Houstons Panhandler Epidemic

[jfre81]

I'd contrast the Houston panhandlers with the Bourbon Street shoe-shine guys, who I would describe as persistent but not aggressive. They work at their hustle, for what it's worth.

"Hey, where ya get dem shoes?"

"I can tell how old dem shoes is!"

They'll work to convince you they look old and raggedy and they need shined. Then they'll expect payment after they shine them, whether you asked them to or not. They'll get annoyed if you don't pay them, but they're not going to scream at you, follow you down the street, or act like they want to fight you when they have an endless stream of easy marks to hit up. It's Bourbon Street. Lots of gullible tourists. They brought money. Most are either drunk or well on their way there. Drunk people tend to make poor money decisions. These guys won't follow you into businesses. They won't walk up to you while you're eating. They don't need to.

Houston is not like this at all. Completely different environment. After work, you've got a few pockets of activity here and there downtown, and the rest of the time the foot traffic is sparse. Hustling shoe shines, busking etc. requires some volume of foot traffic to make money. This is where aggressiveness and desperation comes into play. We can take the Gandhi approach as mega man and radiolibre99 advocate here. This will get you followed for blocks. They're not even pretending to provide something of value. If they don't get what they want on request, they will do whatever they think they can do to make you cave in and give them something so they'll go away.

I'll be the first to say I wish the city, county, state etc. managed the situation better. Yes, many of them are mentally ill. The way this country in general, and Texas in particular, handles the mentally ill is scandalous. As it is, the county jail serves as the de facto health facility for them. It's not designed for that. The county pays for non-treatment as a consequence of not paying for treatment. Then you have the problem of a poor image for certain parts of the city because these people make up an inordinate amount of the populace walking around. There's a reason people get sketched out about going to otherwise useful businesses like the corner stores near the Main Street Square rail stations, or waiting for trains there. It's not a good situation for people who own such businesses, or for the development of new ones in the same area. It drives everyone else away.

[bigboyz06]

Originally Posted by radiolibre99

How would you know unless you followed the person to the liquor store? Did you actually stick around after you gave the person the dollar and watch them go into the liquor store or did you follow them?

Either way most people give, say god bless and move on. It's that simple. What happens to that money is up to the person you gave it to. You just have to hope for the best. If a guy has an attitude problem and wants more money you just move on, you don't ask for the dollar back or much less yank it back from the guys hands. Do you people not get that they're off their rocker? They're distraught?

I have my stories too ya know. A guy once asked me for a meal at Panda Express so I went in with him and offered to pay for his meal as long as it was the one side, one meat cheap special. But no the guy wanted the highest thing on the menu. He wanted the eight dollar meal! I told him sorry I don't gave that much but he said forget it and left the store. I just shrugged it off, bought some egg rolls and told the cashier to hold these for him if he changes his mind as he remained out in the street next to the cafe.

That's it. I didn't go lecture him, I didn't feel insulted and thought all homeless are like this. I didn't think that was the last time I would ever give.

You guys are either too cynical, too sensitive or too naive to take those news specials about scammer bums as a staple of all homeless. There's also a tinge of moral superiority on y'all's part too thinking y'all are better than the homeless so that gives you the right to act any way you want toward them.

No, I didn't follow the person. I was at a shopping center that happened to have a liquor store there. This guy was near another business panhandling asking for change and when he got what he was looking for he went in to the liquor store next door. I'm neither naïve, elitist, nor overly sensitive and what are these scammer stories you keep going on and on about? I'm talking about my own real life experience, not some crap off of Dateline, get real. I don't lecture people either. I can't stand when religious zealots do that to folks especially on the bus ugh! Anyway, I guess you win you're better than me. If you can just shrug it off then good for you. I'm wired differently. If someone starts talking to me any kind of way, you'd better believe I'll give as good as I get. Who said anything about thinking they're better than the homeless? Certainly not I. I just don't deal with people who act like jerks especially for no reason.

[radiolibre99]

Originally Posted by bigboyz06

No, I didn't follow the person. I was at a shopping center that happened to have a liquor store there. This guy was near another business panhandling asking for change and when he got what he was looking for he went in to the liquor store next door. I'm neither naïve, elitist, nor overly sensitive and what are these scammer stories you keep going on and on about? I'm talking about my own real life experience, not some crap off of Dateline, get real. I don't lecture people either. I can't stand when religious zealots do that to folks especially on the bus ugh! Anyway, I guess you win you're better than me. If you can just shrug it off then good for you. I'm wired differently. If someone starts talking to me any kind of way, you'd better believe I'll give as good as I get. Who said anything about thinking they're better than the homeless? Certainly not I. I just don't deal with people who act like jerks especially for no reason.

Would you be the same way toward a rich jerk who wants his way like no other and is making a scene in a restaurant? Or do you think he's "earned" the right to be a jerk?

[bigboyz06]

Originally Posted by radiolibre99

Would you be the same way toward a rich jerk who wants his way like no other and is making a scene in a restaurant? Or do you think he's "earned" the right to be a jerk?

I don't care if you're rich, poor, middle class whateva. That gives no one the right to be a jerk to anyone, period.

[jfre81]

I don't care if you're the CEO of Goldman Sachs. Don't come sit down at my table while I'm eating and hit me up for money. In fact, I'd give him an even bigger earful.

[radiolibre99]

Originally Posted by jfre81

I don't care if you're the CEO of Goldman Sachs. Don't come sit down at my table while I'm eating and hit me up for money. In fact, I'd give him an even bigger earful.

Way to miss the point. You darn well the CEO of anything wouldn't come beg you for money. I'm talking about him just being a jerk because he gets off on being a jerk to others. Would you be as bold to tell him off or would you hesitate because he's not destitute? Would you think he earned the right to be shrewd?

[jfre81]

Originally Posted by radiolibre99

Way to miss the point. You darn well the CEO of anything wouldn't come beg you for money. I'm talking about him just being a jerk because he gets off on being a jerk to others. Would you be as bold to tell him off or would you hesitate because he's not destitute? Would you think he earned the right to be shrewd?

No, I answered it as you asked it, if not directly to me. You asked if I'd do the same for a rich guy. Well, since a rich guy would probably not seat himself at my table to beg for money, you had no point to miss.

[jfre81]

We'll take a look at a different example now. This guy isn't like the people we've mentioned.

He Gave A Homeless Man $100 And Followed Him To See How He Spent It. You Won't Believe This

[Oildog]

Once again we've turned this away from the Houston issue, and a few are just trying to stir the pot. Closed.