Assignment #5

In Tuesday’s class we were given the question “Should you give a homeless person a dollar?” and after splitting into groups, we were to debate different answers. I would fall into the category of “never, but…” for several reasons. A few of these reasons are that I hardly ever carry cash, I may not necessarily trust the person in question’s motives in asking for the money, and lastly I find that a lot of homeless persons seem to wait until inconvenient times to ask for a donation.
With the luxury of having a debit card comes the tendency to carry less and less cash, if any at all. It keeps my wallet and my purchases much more organized, so when asked for a dollar, I can usually reply honestly when I say that I do not have any money on my person. With a debit card I could take the time to give the person food or water instead of giving them a dollar directly, which would solve my second problem of slight distrust. I have had the experience of a person turning down an offer for me to do so, which to me means that they most likely wanted the money for drugs or alcohol. Even when this may not be the case, I might not have the time to stop and give someone a dollar. As sad as that may seem, the homeless I’ve encountered seem to wait until the most inappropriate time to ask a person for money. Perhaps they think that if you’re in a rush you won’t have the time to stop and argue a point, or you’d prefer to give them something and be on your way. All in all, I rarely if ever give homeless persons a dollar since I usually do not carry cash, do not always trust their motives, and because I am sometimes asked at the most impossible times.