Who gave money to a homeless person over this holiday?

It was back on the 1st of December. I was leaving my parents' house, like I do every Sunday, to go back to my house which is like 8 miles away. As I was on my way, I had to stop at City Hall to pay my water bill. I had my check and stub, but I had no envelope. Normally, they (the Water Company) have a stack of envelopes for people to use. But on this day, they were out. I was not happy because I didn't want to make another trip. As I wondered what to do, this old beat up truck came driving up next to me. I didn't really pay much attention to the people in it since I was still wondering what I was going to do about my situation.

I then saw that they had gone inside to the new add-on to the right of the building. I had assumed it was close, but apparently, I assumed wrong. So, I followed. Sure enough, someone was in there working. Yet I had to wait as those men were in front of me. I only picked up on a little of their conversation but it had to do with homeless shelters. The lady couldn't really help them much but gave them a copy of where the most recent Salvation Army was located. They thanked her and left. Luckily for me, she did have some extra envelopes and gave me one of them. I mailed my bill, but noticed that these men were still hanging around. As I drove off, I told them about Habitat for Humanity. They thanked me and I went on my way home.

I was about halfway home when it hit me that telling them about Habitat for Humanity was not enough. I drove back and searched them out. I finally found them and stopped them. I told one of the guys that it was obvious that they were in some kind of trouble. I then wrote a check made out to "Cash" for 100 bucks and gave it to him and wished him a merry Christmas. He couldn't believe it and thanked me. I felt for like only the 2nd time in my life, this genuine feeling of the Holy Spirit coming over me. I drove off to go home.

I was reading for one of my classes when the phone rang. It was one of the men (my phone number was on my check). He explained to me that they had gone everywhere to try to get the check cashed, but had no luck and since it was Sunday, they couldn't go to the bank that the check was drawn on. I told him to sit tight and I would meet him. I got there and tore the check up and gave him 100 dollars in cash instead. He started crying and saying that I was like an "angel of God". It was the first time in my life that I KNEW I was helping a fellow individual. I talked to him a little later about his future and gave him a couple of phone numbers and names about trying to find a job, even if it was a temporary one. 25 days later, I have no idea what has happened to him or the other guys who were with him. I hope he is safe, though.

I didn't do what I did because I wanted to have my name in the paper. I DEFINITELY didn't do it and thought to myself, "Oh oh...I did a bad thing and should have given that money to a homeless shelter instead." I did it because it FELT like the right thing to do. I also did it as "Pay It Forward" since I was helped back in August (when I was given a stranger's Cadillac to drive).

 

I wondered why this thread had so many posts...

I'll give a homeless guy some money if I feel like it. If he is annoying, I probably won't, but if he seems like a nice guy I will give him a couple of dollars and maybe some (gasp) smokes. If he uses it on drugs I guess that his his business. If he buys a a meatball Hot Pocket with it that is his business too. ****, I might even buy the guy a beer and drink one with him. But to have a belief system where you can't give a couple of bucks to somebody is just plain sad.

Homeless people will be around forever. If I can brighten up their day for just a bit I'm all for it. I'm kind of a "live life for the moment" guy anyways.

 

Gee, I wonder what Chance's take will be...

For what it is worth I would venture to guess that I have given out as much as any poster on this site proportionately to my income. Partly because I have a kind wife and partly becaue I am a sucker for a sad face.

That being said I agree almost to the letter with 4651965 and feel like you guys lambasted him for posting an opinion.

 

Watch out Chance, the neo-fascists will blacklist you.

 

Not sure if you guys caught this story on the 10:00 news tonight or not, but they had a story about a family that invited a homeless couple into their home on Christmas Eve. This was a kind gesture intended to get them out of the harsh weather, if only for one night. Much to their chagrin, upon waking up on Christmas morning, the homeless couple had fled the house, and stolen all of the family's gifts and valuables.

I guess the homeless aren't the harmless, furry little creatures some of you make them out to be.

 

"[T]he homeless," as a whole, aren't anything. Individual people with individual motivations in individual situations. Not all helpless victims of circumstance. Not all drug-addict-robber-murderer criminals.

 

However, if movies have taught me nothing else, it's that fusing any number of people/objects together makes it an evil, monstrous creation.

So if all the homeless were somehow lumped into one giant, coagulated mass...it would be evil, and it would probably try to steal my watch.

 

Too right you are.

 

I heard that most murderers live in homes...

 

Contrary to this...

There was a family somewhere in the US (I read this online) that let a family of 6 live with them ever since their home was burned down days before christmas.

This was a white couple lending their home to a black family of 6. Very nice story. They even replaced all of the gifts for the family as well.

 

Sigh. Nineteenth century. Most 'unregulated' period in American history. Most business-oriented period too. Huge monopolies. Robber barons/captains of industry. Crappy working conditions and hours. Child labour. No unions. Enormous poverty. Debt-ridden lower classes. Labour unrest. Does anyone remember their freshman history class? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? {sound of crickets chirping}

That 'work camp' thing is the most foul idea ever, by the way. You guys are seriously suggesting these poor people get rounded up like cattle? Worse than that is this conception that being homeless is *all their own fault*. Look, at one point when we were living in the USA, if we hadn't had kind relatives, Elvis and I would have been living in our car! We were selling plasma for gas money! It *sucked*. And we both have postgraduate degrees and were sending out resumes by the hundreds... I mean, lumping all 'the homeless' together in your minds like they're these animals you have to control... blurgh. These are *people*.

By the way, if some of them want to spend the money they get given on booze or crack, that's cool with me. God knows they have few enough other choices. And acting like they can't be trusted with cash... I mean, christ, do you think they're neanderthals or something?

 

Hippie.

 

I'm probably gonna sound like a total jerkoff, but I don't agree with giving bums any money. I was a professional bum for about a year myself, and I made sure I wasn't out in the cold or hungry. It's not that hard, even when you don't have family or friends that will help you out anymore. Hell, at the least you can go steal food from the grocery store and if they catch you, you go to jail where they feed you pretty good and give you a bed with a shower and bathroom even. And another thing I don't like about seasonal friendliness is that if you're gonna do stuff like that, do it whenever. Do it because you want to, not because you have some temporary sense of humanity during the holidays. Like the people that are all patriotic since September 2001 - why? I've loved my country since day one, and if I had hated it or not cared, then I would have stayed the same Dallas in that regard despite that bull.


Okay, I'm rambling. I now return to you your eyes and your attention.

 

I gave some money to a homeless man and his wife/girlfriend walking on Christmas Eve. I was leaving for lunch and it was pretty cold. He said it was for some food. I am always a bit skeptical but did it anyway. They thanked me and they walked off with arms around each other.

On my way back from lunch, I saw them going into a McDonalds. I was so glad to have been able to help even a little.

 

Yeah, I gave money to a homeless guy. Not just during the holiday, but quite a bit since I've moved to Chicago from Texas in the summer -- obviously, I see many more in the big city. We also participated in a secret Santa program for underprivileged kids. My wife and I have given our leftovers from eating out, have brought one guy to the store to buy some food, helped some get on the train/bus with fares, and tossed change their way too. Most have been extremely grateful and appreciative. The pushy I ones I generally ignore.

But I can't say that I do this to make me feel better about myself. It actually kind of makes me feel worse -- like I could have done more. Yeah, there's the whole issue of this being only a short-term band-aid, and maybe the money could be better used in the context of a larger charity organization. But it's also because I think about the money I'm going to piss away on cab fares, or a new PS2 game that I half play, or some book I buy but never get around to reading, or some over-priced martini that I half finish.

Call me a sucker. But if I'm going to waste some of my hard-earned money on other crap, the least I could do is let somebody get some pleasure out of it, if not me. And if that's just buying myself some self-satisfaction -- well it's my damn money, and I guess that would be just "maximizing my utility."

 

What if I let a homeless guy rake my yard for 20 bucks? Would that be o.k.? I mean he can't support himself on it, but yet he earned it. I am so confused.

 

I bought Chance a drink, does that count?

 

Some good thoughts in this thread on a tough, tough topic. I am conflicted on this subject. It is extremely difficult to determine who the truly needy are when you have an encounter on the street. I think people who take advantage of others inherent generosity (and I include all kinds of cons here, from those on the streets to those who call you at home) have done a tremendous amount of damage to the fabric of this country. It's tough raising kids and trying to get across the idea that you should be generous and gracious and friendly except when you shouldn't. On the street, it's practically impossible to figure out who needs your five bucks for food or shelter and who needs it for cheap wine or other nefarious aims.

The way I solve it is much like some of the others here... I donate to charities and if I feel the desire, will slide some folks a few dollars. Not an elegant solution, but it does allow me to harden my feelings as I'm walking down the street knowing I am doing something on the institutional level. Still, as has been pointed out by Max I believe, it does nothing for the folks in immediate need.

Somewhat Funny Homeless Story:

When I worked in DC, my job often required me to be running around to different agencies on Pennsylvania Ave. There was this guy who lived on a bench at the corner of the FBI building. Every warm day about 10:00, he would strip naked and sit on his bench facing the street with his legs spread wide and a big grin on his face. One day, he was walking by the FBI Building at lunchtime and 3 or 4 young guys in suits came out. The homeless guy looked at them and asked, "You FBI Agents?" With some shock, the group answered in the affirmative. "You do investigatin'?" Now a small crowd was watching the exchange and the FBI guys were aware of this and said with obvious swelling pride, "Yes, we do investigations." The homeless guy pulls down his pants, waves his member at the Agents and says, "Well investigate this mother***ers!"

Observing this guy, you could tell he was a bit off mentally. I doubt work camps are the answer for people like this. But I also don't have a good solution. Many of the homeless were released from Federal and State mental institutions, but it seems that they regress when constant care is no longer available. On the streets, their personal demons become stronger. What, as a society, do we do for those who are on the borderline... minimally capable with constant care, but in grave danger of losing that capacity without constant care?

The other question is what kinds of safeguards are there for folks down on their luck? How do we address that small percentage who can no longer make ends meet? Worse, if we had a situation anywhere close to that of the GD--25% or greater unemployment--can you imagine the misery, suffering, and home foreclosures given the number of the "middle class" that actually live paycheck to paycheck? My guess is that most of us would become ardent Keynesians, though TJ would probably be waiting for his "great man" (Mussolini? Hitler?) to come show us that's just how markets work.

Tough questions abound.

 

You know, insulting people so devastatingly really throws off your karma.

 

No. I have a home. Just bexuase I am a dirty b*stard with ragged clothes doesn't mean I have no home. I guess we all look the same...