Seventy percent of panhandlers don’t tell the truth about their circumstances? Come on! Seriously?
/sarc
It is nice to see it documented once in a while, though:
Needy or Greedy? Panhandler Seen By 2News Living In Sugar House
Let’s go, to 1168 East, Parkway Avenue, where for the past 6 months, Megan and her family has been living. It’s an old home in a nice neighborhood.“That’s my friend’s house, that’s not my house,” said Megan.
On any given day, Megan can be found stepping out the side door, sometimes to walk the dog or maybe to talk on the phone. One day she’ll go shopping with a nice coat and purse.
But most of the time, Megan can be seen, in a dumpy old hooded sweatshirt and backpack, looking the part of a stranded young lady.
If you want to have some fun, talk to a panhandler and when you learn their schtick, offer it to them. For example, Megan wanted a bus ticket. Had someone said, come on, we’ll go to the bus station right now, I’ll buy you a ticket and lunch and wait with you until it’s time to leave, you’d get fifteen different excuses why that plan couldn’t work.
Christians absolutely need to take care of the poor. But we also need to be discerning about how we spend the resources God gives us. It’s far better to work with a local charity that serves people directly than to just hand out the cash. And if you think that cash doesn’t add up – the estimate for Megan’s take was about $50 an hour, just for standing there and looking pitiful.
