Couldnt they do more? (Homelessness and street begging)

Name: redrabbit

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Product:	Homelessness and street begging
Date:	04/09/08 (108 review reads)
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I am probably going to come across as being extremely heartless and uncharitable during this review. But these are my thoughts on the homeless.

I do feel sorry for some of the homeless, yes. But it always seems to me that the majority (and i must stress not all...) of homeless either have a can of cider of a cigarette in their hand 24/7. Now neither of these products come cheap. And yes, maybe they help the person in question deal with the depression/feelings they are feeling, but i just cant bring myself to feel sorry for them if the most they are willing to do is sit on a park bench drinking cans of cheap cider all day. Cider which was probably spent with their benefits, or the money they accumulated from begging. Both of which, comes from us.

It probably doesnt help that i've had some bad experiences with beggars in the past. I have been hurled abuse on a few select occasions for refusing to give money to obvious drug users. Why on earth should my hard earned wages go towards fueling their addiction? Intimidating acts just make me all the less willing to donate.

I understand that there are genuine people out there, who have been made homeless through failed businesses or repossession of houses for example...People who dont rely on drugs or alcohol to get them through there day. But it's finding these people that's the hard thing.

There's just no way of telling the genuine from the none genuine. In fact nowadays, i cant even be sure that people claiming to be homeless in fact are. Only the other day i was approached by a man who claimed he had been kicked out of his hostel and needed '£2.00' for the bus fare to his brothers in Burton. I thought 'fair enough', and went into my pocket to get the couple of quid out. He then changed this figure to 'or whatever you've got'. To which point i thought, wait a minute, why am i giving this man any money at all when i dont even know if his sob story is true? If he genuinely needed the £2.00, surely he would be more than grateful for receiving it?

The whole thing is just too ambiguous for my liking. I'd hate to think my good will is being taken advantage of by certain people.

Summary: Impossible to know the genuine from the frauds