Begging In Front Of Supermarket Stores

[dyalect]

This is a recent thing I have noticed while out grocery shopping. I have seen this primarily in front of no frills and fresco. Individuals standing in front of supermarket stores with generic signs looking for money. You get the standard greeting coming and going in and out of store. I have no issue withe people needing help but in some cases they appear to be the same family shifting from store to store on a loop. Nothing wrong with needing help, but everyone is struggling with bills and these people may want to try going inside and applying for a job! While they aren't aggressive it is a bit of a pain seeing able bodied people begging day in day out. I work hard for my money so seeing someone sitting there all day in a nice suburb begging all day and potentially making more than 15/hr is kinda disgusting. That said the Fresco manager put his foot down and chased them away. Times are tough but there are many services out there to help people in need. Social assistance, low income housing, food banks etc. Begging is just lazy.

[Tweets77]

I see them (the same ones usually) outside of our smaller malls and the local RCSS. I think personally that there are lots of places in our area where people who need it can get assistance of all kinds (meals, shelter, etc. etc.). I really don't like the begging either, but that being said, it is an ongoing issue in many places.

[bhlombardy]

I met a fella one day at a pub during happy hour. I recognized him, but couldnt place him at first. Then it occurred to me that he was a common sight in the uptown area begging for cash. He was never unpleasant doing so, but he was one of the more commonly visible beggars. He was usually in a dirty jacket and jeans, and sometimes a tattered ball cap, but not entirely disgusting or offensive.

I was curious to see if he was drinking all of his money that he pan-handled, so I ended up chatting with him as we sat at the bar to pleasantly learn that he wasnt. -- he was just there after a long day of "walking around" (as he called it) uptown, and was in to warm up before he headed home. In our conversation, he said he probably has about a 5% hit-rate, so of 100 people that walk by him wherever he is, maybe 5 would give me a dollar or two, some as high as $5... he was making between $200 and $300 a day. That's a fair chunk of change to pocket daily anywhere, let alone in uptown Saint John, NB, which is NOT a large uptown area. If you do the quick math, at 5 days a week, that's $72000 a year... tax free! He had no incentive to go get a job.

Why I didnt recognize him at first was because he was in the pub (not outside) AND because he wasnt in his "work clothes". He was wearing a decent clean jacket, and he seemed more tidy. Mind you, he wasnt in expensive, high-fashion clothes, but he didnt look indigent either. But of course, he wasnt. To his credit whenever I saw him pan-handling, I dont recall him ever saying he was homeless or destitute but he left that impression. He didnt seem as though there was anything wrong with what he was doing. And I suppose if people give you money just for asking for it, there isnt. But damn it left a bad taste in my mouth.

While I realize that there ARE lots of people that DO need it and ARE strapped, when I learned this about him I became jaded. I DO feel bad for those people who have genuinely fallen on hard times, but I certainly dont feel bad for those who are making their living the way he does... Especially when it's often twice more than most of us who work their asses off to bring home half of what he does on a daily-basis after we pay our taxes.

I stopped giving to pan-handlers because of people like him. He doesnt need MY help, that's for sure. And now I can't tell the difference between who does or who doesn't.

Instead I go with the adage that it's better to give a "hand up" than a "hand out" -- so i focus my donations to charities that do just that.

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[maggiespice]

These days panhandling is a full time job for some people, and IMO, not a fair way to make a living. When a person is able bodied, they should be out making an honest living.

[Purdee]

it is a common sight here, they even stand outside dollarama. Some asked if they can return your cart and keep the $1 coin. I have a fake coin that rcss and walmart sell for the carts so i don't have $1 coin, and when i tell them that, they just walked away, not offering to return the cart for me. I'm in my 3rd trimester and have a 3 years old. Not that i'm unable to return my own cart but it's funny that they don't want to help return the cart for me when there's no real coin in the cart.

[Ellen Cardinal]

I feel bad but downtown Toronto is especially terrible. I take an intercity bus to the greyhound terminal a couple times during the week for work and in 30 minutes I will have 4-6 different people approach me for change despite security asking them to leave. If you say you don't have cash many just start asking for bus tokens instead. I've even had people screaming insults in another language (my friend translated what the lady was saying once she left) while holding a sign asking for money. I try to donate to the food bank and charities directly but there are people that still fall through the cracks. :/

[Midnightly]

i see alot of it around here too.. living in a city that to be honest slowly feels like it's going downhill.... our mayor said "bring it on" to the homeless and they have come in droves you can't walk downtown without many people asking for money, and many sitting on the sidewalks (which is against the bylaws) with signs infront of them, even sleeping in doorways in the middle of the afternoon, there are even fast food places people tend to avoid due to unsavory people asking for money or dealing with addictions.. i would never walk downtown alone in this city at night (which is very sad)...

you will often see people at intersections standing on the center mediums with "homeless, helpless, hungry" signs walking up and down asking for change, even though in this town there are soo many places to get free food no one should be hungry.. and don't even try to mention places where they could get free food many have gotten defensive about that (well i was kicked out of "our place", i'd rather have a burger or subway, i've even heard of a local incident where someone offered food and they replied with "i don't eat that crap")

there are even some that wander around parking lots asking for money often lying saying they need it for formula and diapers (same person on many different days in different parking lots)

i've also been jaded.. i won't give money to any of them.. i know it's not the best thing to do but i keep my head down and ignore it.. i can't give money to them and i'd rather not be put in a tricky situation with a person in the middle of the throws of addiction

[Tweets77]

it is a common sight here, they even stand outside dollarama. Some asked if they can return your cart and keep the $1 coin. I have a fake coin that rcss and walmart sell for the carts so i don't have $1 coin, and when i tell them that, they just walked away, not offering to return the cart for me. I'm in my 3rd trimester and have a 3 years old. Not that i'm unable to return my own cart but it's funny that they don't want to help return the cart for me when there's no real coin in the cart.

I have had that happen to me too!

[coupongirl99]

I NEVER give money. I will only offer food. The hungry ones in true need will gladly accept it. The ones only looking for money for feeding their addiction or use it to line their pockets tax free will scoff and reject it. My reply to those people is always "Begger's can't be chooser and if you are choosing you are not really in need. I choose to only support people in need." and walk away. It usually leaves them speechless LOL.

[Ciel]

I've seen one woman in Ancaster near the Meadowlands McDonalds in the past few months with a sign (which seems to be the same one a male uses on Golf Links Rd or when he's at Lime Ridge Mall on the traffic median) as well as outside the Sobey's Extra. Hamilton allows panhandlers to use a sign only but not active solicitation (verbal) of donations of passersby-bylaw was passed when the late Bob Morrow was City mayor. On occasion, I have also seen an adult male panhandle outside of Fortinos Ancaster.

Downtown Hamilton-King St. E and W. about two blocks either way and the corner of the CIBC tower by MacNab bus terminal are other areas dominated by panhandlers. Sometimes there is not much sidewalk left over on the north side of King E after you account for the "flower beds", space taken up by panhandlers or musicians "playing" to recorded music and any gear and other walkers (esp. if they have mean looking dogs on long leashes). Can be hard to wait at some bus stops there due to music volume or even loud conversations/asks for donations. I never liked being asked for money/bus fares in the evenings if I was the only one waiting at a bus stop-sometimes I walked a couple of blocks to get away from the person.

I'm aware that individuals asking for stuff outside the federal building on Bay St. will toss out any lunches or food given to them.

Seems interesting that at a couple of Food Basics stores on the Hamilton Mountain, some shoppers ditch their carts at bus shelters rather than returning them to cart corrals and claiming their coins back (within a half block or less from the store parking lot). Easy cash for me when I find the carts.

[johnb56789]

I've definitely seen them around the St.Catharines area. And not to sound heartless, but I'd rather see them go to community services available, so I won't give them money. Mainly because I know personally what I can do with that same dollar that they are asking for, and instead of helping one person in that situation, I might be able to help an entire family, or even a few families or individuals. Like for example, when I was at my family friends the other week, I was able to pick up a total of 168 cans of vegetables for a total of $0.72 AND earned a little back myself (about 10,000Pts). So while it makes me feel sick that in a country like this, people have to beg (for the one's that are actually doing it because they think/do have no other choice), I'd rather take that same dollar and feed more people with it.

[dyalect]

it is a common sight here, they even stand outside dollarama. Some asked if they can return your cart and keep the $1 coin. I have a fake coin that rcss and walmart sell for the carts so i don't have $1 coin, and when i tell them that, they just walked away, not offering to return the cart for me. I'm in my 3rd trimester and have a 3 years old. Not that i'm unable to return my own cart but it's funny that they don't want to help return the cart for me when there's no real coin in the cart.

No money no love. A decent person would have still taken the cart for you. World we live in. Only going to get harder for everyone and these beggers are going to see their cash cow dry up. Not everyone, but the shady few always ruin it for those truly in need of help.

[abbasgirl]

I don't give money to individuals either. But I don't think it's fair to assume that everyone who is physically healthy can just go get a job. A lot of people on the streets have addictions and/or mental health issues. They would first have to successfully make it through an interview process. Ask yourself if you would hire them.

[couponmummy]

I saw 2 homeless guys at a strip mall where there is a Provigo and a Pharmaprix.

One guy was standing up and on a cell phone, and the other guy was sitting on the ground on a laptop.

[Ciel]

I saw 2 homeless guys at a strip mall where there is a Provigo and a Pharmaprix.

One guy was standing up and on a cell phone, and the other guy was sitting on the ground on a laptop.

Does either store provide free wi-fi? That was my first thought.