I really want an answer to this from people who are not reddit-brained libs. I have seen some good points elsewhere about this contributing to a cycle of abuse and control, causing parents to withdraw their kids from school to beg instead, etc., but if someone is desperate enough to humiliate themselves by begging on the street, shouldn’t we give to them? Or should I feel bad that I did give to them?
It is if you don’t have cash. In my experience they never accept anything other than cash, and I don’t carry cash on me so they never take any of the extra food I have. So if you have a fat wallet then go ahead
right, i didn’t mean to except the general rule of “if you can”, it’s just that the suspicion or reality of an organization shouldn’t enter the equation of ‘acceptability’
Yeah for sure some beggar working for some dipshit gangster would be a bit of a silly line to draw since I “lend” my money to my bank every time i put it in my savings, and those fuckers are doing some debauchery with Epsteins of the world. I guess the “visibility” of it is what bothers people. They want their sausages but don’t want to see how it’s made or what the byproduct is.
I’d say whether I’ve done it part of a group or just randomly when I had extra food and offered it to someone theyve accepted way more than not.
I’ve been asked if I could buy some chips multiple times. I’ve bought and ate meals with people.
Maybe it’s different in the places I’ve lived.
Eh having said all that, I’ve also talked with some people who were able to get food okay but needed money for other basic necessities. You can find food in a dumpster but not a shower or a safe place to sleep.
Some people also need to be mobile and it’s a lot easier to haul cash than food.