If someone came up to you at a gas station saying that he had forgotten his wallet and asked for $10 so that he (or she) could get home, would you give it if you had it?
We live close to a convenience store/gas station; and there are people there every day asking for a handout for something, usually the same people every day. Most of them wear designer shoes or other clothes, and it is easy to tell that it is just another story, not a real need. Bobby likes to sit on the porch here at home; and so people wandering up and down our street are always coming up and asking him for stuff. Sometimes money, but also things like cigarettes, gasoline, and he said someone even wanted to know if he had a pickled egg ! (Pretty sure Bobby sent that on off to the C-store to buy his own pickled egg) All that being said, even if I was at a different gas station somewhere and someone said they needed $10 for fuel, I would be pretty skeptical of them. If they lived close, they would not need $10 of gas to get home, and if they didn’t live close, why didn’t they bring their billfold along ? If I thought it was valid, I would give the clerk the $10 for fuel, so at least I knew that was what it was going for, and not just extra money in someone’s pocket for telling the sob story. I was raised to help people and not let someone go hungry if I could help out; but in those days we did not have the scammers that we have now. I will buy someone the food or fuel, but not apt to just hand out the $10.
I have been asked for money at gas stations a few times while traveling, although never around here, and I usually say that I don't have any cash, even when I do, although I generally don't. Oddly enough, although they are usually asking for gas money, no one has suggested that I simply pump $10 worth of gas into their car using the card that I'm using to pump my own gas. They would ask for the money, not for the gas. I braced myself for that question, but it never came. I did pump $20 into one guy's tank when he asked for $10 because he was closer to my age, whereas these are usually younger guys. He might have been a scammer too, but at least he had a car and it did go into his tank.
I probably would, but it would depend on the situation. One year on a trip in the RV, we were at a fuel stop and a young attractive woman was flashing her smile (and other things) at my husband as he filled our tank. She was driving a nice, late-model car and obviously thought the older guy was an easy mark, but she was incorrect.
One time a guy came up and asked if he could have $10 for disposable baby diapers. The person I was with walked him into the dollar store and bought the diapers. The man took off walking with them. I remembered that. So... When a man asked me for $5 for gas at a shopping center, I told him I'd meet him across the street at the gas station. Started pumping and when it got to $5 he told me to stop. I kept pumping to maybe $10. A girl at a gas station asked for $2 just to get home and I gave her $2. She used it there. So I answered Yes, but I'd rather pump the gas myself than give the money, even if it's inconvenient. Recently a woman and her boyfriend at a convenience store late at night asked me for anything I could give, because she and her boyfriend were going to buy a tent. The smallest I had was a $5 so I gave it to her just to make them go away. There was no place open to go buy a tent anyway.
Hasn't happened for a while, but when I commuted at all hours, hookers and others were always soliciting gas and other things. I never gave anything.
No we wouldn't. Why? Because many, if not most, will lie about getting gas. If given to them, and you stick around to see, 9 chances out of 10, they will go into the store and buy beer or cigarettes. In fact, they may not even have a car in the station or point to one that is owned by someone else.
I did to a disabled vet who said his wife would come by the store and repay. He had asked before and I gave him and he relayed before but the second time was never repaid This was during my part-time stint at Irving gas station
I would and have. If they looked like a drug addict or alcoholic man, I might not but if it was a woman, I would. It might be a scam but what if it's not? My conscience would not let me rest if I turned away somebody in need. "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the least of these my brethren, so ye have done it unto me also."
I remember one time, while wife and I were in the parking lot of Home Depot and I seen a couple get into their truck and start it up. I noticed they had a brake light out, so I walked over to the drivers side and said "I'm not asking for any money. I just wanted to tell you your one brake light was out." They looked at me, smiled and said "thanks".
This morning as I was leaving a convenience store a 40-something woman asked me for money for food. I took her back inside. She picked out a large coke, a bag of trail mix, and a can of Campbell's lasagna. A woman after my own heart.
I gave a woman $5 for gas some years ago. She was dressed like an office worker and had a cardboard sign. I’m not sure why I remembered her so long. Sometimes I do, most times I don’t. It depends on what my moral guide whispers in my ear. There have been a couple of times when I didn’t give and felt bad about it for a long time. There have been many more times when I didn’t give and never felt bad about it. I just need to listen for the whisper and follow it.
I'd think about it first. 15 years ago, a guy asked me for $5.00 for gas while I was filling up with my credit card. I asked him, "Where is your car?" He pointed to a huge van a few feet away. There was a woman in the passenger seat - very pregnant; she looked like she was an hour away from giving birth. I said, "$5.00 won't get it very far, where do you need to go?" He named a city about 90 miles away. I said, "Bring it here." The van must have been really empty; it took $65.00 to fill it up. They both thanked me. Maybe I was scammed; maybe they ran out of money because they spent it on drugs/alcohol/or whatever.
We gave a man @4 for gas to get home at a Quick Stop, Jake said he seemed sincere. He was headed to Ala. That was several years ago, We seldom go anywhere so don't see many people.