Your good intentions don't buy houses
By: James Dillard, There's A Light And It Never Goes Out
Issue date: 8/28/07 Section: Opinion
"Spare any change, man?"
These days, it's tough to walk down Franklin Street without being asked that question. While the question itself is telling (so much for the American dream … ), it's answering it that can get tricky.
Many people take pity on the homeless. They realize that most of them aren't sitting on the stoop all day to get out of work, but for lack of a better idea on how to solve their problems.
But too often - 60 percent of the time, according to Executive Director of the Inter-Faith Council Chris Moran - people's pity for those in need leads to stupidity when they give money to people in the street.
This might sound harsh, but it's the truth. Homeless people need to be helped - almost no one will argue that (though some will argue they should help themselves) - but many people will say that giving handouts or buying people meals is enough.
Let me be the first to say that giving money to the poor or food to the hungry seems like the compassionate thing to do. By cutting them a break, it seems, we're helping them to get back on their feet.
But unfortunately, that's not true. In fact, it's a whole lot more like paying a problem to go away.
Giving to a homeless person - either in cash or by buying them a meal - has an immediate payoff for the giver, but it's barely more efficient than burning the cash as a source of heat.
Consider this: Even if the homeless were given enough money to pull them out of poverty, there's a high probability that something would prevent them from using the money properly. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 26 percent of homeless people in America deal with substance abuse and as much as 25 percent suffer from severe and persistent mental illness. Good intentions aside, a handful of quarters does nothing to address the issues that led to homelessness in the first place.
Throwing money at people is an easy way out. It relieves us to think we've done our part. But it isn't an effective solution.
These days, it's tough to walk down Franklin Street without being asked that question. While the question itself is telling (so much for the American dream … ), it's answering it that can get tricky.
Many people take pity on the homeless. They realize that most of them aren't sitting on the stoop all day to get out of work, but for lack of a better idea on how to solve their problems.
But too often - 60 percent of the time, according to Executive Director of the Inter-Faith Council Chris Moran - people's pity for those in need leads to stupidity when they give money to people in the street.
This might sound harsh, but it's the truth. Homeless people need to be helped - almost no one will argue that (though some will argue they should help themselves) - but many people will say that giving handouts or buying people meals is enough.
Let me be the first to say that giving money to the poor or food to the hungry seems like the compassionate thing to do. By cutting them a break, it seems, we're helping them to get back on their feet.
But unfortunately, that's not true. In fact, it's a whole lot more like paying a problem to go away.
Giving to a homeless person - either in cash or by buying them a meal - has an immediate payoff for the giver, but it's barely more efficient than burning the cash as a source of heat.
Consider this: Even if the homeless were given enough money to pull them out of poverty, there's a high probability that something would prevent them from using the money properly. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 26 percent of homeless people in America deal with substance abuse and as much as 25 percent suffer from severe and persistent mental illness. Good intentions aside, a handful of quarters does nothing to address the issues that led to homelessness in the first place.
Throwing money at people is an easy way out. It relieves us to think we've done our part. But it isn't an effective solution.
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