5 ms·

Agreed. I lived and worked in downtown Chicago for close to 3 years. There is a large population of beggars. About 90% of them are black males. During the same

Agreed. I lived and worked in downtown Chicago for close to 3 years. There is a large population of beggars. About 90% of them are black males. During the same period, I also saw lots of black males, who looked like these same beggars, in convenience stores and grocery stores buying alcohol and tobacco -- ONLY. Not other stuff along with it. Only those things. They often favored a certain kind of beer. I often saw that same kind of beer can, or wine bottle in a brown paper bag, discarded empty in the gutter or near trash cans in the same neighborhoods. Eventually, you put two and two together and conclude that it adds up to four. Do all of those beggars buy alcohol and tobacco with the money they get? Probably not. Are all of them addicts or lazy? Probably not. Are probably a large portion of them that way -- and/or mentally ill? Probably yes. But once you see that enough with your own eyes you begin to feel less sympathy for many of them. Not a total lack of sympathy or empathy -- I don't want anyone to live that kind of life, even if it is a case of failed willpower -- but it also hardens you a little bit when there's a call for more aid. Some people truly have hard things happen to them, and it's not their fault. Some people truly bring trouble upon themselves, and it is their fault. And it's hard to distinguish between them from a distance.

branden 16y ago
They're hard to distinguish up close, too. No matter how you get there, whether it's mostly by choice or mostly by circumstance, rock bottom will likely involve you doing whatever you can to relieve your misery for a few short hours. I have a hard time faulting someone for short-term behavior when they don't have much of a future to work toward. But you're (somewhat) correct when it comes to aid. Giving a homeless person 5 bucks won't do anything to alter their condition. It'll fill their belly, at best. But consider what 5 bucks probably means to me or you and what a meal means to someone who can't always count on one.
- philwelch 16y ago
  If you worry about homeless people spending your 5 bucks on booze, go spend that 5 bucks on a sandwich and give them the sandwich.
  - jdelsman 16y ago
    They won't take the sandwich half of the time, which are pretty high odds to be wasting your money.
  - gthank 16y ago
    You need the pick your homeless person carefully if you do this. There's a nontrivial chance it will result in verbal harassment and/or a confrontation.
    - jacquesm 16y ago
      Maybe first ask if that's ok? "Can I buy you a sandwich" is a lot more friendly than "here's a sandwich". I've made that exact mistake myself, but I think this may be the better approach.
      - gthank 16y ago
        That does sound like a much better approach.

branden 16y ago

They're hard to distinguish up close, too. No matter how you get there, whether it's mostly by choice or mostly by circumstance, rock bottom will likely involve you doing whatever you can to relieve your misery for a few short hours. I have a hard time faulting someone for short-term behavior when they don't have much of a future to work toward. But you're (somewhat) correct when it comes to aid. Giving a homeless person 5 bucks won't do anything to alter their condition. It'll fill their belly, at best. But consider what 5 bucks probably means to me or you and what a meal means to someone who can't always count on one.

philwelch 16y ago
If you worry about homeless people spending your 5 bucks on booze, go spend that 5 bucks on a sandwich and give them the sandwich.
- jdelsman 16y ago
  They won't take the sandwich half of the time, which are pretty high odds to be wasting your money.
- gthank 16y ago
  You need the pick your homeless person carefully if you do this. There's a nontrivial chance it will result in verbal harassment and/or a confrontation.
  - jacquesm 16y ago
    Maybe first ask if that's ok? "Can I buy you a sandwich" is a lot more friendly than "here's a sandwich". I've made that exact mistake myself, but I think this may be the better approach.
    - gthank 16y ago
      That does sound like a much better approach.