It's never easy. I go through mental and emotional contortions every time I pass someone with a cardboard sign on a street corner or in a parking lot. I tell myself that I contribute to causes and charities that are trying to get policies in place to help the suffering, and that's more effective than handing out cash to people who may indeed be scamming passersby (have seen that happen too). But it's a conundrum. In many American cities, you could easily go broke if you gave money to all the homeless and wretched you walk past on any given day.