While riding home after a long day at the office, have you ever noticed those people on the edge of an intersection. This usually means people with signs up asking for money. The people may have a sign saying “Any change? God bless” or “I’m not going to lie, using the money for beer.” The people often look down on their luck and are usually homeless or looking for work. They come up to your window with an empty cup and ask in their nicest voice for some financial assistance. You place it into their cup and drive off as the light changes from red to green. You have a huge smile on your face thinking you made someone’s day better. Well that’s at least what the plan is. To tell you the truth, there a good chance you’ve just been scammed.
The scenario above may sound so familiar as its part of the life many of us face on a simple drive around town. The name for this is panhandling as it describes strangers approaching you and begging for money. You reading this have probably donated to those people many times throughout your life as many people have, but that is actually the problem. Panhandling is a scam. Panhandling operates under the premise of rewarding people with money that have not completed anything worth receiving a reward. Panhandlers often have no physical or mental disability and are simply taking advantage of people that are willing to give them money.
Panhandling has over the past few years turned into a trend where people prey on people that are gullible. People that are overly emotional will fall for the trap that the panhandler sets. First, it’s important to note that panhandlers make on average over $100 per hour. Not to mention that all of this is tax free. Second, while there are instances where people that panhandle are genuinely homeless, some people are simply cheating the system. There have been many cases where people have nice homes, cars and families and go out to panhandle each day while racking in hundreds and thousands of dollars yearly. This is while also collecting unemployment benefits.
Panhandling has turned into a problem that has forced many local governments to get involved. In Tampa, Florida, there has been a ban placed on panhandling. This is beneficial as it helps create safer traffic but also keeps scammers at bay. Yet panhandling is still legal all over the nation as it technically does not involve any illegal activity however many organizations are aimed at attacking this problem. Panhandling is giving people that don’t deserve money, an extra source of income. It’s giving people "free" money while they are not forced to earn what they want which I view as a serious problem.
