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I have had the opportunity to observe panhandlers on city street corners primarily on off ramps at busy intersections. Just a rough calculation would show that they make well over minimum wage per hour. Saw one family, father had daughter on one corner, mom had son on other corner, saw several stops in a short period of time.
So why would they work when their "job" pays much more than they would make as a 'burger flipper'?
I'm not sure whether or not you would classify a schooled musician as a panhandler if they were putting on an impromptu concert on the street or in a subway station. I've done that. I did it for several years, off and on, before I was fully accepted on the concert circuit. Anyone who says that playing and singing in all kinds of weather does not qualify as *working*, just doesn't have a clear understanding of the situation. It's a hell of a lot easier to stand in the warm and flip burgers - BTDT too.
Y'have to start somewhere, and I neither regret nor apologize for any of it.
I had an older (skinny, which helped his cause) man come up and offer to do any work at all if I would buy him something to eat. (I was leaving a fast food place with a coffee and a sweet roll.) Then he said "you don't have to give me any money, you could just buy me a sandwich" and my MOM-heartstrings got a tug. AAARRRGGGHH! "here" I thrust him a $5. "PLEASE go inside and buy something to eat." and I repeated "please go inside and buy something to eat" (it was a chicken place- he could feast for $5 if he drank water) He rushed to the door, saying "yes ma'am" twice. So later that day on my lunch break I see the same guy panhandling (for his lunch I suppose) at a convenience store across the street. He didn't come near me but gave me the thumbs up. LOL I'm thinking he was after a liquid lunch.
I've seen guys with the signs that say "Hungry, please give me some money so I can eat" so I went to Wendy's and bought them a meal. When I pulled up and handed them the bag they looked at me as if to say "I don't want food, I want MONEY !" As bad as I feel for some of these folks I somehow feel the money isn't going for food, but for booze and drugs.
I saw one honest panhandler in Daytona Beach one year, his sign said "I won't lie, I need beer money."
Don
Reminds me of when I offered a banana to a bum when walking into work in Philly one morning. He looked at me after I asked him if he wanted it and his face was cold and he goes "sure, I guess so", in a depressing tone.
I agree many are out there for drugs and alcohol, it's a way to hide/run from their issues. Sometimes I think they like this lifestyle, some just like being down and depressed. Most have trauma and mental health problems, so all I ever offer is food or water.
Hitchhikers are much different than bums though, they have some of the wildest of stories. I brought a hitcher into a bar one time and bought him a few beers, what a wild conversation. Amazing how much one can learn from these people, many of them could tell/write an amazing book/story.
There is no reason to think that the panhandlers are homeless. Many of them are not.
The local police here are saying that the heroin addicts are out on the street corners panhandling. Not meaning that all panhandlers are addicts, but a good number of them are.
I would have to assume that they are making money doing it, because no one would stand out there in all weather for no reward at all.
I've seen guys with the signs that say "Hungry, please give me some money so I can eat" so I went to Wendy's and bought them a meal. When I pulled up and handed them the bag they looked at me as if to say "I don't want food, I want MONEY !" As bad as I feel for some of these folks I somehow feel the money isn't going for food, but for booze and drugs.
I saw one honest panhandler in Daytona Beach one year, his sign said "I won't lie, I need beer money."
Don
Phony homelessness can apparently be lucrative depending upon where one engages in the activity. There even appears to be some organization behind the activity in some cases. It's almost prolific here in Florida; I've never seen anything quite like it in such a widespread fashion before moving here.
The other seemingly frequent scam is with the folks who spend their days in the parking lots of Walmarts and gas stations. They're always "about 30 miles from home and just need a few bucks for gas to get there." Hogwash, they either want drug/booze money, or, they're preparing to rob you. Some of these lunatics are even brazen enough to get in your face out of nowhere. That's pretty ballsy considering there has been a CCW permit issued for 1 of every 20 citizens within the State.
"Sliders" (people who steal from vehicles as the owners pump gas) also appear to be on the increase.
well yeah, they might be getting a free ride, but so what? Do you think they're "winning" here? Do you think they'll get to the end of their life and be proud of/satisfied with what they did with it? They'll have spent their life standing on street corners doing nothing but being parasites.
Phony homelessness can apparently be lucrative depending upon where one engages in the activity. There even appears to be some organization behind the activity in some cases. It's almost prolific here in Florida; I've never seen anything quite like it in such a widespread fashion before moving here.
The other seemingly frequent scam is with the folks who spend their days in the parking lots of Walmarts and gas stations. They're always "about 30 miles from home and just need a few bucks for gas to get there." Hogwash, they either want drug/booze money, or, they're preparing to rob you. Some of these lunatics are even brazen enough to get in your face out of nowhere. That's pretty ballsy considering there has been a CCW permit issued for 1 of every 20 citizens within the State.
"Sliders" (people who steal from vehicles as the owners pump gas) also appear to be on the increase.
The other one is the public transportation scam These guys stand at the bus stop or train station (TriRail here) and say they have to get to Miami or wherever to see someone who is on the verge of death.
There was one guy at a bus stop whose mother died several times a day for weeks.
Another guy (mall parking lot) needed 2 bucks for the bus, but the only bus close by had stopped running hours before.
Then there was a kid at the TriRail/Amtrak station who needed to get to NY.
Must've been a big trip. He was there begging for over a month.
I don't know, it seems like an easier way to earn only slightly less then what I take home a day working my butt off. Especially if you;re sitting on a beach in a rich area. HMMMMMMM
well yeah, they might be getting a free ride, but so what? Do you think they're "winning" here? Do you think they'll get to the end of their life and be proud of/satisfied with what they did with it? They'll have spent their life standing on street corners doing nothing but being parasites.
I'm positive that some of them are "winning." Some may lose and, others yet may simply not care one way or the other.
People overly adept at scamming do better than many people want to believe, and scamming isn't reserved exclusively for the less desirable class(es) of society -- there is 20 times more provider-based Medicare fraud than there is food stamp fraud annually in the United States, for example. The type of scamming we're discussing is just a less glamorous form of the activity. Many good scam artists work the equivalent of a full-time job doing whatever it is they do, and it can pay off, albeit often at a substantially less generous risk/reward rate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ByeByeLW
The other one is the public transportation scam These guys stand at the bus stop or train station (TriRail here) and say they have to get to Miami or wherever to see someone who is on the verge of death.
There was one guy at a bus stop whose mother died several times a day for weeks.
Another guy (mall parking lot) needed 2 bucks for the bus, but the only bus close by had stopped running hours before.
Then there was a kid at the TriRail/Amtrak station who needed to get to NY.
Must've been a big trip. He was there begging for over a month.
Indeed; can't forget the public transit creepers.
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He didn't come near me but gave me the thumbs up. LOL I'm thinking he was after a liquid lunch. 
I don't know, it seems like an easier way to earn only slightly less then what I take home a day working my butt off. Especially if you;re sitting on a beach in a rich area. HMMMMMMM
