When it comes to beggars and begging, I’m really torn.

On the one hand, I’m not so heartless that I don’t feel very sad for these people. Because I do. Pretty much every time I see someone on the street asking for money, I think about how their life might’ve got to the point where they feel the only option is to ask strangers for spare change.

It’s not the only option for some - because we know that not every person on the street asking for money is genuinely homeless.

But, then, there are some genuinely homeless people. I see them on the way into work every morning.

But I’ve never given money to these people. Probably because I don’t see how $2 is going to make much difference. And probably also too because I never know how desperate they really are.

Or, more to the point - instead of not knowing how desperate they are, it’s probably not knowing what they're desperate for. Are they desperate for money for food? Or are they desperate for money for drugs?

The other thing too, is some of the people asking for money can be pretty aggressive. Not all of them. But some can be.

You know, they’ll come up to you speaking like someone out of the Bible. “Any spare change, bless you”. But if you don’t give them anything, they’ll tell you where to go.

So I’ve got a lot of heart. But I really struggle with the “good heart” bit because I see some people parked out on the street and I ask myself “when did that actually become an option here in New Zealand?”.

I know that sounds really harsh and it makes me sound pretty old school or hard school. And I know I’m in a pretty privileged position and everything, but you’ve got to ask sometimes don’t you. When did sticking your hand out like that become a genuine option?

And for some, it will simply be because they don't have the wherewithal to do things any differently. What I mean by that, is they might have mental health issues or they will have been raised to maybe expect handouts or have low expectations of themselves. And so they just can’t see opportunities the way other, more fortunate people can.

Here’s an example. One day I saw this guy asking people for money and offering a piece of his art in exchange. Paintings. Which were actually pretty good.

I remember thinking afterwards how that was such a good example of how someone’s view of the world can completely change their approach to life. Here was this guy sitting on the footpath asking for money and giving away his art.

But someone who had the wherewithal to think differently probably would’ve tried to sell their art - not give it away in exchange for a couple of coins.

The exact same thing: money being exchanged for a piece of art. But one approach was begging, the alternative approach would be trading.

So I am very sympathetic. But I get brassed off too. By people like the woman at the traffic lights yesterday wanting people to wind down their windows and give her some cash.

Like the guy who will approach me in town wanting something, I’ll say no, and then he’ll do the exact same thing a few minutes later.

But whatever your attitude, I think we would all agree that begging has become a real issue.