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Ottawa panhandler gets $1000 a week.

If you work hard at it you can do it. Not much different then a street performer.


But 99.9% don;t do anywhere near that though.
 
Well, panhandling was considered an honorable profession in Quebec prior to WW2, particularly in rural settings. Most villages had a "quêteux". Only problem was that pregnant women had to avoid them or they might give birth to a humpback child - as the legend goes.
 
You guys in Canada have like $1 coins and higher right?

Thats the only way I see that even halfway getting there.


No way a panhandler would get that in the US.
I'm sure they average less than 50 cents a person here (whatever change in persons pocket), so they'd have to get that much from almost 300 people a day to clear a grand in a week.


If they worked 10 hours a day, thats 30 people an hour giving at least 50 cents... or one person every two minutes

I'd say the majority of people dont give that much or just pass, so yeah, I dont see how this could work, unless you guys in Canada have alot more change in your pockets and are much more generous to panhandlers.


 
We have $1 and $2 coins.

You know, I worry that the guy might get assaulted now if the word spreads out amongst the neighborhood petty criminals that he carries this kind of money. I bet he regrets giving his name and other identity hints in that interview.
 
I have a cousin (much older than me, he is in his late 30's now) who went into philly one day with two friends and begged for about four hours just for the fuck of it. Each pulled in over 300 dollars.
 
We have professional panhandlers in Minneapolis as well. One of them was busted driving into the city a few years ago in a brand new cadillac. He admitted to raking in 70K\year lol

He lived in the suburbs and had a normal life except he would get up in the morning, put on dirty clothes, and play the part.
 
People must like him.

People tend to throw money at people they like, which is why we have the entertainment industry, aka the professional panhandling industry.
 
The professional ones do make a lot of money...dont confuse them with homeless people.

The guys on the corner at a busy intersection, with the sign and a dog or two...they are pro's.
 
Originally posted by: deftron
You guys in Canada have like $1 coins and higher right?

Thats the only way I see that even halfway getting there.


No way a panhandler would get that in the US.
I'm sure they average less than 50 cents a person here (whatever change in persons pocket), so they'd have to get that much from almost 300 people a day to clear a grand in a week.


If they worked 10 hours a day, thats 30 people an hour giving at least 50 cents... or one person every two minutes

I'd say the majority of people dont give that much or just pass, so yeah, I dont see how this could work, unless you guys in Canada have alot more change in your pockets and are much more generous to panhandlers.
Click to expand...

Years ago, I watched a news show that interviewed a NYC panhandler. He claimed to make $25K during the summer, but would usually blow it down in Atlantic City.
 
Simple solution: Don't give your money to bums, give it to homeless shelters. That way you KNOW your money is going to actually help a homeless person, not to pay off some guys Cadillac.
 
Originally posted by: dennilfloss
You know, I worry that the guy might get assaulted now
Click to expand...

my first thought.

And the part about spending it on booze and pot... that's why people don't like to give. And he's the one saying others give panhandlers a bad name for not saying thank you.
 
Originally posted by: PaperclipGod
Simple solution: Don't give your money to bums, give it to homeless shelters. That way you KNOW your money is going to actually help a homeless person, not to pay off some guys Cadillac.
Click to expand...

Winrar
 
I don't even consider helping bums any more. I had one guy follow me asking me telling me I didn't give him enough money and he wanted me to give him a ride.

He gave me this long shpiel about how he needed to get home to his family. The next day I saw him riding a bike in the same area. Glad I only gave em a dollar. Fuck bums.
 
I've known hard times, and I know there aren't always people to help you, but at the same time there are many services available and where there's a will there's almost always a way. There are so many places you can work that don't check jack shit, you get paid and then you can afford to rent a place. It may not always be the best job or the best place to live, but it's honestly not very difficult to do it.

I once saw, in Montreal, someone go up to a car at a light in traffic and the person in the car hands the bum out a $20 bill. That pissed me off, cause I was broke as shit at the time and I could have really used $20! Damn...
 
I have bums ask me for change every single day. I've gotten to be immune to their pleas, so I just keep walking now... but yeah, it's pretty ridiculous.

Oh, and PaperclipGod has it right:

Simple solution: Don't give your money to bums, give it to homeless shelters. That way you KNOW your money is going to actually help a homeless person, not to pay off some guys Cadillac.
Click to expand...
 
I was familiar with an urban legend of a panhandler around Chicago. She would dress up real nice(business dress) and go around the train stations asking for some help getting back home because she lost/misplaced her purse. Legend has it that she made quite a bit of bank as people are more likely to hand over the cost of a train ride to someone who needs to make it back home than some change to a ragged bum.
 
Originally posted by: waffleironhead
I was familiar with an urban legend of a panhandler around Chicago. She would dress up real nice(business dress) and go around the train stations asking for some help getting back home because she lost/misplaced her purse. Legend has it that she made quite a bit of bank as people are more likely to hand over the cost of a train ride to someone who needs to make it back home than some change to a ragged bum.
Click to expand...

I can assure that that is no urban legend, and is probably 100% legitimate. I encounter that exact situation on a daily basis here in Philly.
 
Originally posted by: CPA
Originally posted by: deftron
You guys in Canada have like $1 coins and higher right?

Thats the only way I see that even halfway getting there.


No way a panhandler would get that in the US.
I'm sure they average less than 50 cents a person here (whatever change in persons pocket), so they'd have to get that much from almost 300 people a day to clear a grand in a week.


If they worked 10 hours a day, thats 30 people an hour giving at least 50 cents... or one person every two minutes

I'd say the majority of people dont give that much or just pass, so yeah, I dont see how this could work, unless you guys in Canada have alot more change in your pockets and are much more generous to panhandlers.
Click to expand...

Years ago, I watched a news show that interviewed a NYC panhandler. He claimed to make $25K during the summer, but would usually blow it down in Atlantic City.
Click to expand...

There was also a national news show that did a report on a panhandler in Denver about a yr ago. He made over $100k a yr. and that doesn't include the free food people would give him.
 
I actually do give bums money, sometimes, but only to ones that aren't actually asking for it. e.g., there's a guy in my city who has been wandering the streets for years, but he never asks for money. He's older, and he's often down near the local soup kitchen. That's the kind of guy I'm happy to help when I can. If someone is just standing around with a sign, though, and trying to play up their misfortune, they generally just get ignored.

One of my fave times to hand out cash is late xmas night -- only the truly homeless and/or destitute are going to be out on the street then. I try to find one guy a year and give 'em a 20. Even if they just spend it on drugs or booze, at least it's reminding them that they're not completely forgotten.
 
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