Tight Barsteward

[Roadhump]

So it's not just Sunderland and QPR who specialise in the own goal stakes

 

[swee'pea99]

The 'story' confirms everything I've ever known about the Daily Mail and tells me nothing about Ed Milliband. As someone said above, he clearly 'can't do PR' (Gordon Brown had much the same problem); but I'd still take Ed Milliband over DM scumsuckers any day of the week.

 

[ScotiaLass]

Theres a 'beggar' in our town. She is foreign.
One day we were passing her and my husband said that he knew her. He used to do security for the DSS and apparently he seen her in there claiming her benefits. He also saw her all dressed up, on a night out in town!
There are genuine cases, and I will give a hot drink/food to any one of those.
Alas knowing who they are these days isn't easy.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I reckon he's trying to nick it off her

 

[Turbo Rider]

Tramp stories

• I was once waiting for a taxi and I saw this well dressed guy in a very nice looking suit give a tramp a note so he could fiddle him off. Taxi came before the tramp did, so I never got to see the end of the story.
• A tramp spoke to me on the way into McDonalds, because he wanted some change once so, because he'd made such a wonderful impression, I promised him the change from my purchase. When I got out & gave him the 20p I had, he threw it into the road and called me a c*nt. No tramps were fiddled off in this incident
• I once saw a guy get way to angry with a tramp for begging..."why don't you get a job," he goes . "This is my job" says the tramp and just a few seconds after that, the angry mans friend lets everyone in the vicinity know that the angry man is on benefits. Plenty of awkward shuffling here, but again, no tramp fiddle.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

Maybe we need to start asking these pesky "tramps" what they are up to and establish if they are deserving of our cash?
And whether they pass our moral test.

I'll start off with the first question, feel free to add more...

1) Are you seriously poor? Like, you have nothing at all? As in, you are currently in pain due to lack of food and haven't eaten for days? C'mon now? You really think I'm wearing that one?

 

[threebikesmcginty]

2) if you're hungry why don't you eat your dog?

3) if I give you money do you promise to invest it wisely?

 

[Mrs M]

She looks like an organised "professional"beggar to me. Why beg when there are plenty of benefits to claim or jobs to do for that matter? I wouldn't give her the steam of my cup of tea,however there's a young lad near where i work who's totally down and out. Alcohol and drug abuse have taken its toll he's 20 odd going on 50 odd,but i never see him begging or asking for change,"ciggies" etc! If i buy a pie i buy him one,it's pitiful to see him wandering round town covered in filth and his own vomit,who looks after HIM?

When I was a teenager, in the dim and distant past, we used to go into Glasgow City centre on occasion.
There was a guy who lived in the station, a "real" tramp, never bothered anybody but was always there.
He passed away only a few years ago and I read a wee article about him. Turns out he used to be a solicitor but his folks died, he had some sort of breakdown, obviously lost everything and ended up the way he did. Very sad

 

[Brandane]

2) if you're hungry why don't you eat your dog?

3) if I give you money do you promise to invest it wisely?

4) If you are broke, how can you afford to smoke?
5) Don't you get money from social security?

I apologise to genuine cases, but I have become very cynical towards the likes of beggars and Big Issue sellers. I know for a fact that our previous local Big Issue seller ran a car, and lived in a flat in an area most folk would dream of. His commute to "work" also involved a rather expensive return ferry trip (upon which his car also travelled).
Another one I knew had no home of his own, but lived with his girlfriend. She being from a criminal background had all of life's necessities back in the nineties, before everyone else - the huge flat screen TV, leather suite, best of carpets, and central heating running 24/7.

A sizeable percentage of them probably have a better income than me, so I won't be chucking my hard earned into their polystyrene cup (the contents of which are probably going to the nearest drug dealer) any time soon.

 

[raleighnut]

Sorry to divert this a bit but I always drop a quid (If I've got one) into a buskers guitar/saxophone case, anyone else?

 

[Brandane]

Sorry to divert this a bit but I always drop a quid (If I've got one) into a buskers guitar/saxophone case, anyone else?

Sometimes. I remember once in the London underground there was a guy doing The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes". He was fantastic, and I had to stop and listen until the end of the song. I gave him a couple of quid. Hopefully he got spotted and is now signing record deals or something. Buskers are not beggars though IMHO.. They are performers relying on donations.

 

[Mrs M]

Sorry to divert this a bit but I always drop a quid (If I've got one) into a buskers guitar/saxophone case, anyone else?

Me too, there were some guys in town a few weeks ago playing jazz and they were really good. £ ker ching to them
At the other end of the spectrum, check out "guitar wife, Aberdeen" She strums a 2 stringed guitar, accompanied by horrific wailing. Don't even think it's a real guitar, maybe one of those 70's wall ornaments from Spain.
She's so bad, she's good. Someone wanted her to try out for BGT

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Illegality never stopped the Labour part from doing something.

Why pick on just the Labour lot?
I know the Holier than thou Party are blameless tho'

 

[biggs682]

@Drago at first i thought you getting your own back on me after my cheap jibe on f/b yesterday

 

[Drago]

Am I missing something? You're not a Labour MP or some such?