What Do Panhandlers Really Do With the Money They Make?

What Do Panhandlers Really Do With the Money They Make? 
 
Ever wondered what panhandlers actually do with the change that fills their Dunkin' Donuts cups every day?
 
Now you don't have to.
 
Toronto Star  reporter Jim Rankin spent several days wandering downtown Toronto and passing out prepaid cards worth $50 or $60 to people who asked him for money.
 
He asked his test subjects to buy what they needed and then return the cards.
 
And what did they need? A double quarter-pounder with cheese. A root beer. Fifteen minutes' worth of talk time on a pre-paid cell phone. Cigarettes. More than a few stops at the liquor store.
 
Rankin was surprised by some of the transactions (one man took a $50 card, spent $8 at McDonalds, and promptly returned the card), and by the number of people who turned down the card altogether. Some people weren't sure it would work, and others didn't want to leave their panhandling spots.
 
According to Rankin, some of Toronto's panhandlers make $50-$60 per day, enough to buy time at an Internet cafe and Skype with family members.
 
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/854018--how-panhandlers-use-free-credit-cards