Granola & Joe

If you live in Denver, you’ve probably been approached by someone looking for change or have seen people standing with signs at strategic positions (usually intersections in high-traffic areas that get congested at rush hour).

They’re everywhere, and no matter how awesome the city of Denver thinks it is by saying they’ll get rid of homelessness in 10 years, we all know it’s not gonna happen. “Homeless” people are here to stay, and we’ll continue to get hounded no matter what.

And no, putting money in the homeless meter is not going to help. Especially when the dude is standing next to you as you’re reassuring him that putting money in the meter is going to help end all homelessness, including his.

I’ve been taken advantage of quite a few times by panhandlers. Usually it’s been by the aggressive ones - those that use intimidation or create a high stress situation from which you really badly want to escape. They know that by making you really uncomfortable or freak out, you’re more likely to hand over whatever change or cash you personally know you have. Guilt is a very powerful tool, especially for panhandlers.

Because of some bad experiences in the past few months, I’ve made it a point not to give out money anymore. Frankly, I’m tired of doing it.

It’s not that I’m not sympathetic, but I simply don’t feel that it helps much at all, and I never know what they actually do with it. Plus, it sucks to lose the quarters that I’ve been saving to do laundry with, and I have to pull out another $20 from the ATM, go to a grocery store, and get change all over again. When possible, I do buy food if we’re close to a corner store or fast food place.

Anyway, not all supposed “homeless” people are liars who simply want to kick back and let society do the rest of the work while they reap the benefits. But if you’ve ever wondered if some people do it just so they don’t have to work, the answer is yes, and if you’ve suspected they can make a lot of money from it, yes again.

Here’s a perfect example, and one that will make you think twice before you hand out your change the next time you’re on the street:

It would be wrong to assume that every panhandler is a fake. There really are some people out there who got dealt a rough hand in life. Some suffer from severe mental illness, were cast out by their family and friends, and are doomed to wandering the streets with just enough knowledge of how to feed themselves and survive each day. Those are the people that need help the most.

But how can we distinguish the fakes from those that really need help? And should we always give money, hoping they really needed help and we did the right thing? As unfair as it may sound, I personally don’t think it’s possible to always make the right judgment, and we shouldn’t feel obligated to give money.

For the foreseeable future, I’m going to stick to my no-to-money, yes-to-food policy. However, I’m sure that others may have a different opinion and different strategy for dealing with panhandlers. What do you do when asked for change on the streets?