There is someone homeless on the street...

[jsmoke]

Don't give money, give money to local charity that deals with that kind of stuff.

I would have no problem giving food but have never done so.

Depends, if younger probably have some kind of habit if older more likely drink.

A lot are fake, I've heard of beggars having two council houses but most have a place. But they all have serious mental, emotional or social issues that prevents them from holding down a job.

 

[BowdonUK]

Do you refuse to give money?
Do you only give food/drink?
Do you assume they are on drugs?
Do you think they could be fake beggars?

Yes I refuse to give them money.
I would only give food/drink.
It depends on their behaviour whether I think they are on drugs.
Yes I would have suspician that they was a fake begger as thats why I'm not giving them money.

A real begger is looking for his/her next meal.

 

[FoxEye]

It's illegal in some places to help the homeless, what a great system we live in!

People may end up on the street because of drugs or alcohol, so what, no one is in a position to judge someone based on decisions they have made, which may have led to them becoming homeless, some people may have even lost their jobs, partners, home etc, even a army vet and again the system just lets them rot on the streets, then we have the media who paints a picture for everyone that homeless are just drug addicts, homeless people are scum, you should never help them, but, they are human beings and they need help. But I guess it's tough when the media portrays them in a bad manner, when they make it illegal to help homeless people as "it encourage homelessness" seriously!!?? Sorry for the rant but I hate the system and the society we live in that demonise people and doesn't help them.

But I do agree with there being fake beggars, and question with the homeless people who do drugs and booze, what if that is the only thing keeping them going? Keeping them alive, by giving them something to look forward to? What if it's keeping them sane in this insane world we live in? Just "what if's".

All very emotional but devoid of logic.

Giving people money to buy drugs isn't helping them. Well, not those kind of drugs

And tbh if they need drugs I'd rather they got them from the govt/hospital/shelter.

Rather than taking their donated money and giving it to a dealer.

 

[Combat squirrel]

Once again ocuk’s attitude to poor people shines through.

*** video removed, too many swearies ***

 

[FoxEye]

Once again ocuk’s attitude to poor people shines through.

*** video removed, too many swearies ***

That's a really crass thing to say.

I think most here are smart enough to be able to differentiate between "poor people" and drug addicts.

Just sayin'.

e: I mean you're basically saying that we need to keep drug addicts supplied with drugs in order to have a good attitude towards "poor people"... which is nonsense of the highest order.

 

[aardvark]

The reality is - if you listen to people who work with the homeless - that drugs and other problems are involved 99% of the time. Chances are this isn't someone who lost their job and ended up homeless and is otherwise a perfectly healthy individual.

yeah i used to know someone who worked at a shelter - she said there are always spare places but they have to throw out the ones who are violent and on drugs/drunk.
If they can't help themselves i don't see why i should.

 

[Combat squirrel]

That's a really crass thing to say.

I think most here are smart enough to be able to differentiate between "poor people" and drug addicts.

Just sayin'.

e: I mean you're basically saying that we need to keep drug addicts supplied with drugs in order to have a good attitude towards "poor people"... which is nonsense of the highest order.

I bet you drank alcohol in the past week? Smoked? Took paracetamol? On prescription? So don’t lecture me about drugs - hypocrite.

If there legal or not is another debate.

As per Steve Hughes video is the impression I get of people on here from what they write...... give homeless people cash and food, don’t give it to registered charities who take a 50% cut to pay their ceo 250 grand a year. Homeless people are human as well and never choose to be in that position !

 

[darael]

Do you refuse to give money? Yes
Do you only give food/drink? No
Do you assume they are on drugs? No
Do you think they could be fake beggars? Some, yes

One beggar in town asked me if he could borrow my lighter - I told him I don't smoke. As I was in my way into Poundland anyway, I picked up a pack of lighters and he was over the moon when I went past him and gave him the lighters.

I've never given money to anybody on the streets, homeless or charities. 9 times out of 10 the money doesn't go where you intended it to go - such as the "beggars" here who are renown for driving flash cars.

 

[Jasoncmor]

All very emotional but devoid of logic.

Giving people money to buy drugs isn't helping them. Well, not those kind of drugs

And tbh if they need drugs I'd rather they got them from the govt/hospital/shelter.

Rather than taking their donated money and giving it to a dealer.

I see and completely get your point, but for me, the way I see it is, I've never done drugs, well illegal ones, so never experienced what it's like to take them, be hooked on them, and feel the effects of them, so I guess only an addict / user could open up to how they make them feel.
I believe drugs are an escape from reality, so if a homeless person dies drugs to escape the reality of being homeless, sure it may be an endless cycle, but until something changes and the state can help them properly, I see it as a helping hand in a sense, obviously we don't need to get into the legality of said drugs. Lol

 

[Combat squirrel]

If they can't help themselves i don't see why i should.

*sigh* - you help because their vulnerable individuals and you are an otherwise functioning individual with spare resources to more than survive.

Such a Tory sounding attitude.

Did you even consider the mental stress of people homeless? Truly homeless I mean and without hope .....have you ever been in that position? Do you think you would handle it perfectly with a clear mind ? Or would you be human and seek comfort or feeling better?.....

 

[FoxEye]

I bet you drank alcohol in the past week? Smoked? Took paracetamol? On prescription? So don’t lecture me about drugs - hypocrite.

Don't recall lecturing you about drugs... what is your point here? That people who can drink in moderation are the same as drug addicts?

False equivalence.

If there legal or not is another debate.

As per Steve Hughes video is the impression I get of people on here from what they write...... give homeless people cash and food, don’t give it to registered charities who take a 50% cut to pay their ceo 250 grand a year. Homeless people are human as well and never choose to be in that position !

No thanks, I will not give homeless people cash to spend on drugs.

There are actual facilities and services these people can avail themselves of, if they make some effort to be reasonably clean and not aggressive towards staff.

I'm absolutely not going to take your advice to perpetuate a drug addict's descent into hell. Doesn't seem very kind to me.

e: Also I can't believe you compared paracetamol to meth/cocaine/heroin. What complete tripe.

 

[Thekwango]

Do you refuse to give money? - yes, always
Do you only give food/drink? - yes
Do you assume they are on drugs? - to my shame, yes. that or alcohol, or both
Do you think they could be fake beggars? - no

 

[Jasoncmor]

There are actual facilities and services these people can avail themselves of, if they make some effort to be reasonably clean and not aggressive towards staff.

I see your point on the drug issue, there is a but, I have a genuine question.

How easy, realistically is it for anybody, without special help to kick a drug addiction?

I think many people have addictions, whether it's alcohol, drugs, sugar, smoking, porn etc etc, the big issue here is that we, as in not homeless, working class people judge others on their addiction and class the addictions on how bad we think they are, which I think is silly. Drugs are illegal so we automatically judge those people with that addiction to be worse than someone addicted to sugar, for example.

I believe that people struggle with something in their lives which makes them turn to something for comfort which them becomes an addiction, i strongly believe there is much more to addiction than meets the eye.

 

[FoxEye]

I see your point on the drug issue, there is a but, I have a genuine question.

How easy, realistically is it for anybody, without special help to kick a drug attiction?

I think many people have addictions, whether it's alcohol, drugs, sugar, smoking, porn etc etc, the big issue here is that we, as in not homeless, working class people judge others on their addiction and class the addictions on how bad we think they are, which I think is silly. Drugs are illegal so we automatically judge those people with that addiction to be worse than someone addicted to sugar, for example.

I believe that people struggle with something in their lives which makes them turn to something for comfort which them becomes an addiction, i strongly believe there is much more to addiction than meets the eye.

How are we judging them tho?

The question is would we give them money (cash).

The answer from many is no, because we know the money would be used to buy more hard drugs, which isn't helping them - and also isn't a good use of our money. If you want to be charitable give the money to any number of projects that help improve the chances of living things/the planet.

I don't see that as judgemental. I'm not telling you they're awful people. I'm not telling you or anyone else that we should treat them with disdain. I'm not saying they're weak or should get clean because it's so easy.

A lot of us in this thread have indicated that we won't give them cash to buy drugs. That's all. That really is all.

 

[413x]

No I don't give anything.
Prefer other charities

 

[The_Abyss]

Do you refuse to give money?
Do you only give food/drink?
Do you assume they are on drugs?
Do you think they could be fake beggars?

Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes

I don't like giving those answers, but they're my working assumption. I starting spending some work time in Bristol a couple of years ago, and was pretty shocked at the level of homeless there and the very pushy approach that some of them take. I sat down with one of the non-pushy ones one evening, and gave him a burger and a bag of chips. Once he was reassured that I wasn't going to beat him up or wanting sex etc we had a conversation. I won't bore with the back story but in his current situation he didn't want for food - lots of people gave him food and drink - but he just wanted money for drugs. Sample size of one, but he said that everyone he knew on the streets was the same.

It is very sad that a human life has been reduced to day to day 21st century 'foraging' to feed an addiction that they've little chance of escaping.

 

[Jasoncmor]

How are we judging them tho?

The question is would we give them money (cash).

The answer from many is no, because we know the money would be used to buy more hard drugs, which isn't helping them - and also isn't a good use of our money. If you want to be charitable give the money to any number of projects that help improve the chances of living things/the planet.

I don't see that as judgemental. I'm not telling you they're awful people. I'm not telling you or anyone else that we should treat them with disdain. I'm not saying they're weak or should get clean because it's so easy.

A lot of us in this thread have indicated that we won't give them cash to buy drugs. That's all. That really is all.

That's fair enough, I know people are just replying to the questions in the first post, I'm just challenging the way we think I guess.

I think though, if we give money to someone on the streets, what they do with it is none of our business, yeah if they go and buy drugs, and we know they are, we I'm sure will see it as a waste of our money, but I think we should give to people because it's in our hearts to give, which makes us human I guess, caring for others.

 

[FoxEye]

That's fair enough, I know people are just replying to the questions in the first post, I'm just challenging the way we think I guess.

I think though, if we give money to someone on the streets, what they do with it is none of our business, yeah if they go and buy drugs, and we know they are, we I'm sure will see it as a waste of our money, but I think we should give to people because it's in our hearts to give, which makes us human I guess, caring for others.

There's a danger in giving to make yourself feel better. Don't take this the wrong way, btw. But we have a responsibility to use discernment and to not contribute to a problem. We need to ensure our actions don't make things worse.

I won't claim to be an expert on drugs (I'm not), but I can't see how helping fuel an addiction is a responsible way to express caring or our humanity.

 

[ricid]

Do people who refuse to give cash think that this will stop someone getting hold of drugs, or is the idea of your money being spent on drugs worse than the idea they might do something even more desperate to get hold of that money?

 

[FoxEye]

Do people who refuse to give cash think that this will stop someone getting hold of drugs, or is the idea of your money being spent on drugs worse than the idea they might do something even more desperate to get hold of that money?

As I've said earlier I'm not necessarily against the idea of the state/shelter/hospital giving these people the drugs they crave or similar substitutes.

I don't think giving them cash to give to a dealer is appropriate.

If they commit crime then they must face the legal system like everyone else. If they need to be locked up so be it.

I hope you aren't saying that we should be essentially bribing them not to steal from us... bit of a slippery slope that one. In any case, the more cash they have the more they can shoot up, potentially requiring even more cash to maintain the habit. So how much is enough? Could you ever give enough to guarantee they won't mug someone or rob someone for just a little bit more?