Gangrene,Sukumvit beggars again.

[YimSiam]

There's a beggar women in the south asian city I live in now, she's been begging with various babies, none of them hers and she's never pregnant, for the past ten years on the same corner... Throughout Asia, it's always an industry, beggars are simply below-minimum-wage workers in a nasty mafia business.

 

YimSiam

[SiLeakHunt]

Are there any places in Bkk that offer this service?

 

The over pass on Soi 10

 

Cheers

[Lusty]

Just got back and have noticed there are a few pretend monks out begging in Lower Suk.

Forgive me if I'm wrong but methinks proper monks don't go out on the streets after dark begging for money.

[CTO]

correct - quite funny to say "Ni How Mar" behind them and here the answer in Chinese as most are Chinese.

[Flashermac]

I saw a "Chinese monk" near my home the other day. His robes were typically Chinese and he had Chinese prayer beads around his neck. I asked my taxi driver was the monk was doing here. He answered the monk was "bplawm" - fake. Real Buddhist monks - Thai, Chinese etc - are not allowed to ask for ANYTHING, let alone money. These fakes are subject to arrest, if spotted. Impersonating a monk is a legal offence.

 

If the "monks" are out on Sukhumwit openly asking for money and the police aren't bothering them, surely somebody must be getting paid off!

 

p.s. A Buddhist monk can only accept what is first offered. Watch the monks on their rounds some morning. They walk slowly with their eyes straight ahead. Anyone who wishes to give them food for their alms bowls will call out "Nimon". The monk will then stop, eyes still straight ahead. After the food has been given, the monk proceeds ahead.

 

No matter how hungry or thirsty, a monk cannot even ask for food or drink. Of course, looking hungry or thirsty is enough prompt a Thai to immediately offer something.

 

[zen4dummies]

It seems rather unlikely that anybody begging on Sukhumivt is really on hard times. Begging there is highly organized and if the guy wasn't part of the "mafia" (as it has been called), he would be chased out of there.

 

Just chalk it up to good technique.

 

Well Rick, if they are missing limbs they are on hard times. I donate to some but do not give coins to every one that I pass. I carry 1 baht and satang coins in my hand and give some to the ones that I know but do not do that every time I see them. It costs me next to nothing and I have seen Thais (my girlfriend for instance) donate to beggars quite often.

 

Two asides:

 

I put my hand into my pocket to give to an old lady on Soi 4 and all I had was a satang coin. She looked into her cup, took it out and threw it me, hitting me in the middle of chest and yelled "Fuck you!" and gave me the finger. She is still around and does not bother to beg from me anymore. She had no noticible leprosy but was able to twist her fingers into a bad shape when she was begging.

 

A (very conservative) friend of mine yelled at the beggars and told them to fuckoff. When I asked what his problem was told me "To give them money only engourages them." My response was "Right! They should go home and grow new legs and digits and get a decent job." He also laughed about a lot of beggars cramming themselves into a taxi, as though that was an extravegant way to get home. Has anyone ever seen a beggar on the BTS? I doubt that the BTS gets close to where they live and it would certainly cost more for them to take it. Taxis are cheaper.

 

zen

 

 

 

[Old Hippie]

Are you from Berkeley? According to the lady who sold watches in front of Pomodoro, the legless guy has prosthetic limbs and a car and earns about 3000bht a day. O.k. having no legs sucks, but he could be worse off.

 

As for begging in general, most places ask that you don't give, or only give what a local would. Reason being, they want to encourage people to work and be productive...not easy in a country with no real handicap laws or facilities. Cambodia set up some program having the Land Mine victims sell books and what not, and the Cambodian government asks you to not give to street beggers. Again, not a great solution, but the common view is, Begging is bad/causes problems.

[panadolsandwich]

I bought a couple of flower girls some Subway sandwiches once - my 'girl' at the time indulgent at first - then telling them in Khmer not to be so greedy when they started to order the whole store.

 

I tend to give a lot of money to beggars I feel are sincere. The fakes are fairly obvious.

 

The worst beggars are the twits in Australia that dress up in Koala suits and harass you on bridges. They to my mind deserve the real condemnation - especially when you say no thanks - then get some snide comment like 'you destroy the environment maaaannn'.

[CTO]

Hmmm - Koalas collecting for green peace are worse than child smuggling mafia?

 

That aside I remember seeing a older USA couple walk past a bloke with out legs - she to husband "It's not real you know!"

 

I was impressed with his fakery Still - no $'s from me.

[Flashermac]

I was out on Sukhumwit last night. Yep, there was a Chinese "monk" out begging. He'd wai peple and ask for money. Monks do not wai and they don't ask for anything! Oh, well ... I suppose tourists don't know that.

 

p.s. Some Farang yelled at him quite loudly. Anyone on this board?