The OP made the classic mistake of not talking to the dog first.
Talk to the dog first.
Clothing and food are pretty easy to get for the homeless. Showers can be tough.
Great guy, but living in a time where there was no social safety net.
But they always say yes to “whose a good boy?” and never turn down treats! They practically invented begging, if not perfected it to a high form of art what with those sorry eyes and sad face.
This. Period. In fact, I’d go the Ramban one better and say you’ve done a good thing even if all 10 were lying.
A good friend of mine became mostly wheelchair bound late in life – and taught from his wheelchair – but he could still walk.
This. Honest to crap, if you feel like giving money or some other help and you can do it, then do it and don’t second-guess yourself. If you were “scammed” – whatever that means – for a few bucks and some dog treats, so what?
You were speaking to your own experiences and NOT the OP’s according to your post.
And besdides, the solution is a little more complicated than “Get a job”. People need phones so they can be contacted , they need clothes, and an address to give to their would be employers.
They also have to compete with people who already have all these things. Managers aren’t hiring the homeless and it’s naïve to think otherwise.
Also, you are in no position to judge these “young and healthy” people as you know nothing about their story or their situation.
You did A Good Deed. You added a little more kindness to the world and a dog got a good meal.
The world needs more kindness nowadays and good dogs always deserve treats even if they are owned by scammers.
I find it sad that you seem to care more about the dog than the actual human being that was there. You were had, because that person depended on you to care about a dog, where if she didn’t have a dog, you wouldn’t have given anything.
Is this a gut feeling, or do you have cite for that? It all depends on the begging location, and the minimum wage, which varies from state to state. I don’t think it’s a stretch to make $7.25 in an hour in those states where the state minimum wage is the same as the federal minimum wage.
this reminds me of an acquaintance Rufus was a Vietnam vet with PTSD who went the normal route … lost jobs homes family ended up homeless drank too much smoked too much pot but he was very somewhat consvertaivtely opinionated. … wed talk about this and that whenever I ran across each other id buy lunch or slip him a few bucks
Well he met this woman who had kids and he really liked her and over a couple of years he cleaned up had a place to live and was getting benefits and stuff so they were married …Well one day I needed to get stamps and coke so I ran to the corner liquor store, (now in ca most liquor stores are pretty much a 7-11 they just sell the hard stuff behind the counter )
He’s doing his old shticks in front of the store…I go over and he sees me and says "bro ill be honest I need a beer or two " I’m like "why ? " he says “the old lady’s having triplets " so I go " wow,” he says " yeah I dont know if I want congratulations or condolences " I laughed and gave him a 5 and told him his favorite malt was on sale …
There is wisdom here.
Yes, I was silently disagreeing with the idea that giving to scammers was bad. I’d much rather give to a guy with a good story than to a guy with a guitar. I like stories, and I don’t like buskers.
my reaction exactly
The dog definitely wasn’t scamming anyone.
The dog had no choice and played no role in its situation. Sorry, I have more empathy for children and animals than I do for adults. They are usually the innocents.
The sole evidence for the OP having been scammed here is that she apparently knew someone who possessed, or had the use of, a car. A car that didn’t look too beat up.
I’m willing to bet that lots of quite poor people, people forced to resort to begging, have a car, or have a car available to them. Most of this country isn’t like where I live, in NYC, where a car is a royal pain in the ass and you’re better off without one. A car is an absolute necessity.
So, “scam”? Someone was begging. The OP gave that person some dog stuff and a small amount of money. I don’t see how he/she was scammed.
I suppose, for the posters here arguing that the OP was “scammed,” what makes it a “scam” is that, in their judgment, the beggar wasn’t truly destitute enough to qualify her to beg (in their minds).
Okay, to each their own, I guess, but I don’t think I’d call that a “scam” (even assuming that the beggar wasn’t truly destitute).
A related thing is that I often hear (not in this thread, but quite often out there in the world), that people begging will use any money for booze or drugs. To which I say, so what? Maybe that’s what the person really needs right now.
I would have given you the finger too. He had a car (an El Camino, a car that went out of production in 1987, so hardly a new car)? Somehow that makes him a scammer? Maybe he was, but going by what you’re describing in your post, you didn’t have any evidence of that. But you played a mean trick on him anyway.
What scam did he try to run on you?
Yes, scammers exist. Begging when one isn’t destitute enough to suit someone doesn’t make one a scammer.
That’s an old one here in NYC, and I’m pretty much immune to it and its variants at this point in my life. Which is too bad, I guess, because it’s just possible that someday, someone will be telling the truth about needing ten bucks for an urgent prescription.
But mostly it’s a scam.
I assume whenever I give money to some SOB with a sob story it’s a pile of bullshit. But I don’t care. If I’m feeling like giving out money, I give out money. If you’re in a position where you prefer to beg or tell tall tales for money, you need it more than I do. I also give money to causes I know are legit and volunteer time dropping off food for seniors via a food pantry.
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I give to buskers not to beggars.
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I’m the same way. If you’re playing a guitar and have an open case doing at least a half decent job of entertaining, I’ll definitely toss a 5 spot in.
Given that the OP did not talk to the person until they went home, and came back with their gifts, I don’t think they were “had” or “scammed”
I used to work with the homeless, especially around issues of addictions. At that time, I would never have given cash. As I’ve grown older, I’ve grown a little more pragmatic and gracious about it. If I have the cash and I feel like I want to give I will. The pragmatic part of me knows that I will never change someone. If my gift is given with the expectation that they will fly the straight and narrow, it’s not a gift. The gracious part is knowing that they are human beings who deserve dignity. And giving them dignity will go a lot further to showing them that they deserve to have good things, and maybe just maybe will motivate change.
^ This.
A while back — obviously pre-COVID — I was at the food counter at Target, and a couple places ahead of me was a rather ragged and unkempt individual with a backpack. He ordered a grilled “cheeze” sandwich and carefully counted out the coins, but he didn’t have enough for a drink as well. When it was my turn I ordered something (I forget what) and a drink, then took the cup and put it on his table. He didn’t say anything or look at me, just kind of bowed his head. I said something vapid like “Here, have a nice day,” and that was that.
I’m not patting myself on the back for doing it, and I doubt it made a big difference in his life. As far as I can recall, my thought process was something like, “He’s ragged and likely homeless, and may be addicted to something … but dammit, he’s a human being and deserves the dignity of something to drink.”