Response to a Text: Beggars of Britain

        You do make a few good points (“booze is a bigger factor than bad luck in the begging world”; “any liberal guilt I might feel about brushing past yet another beggar...has long been overwhelmed by compassion fatigue”), but your generalisations and loss of perspective completely contaminates your article, and works to invalidate any sensible ideas you may have expressed somewhere along the line. I found it rather offensive that you constantly insult beggars with such harsh expressions as “stinking of cheap lager with snot on their chin and a mangy mutt on the end of a piece of string” or “ask the beggars for 'loose change', rather than money for a cup of coffee or...to catch the bus...Everyone knows you are going to piss it away.” Their personal hygiene is hardly something they can be judged for. Their smell and appearance may be unpleasant to you, but these men and women live on the streets and have no money. They can hardly be expected to look presentable. And surely this bothers them more than it bothers you – you have to walk past them; they have to live like that all day every day. The same goes for when you say “these are merely the people with the least pride, dignity, self-respect...”. Surely more than a few beggars do possess these qualities, and feel terrible for having to resort to such a base activity. It's easy for you to criticize them looking out from the inside, where you have a job and hot shower.

        You also seem to deliver some fairly childish double standards. For instance, you say, “In Africa...you see beggars with every excuse for begging. But London isn't the Third World.” Who's to say that there aren't as many simply lazy leeches in Africa as there are in Britain? And surely there's more than a handful of beggars in London – probably one or two you've brushed past – who have perfectly valid reasons to beg. Have you ever lived in Africa? Have you ever been there? If so, for how long? It seems like you are making harsh and generalized statements based on little more than media clichés.

        Your use of humour also bothered me. There is nothing wrong with using humour in an article such as this one, but your little jokes are far too insensitive (and frequent) to be funny. Furthermore, when inserted in such an intolerant and offensive piece, your sort of humour seems very offensive and ultimately makes for unpleasant reading. I don't know how others would react, but personally, as I read your article I grew increasingly irritated with your childish and irresponsible thoughts, and every little joke simply made me more irritated.

        In conclusion, your text does not convince, for a matter of tone. Any sense there may be in your opinions is overcome by the absurdity and unpleasantness with which you present your ideas. For instance, when you relate the increase in begging to the fall of taboos. This statement is understandable, but loses all its validity when you use begging to disrespect the elderly, violence towards women, and incest (“You would sleep with your sister before you went begging”). In the future, Mr Parsons, I suggest that when dealing with a delicate and controversial topic, you chose your words more carefully, so as not to strike your readers.