers myself, probably because they use something like a tip jar instead of just asking for money while providing nothing.

Lokarin posted...

I don't, 'cuz I live in a wholly digital nation.. who even has money?

Everybody has money, except the poor. Even if you're talking about *cash*, people tend to carry a small amount around. I usually have maybe forty or fifty bucks in my wallet for emergencies.

AirJordan2345 posted...

but don't almost all of them get disability or ssi or something?

They might get benefits of some kind, but not specifically from those programs. And those with substance abuse problems or mental illness might not necessarily be able to advocate for themselves to receive benefits from those programs. However, some panhandlers aren't terribly needy at all, or at least not in the conventional sense.


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Street musicians putting on performances for tips isn't pan handling, that's called busking.

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Why would I want to give money to Floridians?

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PMarth2002 posted...

Street musicians putting on performances for tips isn't pan handling, that's called busking.

thats a cool word

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About 40 times a day

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Just about never.
It enables them in this area. Everyone that does is doing it for themselves, and they'll let you know that they did it.
At my work I'll even tell customers to not buy something for "that guy sitting outside", cause that's all he does and how he can stay there without motivation.

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Never, I just give them whiskey and meth instead.

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Never. I donate food to soup kitchens and clothing and other items to a halfway house resale shop ran by former addicts and folks who have had a bad turn in their lives. I really love that store. These people are trying so hard to get back into a normal life.

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Never, but I also don't do anything to support the recovery of homeless people.

I've heard it would be cheaper to dedicate a public city building to housing/feeding them. I don't see the harm in that. Maybe it would keep 6 of them from harassing me walking downtown every time. Our mayor is incompetent, he just gets the police to move their camps off whatever lawn they're on.

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Zeus posted...

I usually have maybe forty or fifty bucks in my wallet for emergencies.

What if the emergency is you lost your wallet?

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I see panhandlers here and there. I ignore them for the most part. Those that get particularly aggressive, I tell them "No can do".

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I do it occasionally, I feel bad for them.

I know some may be buying drugs or alchohoal but what if they arent?

This past week a guy told me he was hungry, how could I turn him down?

I gave him a $5 bill and a protein shake.

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waterdeepchu posted...

What if the emergency is you lost your wallet?

idk, I guess I'd have to steal somebody else's wallet? I'm not sure there's a good contingency plan for that one.

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I don't usually carry change on me, but I usually give it to buskers.

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i have from time to time. at my old job there was this native guy who was around a lot and i usually gave him what i had and talked to him while i waited for my bus. he was nice

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I usually buy a Costco box of granola bars to keep in my car. If someone asks me if I can help then out, I give them a couple bars. Every so often these guys just want cash, and turn me down. Oh well, more bars for someone else, ok?

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I live in Louisville, KY. This is a troubled city, to put it mildly, and our homeless and panhandler populations are huge as a result. I generally don't give directly to them, but we do have a food bank that really does right by our community, especially the "food desert" areas. I donate to them when I can, and I also volunteered with them pretty often while I was in between jobs last year.

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maybe three times a year. Usually $20 to someone legitimate

Aculo posted...

I usually buy a Costco box of granola bars to keep in my car. If someone asks me if I can help then out, I give them a couple bars. Every so often these guys just want cash, and turn me down. Oh well, more bars for someone else, ok?

Maybe Ill try that, so at least Im not letting people go hungry but Im not supporting their drug habit.

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Maybe a couple times a year.

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