Right about the Red Cross, espcially....I've seen it first hand....they just want your money, and there is no accountability in their org.....witness the millions that "vanished" or was "misplaced" after 9/11........imagine that......
As to the "homeless" begging, it's real back here in Choo Choo.....just get pas the "tourist" areas near the Aquarium and you'll run a gauntlet of aggressive, abusive panhandlers and bums too lazy to hit a lick at a snake.....the North Shore has been infested as well, and the City does nothing.....too politically "hot" for their tastes, I suppose. We need a little "tough love" here....
I and my family stay away from these places. And tell everyone we know to be carefull and stay in the "safe" areas.....