Do you give money to homeless people?

[The Master]

On a regular basis? No. Whenever I get the chance? No. One time? Yes, a dollar and a big loaf of bread.
Would I ever do it again? After hearing what Tezzy said? Probably not, unless I feel overly compelled or unusually rich that day...
America is a wonderful place. It really IS the land of opportunity. People are just lazy and want things handed to them without doing a damn thing for themselves.

 

[Catnip]

I would never give money to a homeless person.

I would, however, buy one a Big Mac or something. I'd rather my spending not be a mystery, thanks.

 

[Cyanista]

I don't come across beggars very often, and when I do, they don't ask me for money. *weird much?*
But if they did, I don't really have anything to spare, so I guess I'd give them a friendly, apologetic smile and walk on.

 

[Lloyd]

I stopped after a while. When I had my first job I would do it here and there since Portland is littered with homeless people. With the US government handing out more and more money to the less than privileged I don't feel like I could offer them anything anymore.

 

[DeadFantasy]

Life sucks. Life is hard. Some people lose their jobs, homes, and therefore they are left on the street. But some people chose that lifestyle. Those are the homeless people I could care less for. Harsh? Maybe. But in all honesty, humans are lazy and they don't try. I see people bustin' their asses every single day to survive. Why should we have to provide for the homeless? Sorry but i work my ass off, and i get my money pulled from my paycheck for taxes. Which in turn is used wastefully. Humans as a society are selfish. I admit this. I don't give away to the homeless. Doesn't mean I don't care, but we all have to live. Called survival of the fittest.


That's why i hate those commericals about the kids in Africa starving and whatnot. How much did the commercial cost? Exactly use that instead to help those kids. No? Try and suck out the working class? Yeah, people are greedy and selfish as a whole.

 

[Catnip]

Life sucks. Life is hard. Some people lose their jobs, homes, and therefore they are left on the street. But some people chose that lifestyle. Those are the homeless people I could care less for. Harsh? Maybe. But in all honesty, humans are lazy and they don't try. I see people bustin' their asses every single day to survive. Why should we have to provide for the homeless? Sorry but i work my ass off, and i get my money pulled from my paycheck for taxes. Which in turn is used wastefully. Humans as a society are selfish. I admit this. I don't give away to the homeless. Doesn't mean I don't care, but we all have to live. Called survival of the fittest.


That's why i hate those commericals about the kids in Africa starving and whatnot. How much did the commercial cost? Exactly use that instead to help those kids. No? Try and suck out the working class? Yeah, people are greedy and selfish as a whole.

Humans are lazy. It's true a lot of people do lose their homes, but a lot of them choose to live that way so they can avoid working and paying taxes. The only work they need to do is begging. It's not sad and I don't feel sorry for them. Even if they didn't choose that life, why should I even care? Don't judge a book by its cover right? For all I know, they were stupid with their money. I'm not going to support them. I don't think there's anything wrong with that.

 

[Six]

Majority of the time, no.

It's not because I don't care about where they end up, or what it could mean to them. I much rather buy them a sandwich when walking in to the store, and they're asking for money right in front of the store. It's annoying they always give you a look when you say you don't have any change, while truthfully I don't 'cause I use my bank card. -.- Tbh, most people you see walking on the streets are gonna spend it on alcohol anyway. How's that gonna help them? =/

Don't mean to sound shallow, 'cause if I'm having change on me, I wouldn't mind giving them some. I feel really bad consciously for people that have to live like that. Some people ended up like that on their own faults, but I just can't even imagine. Meh.

Just my 2 cents on it. Majority of the time I won't, I don't want them spending it on alcohol that's not going to get them anywhere anyway. Not all do that of course, but like I said, I much rather buy them a sub.

 

[Mitsuki]

The last time I gave money to a stranger was over 7 years ago, and she was looking for food in a dumpster behind a McDonald's. My husband (boyfriend then) and I gave her $20.00 which is quite a lot, but I'm glad we did it...because that's probably the last time I'll ever hand out cash to anyone in the streets. Nowadays, we can barely afford anything, and there's so many people out there who aren't actually 'homeless'. Especially in the streets of Los Angeles, there's a few people listening to their iPods, with a sign asking people for help. There's also a few instances where I've seen people use their kids and babies as a way to get people to empathize for them, which yeah, I do, but I mostly feel sorry for the little ones. Whether they were actually homeless or not, I don't know. But I would rather buy people something to eat rather than hand out cash, because I'm certain that food is more valuable than cash if they are truly 'homeless'.

My mentality about the whole thing has changed over the past few years. I've seen way too many 'fake' ones out there (you can usually tell by the attire they wear -- some of them will even wear sunglasses and accessories, it's ridiculous), more than I do see genuine ones who are actually 'homeless'.

 

[Rapture]

From what I've seen, a lot of the homeless out there are people with underlying mental health conditions and other comorbidities (like various drug or alcohol addictions) who are forced out of working society and being able to function by themselves because the government wants very little to do with them because rehabilitating them by providing them food, shelter, counseling and psychiatric medications would cost them too much in the long run. Therefore they remain homeless and the responsibility of caring for them, putting a roof over their heads, and food to eat...falls back on society as a whole, churches, and other organizations that can help via donations and etc... It really is sick and sad how selfish and immoral the government has become.

As far as money goes, we have given money to the "homeless" before. We ran into a woman in a grocery store parking lot who said she needed some money for gas, since she stated she lived in her car.... while we were packing our trunk up with groceries. We gave her five bucks and she left us alone. Two months later she showed up during one of our church services and was about to interrupt the service to ask our pastor for money on the spot. One of our members intercepted her and gave her $20.00 and to phone the pastor if she needed anything else after the service was done. Later our pastor told us that she was known throughout the churches for this behavior and that she was known to everyone to be a drug addict and was using the money to continue using. ...and THIS is why I have problems giving money now. You don't know what they are going to do with it.

When I was working I gave money weekly to our church and they would help run the homeless shelter in town and serve them food with it, I would donate clothes for the clothes drive, and I would donate canned and boxed foods for the food pantry. I know where all of my stuff/money is going then and I know these things will make a difference to the people who actually need them. I work too hard for my money and people lie too much nowadays for me to let them waste it, sorry.

 

[purplewings]

it depends how much spare change i actually have , and what its for theres plenty of homeless people saying they need spare change for food and will buy booze with it so if their just up front and say they want some spare change for booze i usally give em a few pound haha probably shouldnt encourage their drinking habits

 

[dra600n]

Here's my thoughts on the whole homeless thing:

My mother raised my brother and I as a single parent. She worked 2 jobs, paid for private schooling for our first years (until the end of 2nd grade for me, so 3 years, and 6 years for my brother), and never once went on welfare or state assistance. She sucked it up, worked 2 jobs, and only bought us what we needed, though she occasionally splurged to buy us toys. My father was a dead beat, so child support was never there. She could have called it quits, went on state aid and welfare, but didn't. Sure, I didn't grow up with all the latest and greatest video games and toys, but I think that just makes me appreciate what I have now better.

Homeless people tend to have something bad happen to them (lost their job, which in turn they lose their house, etc., and it spirals downward from there), or they have a drug addiction, etc. Whatever the case may be, they aren't willing to actually do something about it. They'd rather be homeless than flip burgers for $10/hour. Around here, there's ALWAYS a job opening at any fast food chain. Instead, they find some cardboard, and stand at busy intersections all day waiting for someone to hand over their (usually) hard earned money. If they spent half the effort in finding a job as they did with begging for $$, they might actually prosper in their financial situations. There is always a way out of a shitty situation; it all depends on the persons will to better their lives or not.

From what I've seen, a lot of the homeless out there are people with underlying mental health conditions and other comorbidities (like various drug or alcohol addictions) who are forced out of working society and being able to function by themselves because the government wants very little to do with them because rehabilitating them by providing them food, shelter, counseling and psychiatric medications would cost them too much in the long run. Therefore they remain homeless and the responsibility of caring for them, putting a roof over their heads, and food to eat...falls back on society as a whole, churches, and other organizations that can help via donations and etc... It really is sick and sad how selfish and immoral the government has become.

You bring up an interesting topic here with the government involvement. Should the government be responsible for those who chose to do drugs in the first place, and let it ruin their lives? I don't believe so. The government isn't responsible for our personal actions or choices. As for the mental health patients that can't afford the care they need, that's an unfortunate situation, and I do feel for them. Unfortunately, there's not enough money coming into these facilities the employ a staff to take care and medicate people with such conditions. Also, mental health institutions have commonly shown inhumane ways to treat their patients, and have closed down due to legal reasoning.

One solution would be to decriminalize (or just flat out make it legal to own and use) marijuanna, and allow jail space to serve as an alternative shelter to those who have a mental health condition that prevents them from functioning in a "normalized" society. Sure, it may not be the best solution in the world, but think of all of the tax dollars each year being spent on people trafficking marijuanna, or getting busted at a party for smoking it up? Wouldn't you rather have your tax dollars go to a better cause than allowing some delinquent/drug dealer/drug trafficker/decent person who smoked up living in a jail cell with 3 meals a day, a roof over their head, and commissary to buy entertainment (video games, tvs, etc), and allow someone who isn't capable of providing for themselves the opportunity to have shelter and food? Hell, I'm sure they have the ability to do laundry or clean dishes to help earn some additional income for themselves.

 

[Rapture]

You bring up an interesting topic here with the government involvement. Should the government be responsible for those who chose to do drugs in the first place, and let it ruin their lives? I don't believe so. The government isn't responsible for our personal actions or choices. As for the mental health patients that can't afford the care they need, that's an unfortunate situation, and I do feel for them. Unfortunately, there's not enough money coming into these facilities the employ a staff to take care and medicate people with such conditions. Also, mental health institutions have commonly shown inhumane ways to treat their patients, and have closed down due to legal reasoning.

Everything costs money. Some of these people are people who have been putting money into the system via Social Security and federal and state taxes for many years of their lives until they are diagnosed with a mental health condition later in their lives and find themselves unable to maintain a job without treatment. Is that fair to them? I have a family member whom this has happened to. She put into the system for 30+ years of her life, now that she has a mental health issue which has caused her alcoholism to recurr since losing her job during the decline in the economy...does that mean we toss her to the side and let her stay homeless because the government can take for 30 years of her life but when she is down on her luck we just forget about her?

Me personally, I believe in health care that is accessible to ALL people, not just the rich or the ones who have jobs with benefits. I don't think it should be for the government to decide who is entitled to medical treatment and who is not because someone is lucky enough to have access to a job with benefits in this state of the economy that we are in now.

If we continue to NOT TREAT THESE PEOPLE, we will continue to have more and more of the Colorado theatre shootings, the Arizona shootings with Gabby Gifford, and the shooting we just had here in Wisconsin where a man went in and killed his wife whilst working in a salon even though she had recently had a restraining order applied. If you continue to have a nonchalant/"survival of the fittest" attitude about it now, you might be the victim of one of these left to be untreated people with mental health issues in the future at the rate things are going...because it's obvious leaving them untreated nowadays is only getting innocent people killed.

 

[dra600n]

Everything costs money. Some of these people are people who have been putting money into the system via Social Security and federal and state taxes for many years of their lives until they are diagnosed with a mental health condition later in their lives and find themselves unable to maintain a job without treatment. Is that fair to them? I have a family member whom this has happened to. She put into the system for 30+ years of her life, now that she has a mental health issue which has caused her alcoholism to recurr since losing her job during the decline in the economy...does that mean we toss her to the side and let her stay homeless because the government can take for 30 years of her life but when she is down on her luck we just forget about her?

Me personally, I believe in health care that is accessible to ALL people, not just the rich or the ones who have jobs with benefits. I don't think it should be for the government to decide who is entitled to medical treatment and who is not because someone is lucky enough to have access to a job with benefits in this state of the economy that we are in now.

If we continue to NOT TREAT THESE PEOPLE, we will continue to have more and more of the Colorado theatre shootings, the Arizona shootings with Gabby Gifford, and the shooting we just had here in Wisconsin where a man went in and killed his wife whilst working in a salon even though she had recently had a restraining order applied. If you continue to have a nonchalant/"survival of the fittest" attitude about it now, you might be the victim of one of these left to be untreated people with mental health issues in the future at the rate things are going...because it's obvious leaving them untreated nowadays is only getting innocent people killed.

Was James Holmes found to be clinically insane? I did a decent google search, and found nothing that confirms he is. He took months of planning and preparation, and was seeing a psychologist, but that didn't prevent what happened. Columbine was the result of parents and teachers not doing their jobs and allowing 2 students to get relentlessly bullied until they couldn't take it anymore, much like all of the school shootings. As for the woman who's (ex?)husband went in and killed her - that doesn't necessarily mean they have a mental illness, unless being angry and not being able to control your temper a mental illness. The lines have to be drawn somewhere.

If you read what I posted, I said the government shouldn't be liable for those who made horrible choices (drugs, for example) to turn them homeless. Too many people today neglect responsibility for their own actions and push it off for someone else to handle. It's not necessarily a nonchalant/survival of the fittest attitude, but more along the lines of "you make the mistake, you find a way to fix it and not to push it off on someone else".

I agree that we need a national healthcare system, like that of Canada and other countries. There really is no excuse on why it can't be done here, except for the fact the insurance companies will fight it because it lines their pockets. Medical insurance is a scam. You pay hundreds of dollars a month, and only a small fraction is covered. Sometimes you're better off without insurance as the prices tend to be less, depending on your wages. I have friends who don't have health benefits from their jobs, but can fill their prescriptions for $6, while it costs me $15 WITH insurance. If I were to go the Emergency Room, it now costs me $150 (used to cost me $50 until our benefits package got screwed up at work, which is a whole other topic on its own), it's actually cheaper for me to go to the ER, claim no insurance, and pay $75.

And the likelihood of being a victim most likely wouldn't change if people with mental illnesses were given medical attention or not. With the exception of serial killers, who plan their victims and such, the "snap" of someone who's lost their mind is next to impossible to determine, especially if there's no prior events that take place to give people the "he has the strong potential to cause others serious harm" warning.

 

[Rapture]

Was James Holmes found to be clinically insane? I did a decent google search, and found nothing that confirms he is. He took months of planning and preparation, and was seeing a psychologist, but that didn't prevent what happened. Columbine was the result of parents and teachers not doing their jobs and allowing 2 students to get relentlessly bullied until they couldn't take it anymore, much like all of the school shootings. As for the woman who's (ex?)husband went in and killed her - that doesn't necessarily mean they have a mental illness, unless being angry and not being able to control your temper a mental illness. The lines have to be drawn somewhere.

If you read what I posted, I said the government shouldn't be liable for those who made horrible choices (drugs, for example) to turn them homeless. Too many people today neglect responsibility for their own actions and push it off for someone else to handle. It's not necessarily a nonchalant/survival of the fittest attitude, but more along the lines of "you make the mistake, you find a way to fix it and not to push it off on someone else".

I agree that we need a national healthcare system, like that of Canada and other countries. There really is no excuse on why it can't be done here, except for the fact the insurance companies will fight it because it lines their pockets. Medical insurance is a scam. You pay hundreds of dollars a month, and only a small fraction is covered. Sometimes you're better off without insurance as the prices tend to be less, depending on your wages. I have friends who don't have health benefits from their jobs, but can fill their prescriptions for $6, while it costs me $15 WITH insurance. If I were to go the Emergency Room, it now costs me $150 (used to cost me $50 until our benefits package got screwed up at work, which is a whole other topic on its own), it's actually cheaper for me to go to the ER, claim no insurance, and pay $75.

And the likelihood of being a victim most likely wouldn't change if people with mental illnesses were given medical attention or not. With the exception of serial killers, who plan their victims and such, the "snap" of someone who's lost their mind is next to impossible to determine, especially if there's no prior events that take place to give people the "he has the strong potential to cause others serious harm" warning.

We agree on the need for national healthcare issue, but being a medical professional myself, having spent time in a mental health institution for part of my degree in nursing... I'm just going to have to agree to disagree with you on parts of the rest of what you say, sorry I just can't agree that someone who goes shooting a bunch of people in a movie theatre is in a perfectly stable state of mind...wasn't it his mom that said she wasn't surprised it was him who did it (which means something must've been going on with him before this happened)? I have to believe something is going on in his head...that isn't quite right (maybe an underlying mental health issue?). Although I'm sure his lawyers might try and plead insanity or something...seems like that happens quite a bit nowadays.

The point I'm really trying to make is that we can only push off leaving these people to fall by the wayside for so long because *I* don't believe that it's a completely random occurance that we are having all of these shootings and etc in our country today. (which is why I used those examples that I gave). I see that the people with mental health issues and addictions are getting pushed away because no one wants to help them or deal with them. Maybe I have too much of a heart dealing with mental health and addiction personally in my own family and the effects that ripple outwards, but someone has got to want to help these people or at least give them a chance to rehabilitate themselves if given the opportunity. We all aren't perfect and we all make mistakes, I don't see why one should have to live a life of miserable existance to pay for it. The way *I* see it is that an addiction is a mental health disorder and a mental health disorder is a medical diagnosis and a medical diagnosis is something that needs medical treatment...and medical treatment is something that should be supplied for all people, not just the ones who are fortunate enough to have jobs in the state that the economy is in today.

When I say comorbidities those are additional diagnoses that are associated from an original medical diagnosis. If you have a mental health issue there is a chance that one also has a co-existing drug/alcohol addiction establishing a dual-diagnosis also known as a comorbidity. http://www.nami.org/Content/Content...osis_-_Substance_Abuse_and_Mental_Illness.htm ...and the only reason I'm saying this is I thought I MIGHT have read somewhere that you were a surgical tech and I don't know the degree to which they go into mental health when you are going for a surgical tech degree...otherwise not many other people will speak typical medical jargon and won't understand it.

If a person has an addiction problem of any sort it is another form of a mental health problem/disease that should be treated...these people relapse and go through periods of sobriety all of their lives...one of my parents was an alcoholic and went through 17 years of remission to fall back into it again during a period of stress in their lives. I don't honestly believe that it's always a lifestyle choice for some. Who wants to spend their lives separated from their family, being a slave to a drug or substance, while they slowly kill their bodies? I'd say at least give them an initial chance to help them.

Believe me, working I pay A LOT of money for my health insurance, and it covers very little. I still pay out of pocket quite a bit. It does bother me how people can rack up free pregnancy tests and etc...from the ER from our labs and by wasting people who easily get paid $25-$30 an hours time (an average RN's hourly starting wage) because they use it as healthcare for every little thing because they do not have insurance. You and I are paying for this as tax payers and through our private insurance so believe me, I feel your pain. ...and my monthly premiums go up every year, they never go down. What's worse is the prices for prescriptions...If I didn't have insurance my medication would cost $1,000.00 a month

Hopefully someday they can make a healthcare system that works for the better of everyone. If the UK and Canada can do it I don't see why the U.S. can't.

 

[dra600n]

We agree on the need for national healthcare issue, but being a medical professional myself, having spent time in a mental health institution for part of my degree in nursing... I'm just going to have to agree to disagree with you on parts of the rest of what you say, sorry I just can't agree that someone who goes shooting a bunch of people in a movie theatre is in a perfectly stable state of mind...wasn't it his mom that said she wasn't surprised it was him who did it (which means something must've been going on with him before this happened)? I have to believe something is going on in his head...that isn't quite right (maybe an underlying mental health issue?). Although I'm sure his lawyers might try and plead insanity or something...seems like that happens quite a bit nowadays.

I'm not saying it's just a pure act of randomness, entirely. I did mention that people with conditions that don't show any viable signs of being mentally unstable (be it by friends and family who don't pay attention, or therapists who believe they're just mildly troubled) have the ability to snap and fire at will at total strangers. In the case of James Holmes, he had been planning that shooting for months. I did a little research to find out if he was clinically insane or not, but there weren't any articles that I found that said he was or wasn't.

The point I was trying to make with that, is that I don't believe it would make a difference if everyone on the streets were treated, because most of these shootings happen with people who probably have an underlying condition, but it goes unnoticed by friends, family, and professionals.

The point I'm really trying to make is that we can only push off leaving these people to fall by the wayside for so long because *I* don't believe that it's a completely random occurance that we are having all of these shootings and etc in our country today. (which is why I used those examples that I gave). I see that the people with mental health issues and addictions are getting pushed away because no one wants to help them or deal with them. Maybe I have too much of a heart dealing with mental health and addiction personally in my own family and the effects that ripple outwards, but someone has got to want to help these people or at least give them a chance to rehabilitate themselves if given the opportunity. We all aren't perfect and we all make mistakes, I don't see why one should have to live a life of miserable existance to pay for it. The way *I* see it is that an addiction is a mental health disorder and a mental health disorder is a medical diagnosis and a medical diagnosis is something that needs medical treatment...and medical treatment is something that should be supplied for all people, not just the ones who are fortunate enough to have jobs in the state that the economy is in today.

I believe it's random with the targets, and random with people that may have underlying mental issues with a mix of people who just have pure hatred and like seeing people suffer. Now, that could be argued as being insane, but sanity is only defined by how "normal" society acts. I believe a person can be perfectly sane, without mental disorders, and still have hatred to cause harm to another person intentionally.

The main thing I was to ask you, now, is you believe addiction is a mental disorder. Does that include people who are addicted to nicotine? I smoke cigs, and I admit, I'm addicted to them, but I don't believe I have an underlying mental disorder because I am addicted to them. Same with those who use meth, crack, coke, and heroin. Do they have a mental disorder because they chose to indulge in a highly addictive drug, known to be addicted after first use, and potential death on first use? I've done my fair share of drug use when I was younger (18ish til nearly 21), and I was smart enough to stay away from the "hard" drugs, though it did cause me a great deal of personal issues. So it's not like I'm speaking ignorantly about the subject, as quite often, many people do.

The other thing I wanted to mention is that I don't believe that someone should be denied the option of rehabilitation. If they seek help with their addictions, they should never be turned down. The caveat to this is, how many times should they be allowed to rehabilitate? Why should someone get 18 chances, and still turn back to the previous lifestyle, when others only get 1 shot? Or how about the people who don't do anything for themselves and expect a handout and a ride through life? Those are the people I was referring to (not sure if you knew that, or assumed I was talking about the entire homeless populous in general). I have no problems helping anyone who helps themselves and are trying to better themselves, but I won't give them money. I'll give them resources, I'll give acquaintances a ride or a meal if they need one, but no $$ at all. What's that going to teach them? "If I beg and act nice, I can get some $$"? Not a lesson I want people to learn.

When I say comorbidities those are additional diagnoses that are associated from an original medical diagnosis. If you have a mental health issue there is a chance that one also has a co-existing drug/alcohol addiction establishing a dual-diagnosis also known as a comorbidity. http://www.nami.org/Content/Content...osis_-_Substance_Abuse_and_Mental_Illness.htm ...and the only reason I'm saying this is I thought I MIGHT have read somewhere that you were a surgical tech and I don't know the degree to which they go into mental health when you are going for a surgical tech degree...otherwise not many other people will speak typical medical jargon and won't understand it.

Nope, I'm not a surgical tech, or in the medical field. I was a computer tech specialist and now I'm a database administrator/web & application developer. I worked at hospital for 5 years and watched a lot of House lol. However, I will research things that pique my interest, and a lot of that happens to be medical. I'll see someone post something on facebook, and go look it up, and I'll spend hours going over random medical things.

But yea, I know having a drug or alcohol addiction (prior or in progress) can cause other mental disorders. You're constantly releasing uppers and downers into your system, so naturally your body, while fighting it off, becomes accustomed and your system becomes screwed up in the process.

If a person has an addiction problem of any sort it is another form of a mental health problem/disease that should be treated...these people relapse and go through periods of sobriety all of their lives...one of my parents was an alcoholic and went through 17 years of remission to fall back into it again during a period of stress in their lives. I don't honestly believe that it's always a lifestyle choice for some. Who wants to spend their lives separated from their family, being a slave to a drug or substance, while they slowly kill their bodies? I'd say at least give them an initial chance to help them.

I'm sorry to hear that about your parent. One of my aunts is an alcoholic, and one of her daughters ended up on a lot of psych meds due to her and her sisters upbringing. Nobody talks to my aunt because of the way she is, and nobody wants to deal with that. Her daughter (my cousin) assumed everyone was talking smack on her (which wasn't true, hell, I don't like getting involved with family drama), so she stopped talking to everyone after she became pregnant. It sucked because me and her used to hang out all the time, go to parties, movies, etc., and one day she stopped returning my texts/calls, and then I found out why, but that's a whole other story.

The keyword in that paragraph is INITIAL. Everyone deserves a 2nd chance (with exceptions, of course), but if someone asks for my help, they take my time and effort to help them, and they do nothing with that help, then why would I want to invest more time into someone who's going to throw it all away? I see it the same as a female who has gotten 6 abortions (yes, I actually know a girl who's had that many), and I flat out asked "why don't you get your tubes tied, or make the random guys wear a condom, or hell, go on birth control. She said "Why? I can get free abortions". After her 2nd one, she should have been forced to get her tubes tied, or rejected the abortion. Yes, it's a females choice on what to do with her body, but come on... there has to be a line drawn somewhere. Mind you, she was 24 when she had her 6th one, and her final one. I guess she can no longer become pregnant and now she wants to have a child (she's 29 now). Now, being sober for a few years and getting your life back on track, then falling off the wagon and starting to go down that road again, yes, they deserve to get treated a 2nd time because they made the effort. If someone goes into rehab for, say, meth addiction, they leave and they're in a good state of mind, no longer dealing with the withdrawals, but a week later decides "I can control it now" and fires up, gets hooked, and comes back. Should that person get a 2nd chance with all they just went through? No, not in my eyes.

Believe me, working I pay A LOT of money for my health insurance, and it covers very little. I still pay out of pocket quite a bit. It does bother me how people can rack up free pregnancy tests and etc...from the ER from our labs and by wasting people who easily get paid $25-$30 an hours time (an average RN's hourly starting wage) because they use it as healthcare for every little thing because they do not have insurance. You and I are paying for this as tax payers and through our private insurance so believe me, I feel your pain. ...and my monthly premiums go up every year, they never go down. What's worse is the prices for prescriptions...If I didn't have insurance my medication would cost $1,000.00 a month

Hopefully someday they can make a healthcare system that works for the better of everyone. If the UK and Canada can do it I don't see why the U.S. can't.

The thing that pisses me off is that if my tax dollars go to fund the uninsured, it should also cover what my insurance won't. I'd really love to move to a healthcare system such as the UK or Canada. I need to get my wisdom teeth pulled (fully impacted, and they're now starting to bother me... should have gotten them yanked when I was 19, like it was suggested). Insurance will only cover 48% of the cost. $1,600 is a good chunk of change for a single person, who pays for a new car and a mortgage (amongst other bills) to be shelling out.

*sighs* screw the insurance companies lol

 

[Ethics]

Everybody is a cynic, and that's cool, I am too. I still give to those who ask though. Almost assuredly, 9 of those 10 times I give money it's just gonna feed an addiction that someone doesn't WANT to give up, and to be honest, fuck 'em. Why do I give then? That one guy, out of the ten, who really needs the help. That one and only guy, if I gave one dollar or five dollars to each of those ten guys, it doesn't matter because I feel happy and content that it was money well spent to help that one. I've been there before, and been that desperate and that hungry that we had to beg. Not everyone realizes the resources provided by the government for the homeless are there, and sometimes it just isn't enough.

People don't want to give anything up because of the junky stereotype that has been attached to being homeless, and that's cool, I can't blame them and I hope people who are in that low spot don't blame either. When people realize that someone is genuinely homeless, they help, and so I think it's the stereotype that causes more harm than anything, but people aren't naturally selfish (in this manner). Not everyone has to be dingy, dirty and beat up to be homeless. Dignity and wealth come packaged separately.

 

[dra600n]

^ pretty much.

When I lived in Virginia, I saw a man peddling for $$ outside of a mall entrance. He was out there for a good 2 or 3 hours. After he felt he received enough $$, he walked away, into his Lexus SUV, and drove to the other mall, about 4 minutes away, and did the same thing. He looked the part, smelled the part, but could afford an SUV? It's impossible to believe people 100% on their poor luck and bad decisions, because, like everything else, people ruin it for those who are genuinely in need.

Using your example of the 1 out of 10, but you give to all 10, you said it makes you feel happy that you helped out 1 person, but does it make you feel happy you just helped 9 people worsen their addictions?

 

[Master Cat]

My mom has always preferred giving money to homeless women as opposed to homeless men. I'm not sure if it's the feminist in her, but in any case, she believes that men should be able to get a job and make money. Maybe she sympathizes with homeless women more 'cause she's a woman? At one point, my mom and grandma were homeless - my mom was a teenager at the time. She had to live in a shelter and carry her change of clothes to school everyday. Luckily that situation was short-lived and things are obviously a lot better now, but still... She really believes that people should work hard to better themselves and she doesn't believe in hand-me-downs.

Personally, I don't like giving money to homeless people - men or women (although 98% of the time I see homeless men). Unfortunately, many homeless people misuse the money for drugs as some posters previously noted. There may be a few people who don't actually abuse drugs, but they are the exception. I don't bother taking that chance. >.> Unless they look really bad and I can tell that they're in a serious situation and most likely suffering from some sort of mental illness... For example, they're not just hopping in subways and walking from train car to train car asking for donations. Those are the people who annoy me with their "sob stories" that are difficult to believe at times.

I don't mind giving donations to homeless entertainers/performers who play music and whatnot, because I feel like they're trying extra hard to earn the money and I can appreciate their skills and talents (although who knows what they do with the money afterwards). But there are too many people in New York who play the "hobo card," dress like a bum, && try to make some "easy money" from subway commuters.

Could you believe that there was once a homeless man who REFUSED to take food as a donation? And he INSISTED on having money? Nono, sir, if you're not willing to take FOOD, then I really can't trust you. If you're truly homeless, you should be open to any sort of help, honestly.

 

[The Welsh Paddy]

Yeah... I just offer food, or a hot drink. Only people I give money to out on the streets are those who go busking. But if they're just sat on the side of the street holding out a cup for donations, I just give them food or drink. Haven't come across anyone who has refused.

 

[Tyler Breeze]

I'd consider it at the very least, especially if I had money. But at the same time I'm very skeptical about the homeless people, especially around here. Dad never, ever gave any more than a few cents. I really don't know. At the same time I'd probably be worried that if I say no, I'll get beat up or something. After a million and one thoughts go through my head, I'd probably end up giving. Just to avoid any potential drama.