I am asking because I know people from both sides:
- People who discourage it: usually talk about how the beggars might spend their money on, how they might be lying, How donating to them will encourage them to keep begging and how they should be looking for a job instead (My commentary: finding a job is impossible for them this days, matter of fact there is literally hundreds, if not thousands of articles online talking about how hard and impossible it had become).
- People who encourage it: to be honest here, they usually talk only about religious reasons.
(Note: I know that the overview about both sides are highly unbalanced, but I preferred to keep it limited to my personal experiences rather than expanding it from myself, as I intentionally not looking for theories and objective logic, rather I am looking at people reasons and opinions as this is highly subjective matter.)
Anyone got any thoughts about this?
I once saw a guy searching through the trash for “Pfand” Bottles (German recycling system) that are worth 25 cents. He didn’t ask me for anything, so I gave him 5€.
PS: I could tell that he was genuinely grateful (or at least a great actor) and I had that gut feeling that he is a good guy.
This shows that you have great empathy.
But what if a person came and ask you explicitly for money, will you give them?
Mostly no, especially in big cities, because I would be broke in 30 minutes. If someone tells me they need it for something reasonable and specific and I believe them, maybe, honestly it depends on my mood as well as I am obviously flawed, just like everyone. Also I live paycheck to paycheck myself.
Edit: Thanks btw.
Searching through the trash means they genuinely need the money, and are willing to work for it. That’s worth something.