So you're skeptical of the decently clothed and clean "homeless" or "needy" person begging for your hard earned change on the train...but there has to be a reason they're there. Even if their intentions aren't honorable, even if they're just begging or singing or selling Street News for supplemental income and they're not really in dire need of money for food...something has driven them to that point. And even if the motivation is greed, they'll get karmically bitten in the ass later.

Give a small amount to those strangers who ask for your help. Will it really hurt you? Will it really set you back that much? Sure, your paycheck is a week away and you've blown most of it. That person might not have seen a paycheck in months, years even. Take a chance and invest in a human.

But, there's more. Giving up your precious change isn't all there is to it. That person is in need of more than just a quick drop of yer coin. Look them in the eye. Say "Hello, take care, good luck." Let them know they are still alive and are important and that they are human.

The longer a person is out on the street, the longer they beg, the more it becomes a way of life and the desire to rejoin a society that shuns them dwindles. Give them a quarter, a nickle, a dime...but please, try to also give them your heart, for a change.

Easier said than done, I know.
*sigh*