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I'm no expert but in the UK there seems to be wide consensus that giving directly to beggars is counterproductive, to the extent that charitable organisations s

by jl6 13y ago

I'm no expert but in the UK there seems to be wide consensus that giving directly to beggars is counterproductive, to the extent that charitable organisations spend time and effort putting up posters round cities reminding people of this.

agilebyte 13y ago
One example of such a poster campaign entitled "Your Kindness Could Kill": http://www.northumbria.police.uk/news_and_events/news/details.asp?id=64295 http://www.northumbria.police.uk/news_and_events/news/detail...
- mikegagnon 13y ago
  Wow. That message is stunning propaganda. Sure, I could give someone a dollar and that person could use it to buy a small portion of their last hit of heroin which finally ends up killing that person. This message is saying that I am responsible (at least partially) for that person's death. The bigger causes of that person's death is that this person is a heroin addict, and something caused this person to be a heroin addict, and that someone is selling heroin, and that someone is making heroin, and so on and so on.... When you account for all the causal factors that led to that person's death, this one dollar is just the straw that broke the camel's back. The real cause of the death is all the other factors that brought that person to become addicted to heroin to the point of overdose.
  - agilebyte 13y ago
    I think that that wow you mentioned is the point. They are trying to make you remember/shock you instead of engaging in a rational debate.
Tycho 13y ago
I think those posters are way overstepping the mark. I don't mind the idea of promoting charity donations by claiming they are more effective than giving to beggars, but personally I'd like us to preserve the human institution whereby if somebody asks us for help, we consider giving it. Human relations are very nuanced, there might be good reasons why someone begs rather than turns to homelessness organisations. I'd hate to live in a country where everyone has the same robotic 'can't help you, you should report yourself to the police' response.

by jl6 13y ago

agilebyte 13y ago

One example of such a poster campaign entitled "Your Kindness Could Kill": http://www.northumbria.police.uk/news_and_events/news/details.asp?id=64295 http://www.northumbria.police.uk/news_and_events/news/detail...

mikegagnon 13y ago
Wow. That message is stunning propaganda. Sure, I could give someone a dollar and that person could use it to buy a small portion of their last hit of heroin which finally ends up killing that person. This message is saying that I am responsible (at least partially) for that person's death. The bigger causes of that person's death is that this person is a heroin addict, and something caused this person to be a heroin addict, and that someone is selling heroin, and that someone is making heroin, and so on and so on.... When you account for all the causal factors that led to that person's death, this one dollar is just the straw that broke the camel's back. The real cause of the death is all the other factors that brought that person to become addicted to heroin to the point of overdose.
- agilebyte 13y ago
  I think that that wow you mentioned is the point. They are trying to make you remember/shock you instead of engaging in a rational debate.

Tycho 13y ago

I think those posters are way overstepping the mark. I don't mind the idea of promoting charity donations by claiming they are more effective than giving to beggars, but personally I'd like us to preserve the human institution whereby if somebody asks us for help, we consider giving it. Human relations are very nuanced, there might be good reasons why someone begs rather than turns to homelessness organisations. I'd hate to live in a country where everyone has the same robotic 'can't help you, you should report yourself to the police' response.