General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: If you are in the 1% you are nothing but an exploiter [View all]haele
(12,650 posts)Even in the big cities. The ones who do generally busk or try to attract attention/entertain while they're doing that, so yeah, in a way, they're working. I don't consider buskers panhandlers, now - do you?
I've spoken to quite a few panhandlers in California, make regular contact with around 12 as I go by. Most average around $50 a day on the days they are "working", and they're usually out there for over 12 hours. I know of only one who actually regularly lives under one roof; the rest have their belongings nearby and sleep in bushes in the canyons. Most of them just get spare change every 12 vehicles that pass.
The ones who get dollar bills (and the most I've heard of was from a legless Vietnam Vet who occasionally claims to get $5.00 from a "regular" who passes by him about twice a week) are ones that have either created such a pitiable appearance (and not just skinny wearing dirt and rags) or go out of their way to provide entertain or some bit of work such as impromptu stoplight windshield cleaning.
Your "$200 a day exploitive" panhandler is only raking that money in about 10% of the time he or she is on the street. The rest of the time, they're making butkis; maybe enough for a pack of cigarettes, a 24 oz beer to share, and a sandwich.
The thing about panhandling is that a panhandler can't force you to give them money, and if they're too aggressive, they get even less and get thrown in jail to boot.
Look, most panhandlers are people who are usually so damaged by living out on the street, they're incapable of holding down a job for more than a month or so, no matter what their potential is. They've hit rock bottom so hard, they broke. Honestly, there are few I would hire even to mow my lawn on a regular basis - not because they would steal, but because they drift.
It's not the lack of a hard work ethic, because frankly, standing beside a freeway in the elements for hours every few days is as hard work as quite a few other jobs they could get.
There's a lot of discussions to be made about panhandlers and homeless, but none of those discussions would compare to what we could discuss concerning the exploitive nature of the 1%.
Haele