One type of homeless creates a drive-thru for begging. The homeless will choose a high-traffic intersection with rare pedestrian traffic.
A drive-thru begger has a tiny cardboard sign with illegible writing. If you give him money, he could buy a Sharpie, make a better sign, then get high off the Sharpie. Or maybe he should get high off the Sharpie before making the sign. It’s really up to the individual homeless to decide whether to influence his art with Sharpie sniffing.
What is the business model for drive-thru begging?
While we all enjoy the convenience of ignoring a freezing beggar from the comfort of our climate-controlled vehicles, I don’t think we’ve been rewarding this premium service by throwing change out the window.
Drive-thru beggars deserve higher pay. Next opportunity, throw some coins out your window at a beggar as you drive by. That’s change we all can believe in.