For just the 2nd time since I've moved to New Paltz 16 months ago, I came across a person asking for a handout. Both times it happened in the New Paltz Plaza in the Stop and Shop parking lot. The man today was carrying a pooch in one hand and some trinkets in the other. He asked if I would buy a Tibetan keychain to help him feed his dog. A month ago, a young man asked for some money for food.
In NYC, I knew that the 'proper' way to handle such requests was to ignore them. It's a good bet that anyone asking for assistance is a con artist or a ne'er-do-well, and the prevailing wisdom is that everyone would be better served if citizens didn't help out but left the assisting to government agencies and charitable groups like churches, synagogs, and soup kitchens. In theory, this would eventually force the truly needy to seek out proper help rather than relying on the unreliable public. I never liked this 'proper' method. I've come to prefer the way my ancestors handled things in the shtetl.
Back in the days of peasant Jewry, beggars were called schnorrers (or shnorrers). They called upon townsfolk rich and not-so-rich for regular handouts, and the religion (and tradition) called for those better off to give schnorrers a meal and a bed for the night. I like this form of public assistance even more than handing someone a $5 bill and hoping that they have a warm place to sleep.
But I have a feeling that the modern shtetl of New Paltz has already figured out some methods to help those in need. And I'm pretty sure that they don't involve Tibetan keychains. I just wish I knew what they did involve.
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