Do you ever pull over and help strangers?

Ricklin,

That's great man! Very rarely is a fire department able to save a house, those usually burn up by the time the fire department can get there (former firefighter here).

Drop by there with a case of beer, a fruit basket, and a typed "thank you" letter.

Don, that's saying something man. Keep up the good work and may you remain safe doing it.

Glenn, I guess the guy needs money to clean up after that water spill? :p Drugs change the way brains work, the normal response to a woman in labor is to call an ambulance, not hand out money. SMH!

I ran into panhandlers not too long ago at a local gas station. I went back later and complained to the manager, he must have taken it seriously as I haven't been asked again.
 
You would expect something a little less drama Queenie.

The pan handling started in earnest after the ef5 tornado hit. Fema built hundreds of trailers outside of town on the biggest lot of empty space that they could find. Soon, people started appearing around that place with signs, many of them said 'homeless after tornado'. Homeless?

While several thousand left town because of the lack of housing and damaged infrastructure, as well as the hundreds of positions lost when businesses were literally scrubbed from the earth, others flocked here to get work in restoration and clean up. (Just a hint, taking a job in clean up allows one to hold a second job as a looter).

Every day, thousands of people were fed and sheltered and received medical care and a significant number of those people had travelled here just for the free food and benefits. Some of them played the card of missing relatives, you know, cousin Alf was living in his car right over there and we haven't heard nothing about him and YOU PEOPLE AIN'T DOING NOTHING ABOUT IT! there were many really bad people and many aggressive, even dangerous ones who came to ride the gravy train.
 
Panhandlers in this area tend to be heroin addicts. Quite a bit of that in that town where this gas station is.

I once pulled into a gas station parking lot (behind the building) to apply for a job. I saw a man, sitting in the woods. I thought, "now what's he doing? Heroin injection?" I decided not to apply for work there. Gas station went out of business not long after.
 
You bet!

We were going to deliver lunch to the crew, instead we made a more substantial donation to their widows and orphans fund. We sent the donation in that crews name.
 
I believe that many if not most of ours are genuinely homeless, lots of them just drunks or mentally damaged. There is a Christian mission but it requires everyone to be at every prayer service, and you might be surprised at how many people have tantrums rather than say a prayer. But if someone holds a five out the window, the panhandlers yell 'god bless'.

I actually took a few of the work for food ones home. Kind of worried me that I was being cased. I usually took them to my mother-in-law's house so I could get out of doing it myself and when they finished I generally paid them about ten an hour. Not going to give a guy a bag of groceries after he proved his honesty.
 
Ricklin,

An even better idea, good thinking.

Briandg, I agree, I believe most homeless are due to mental illness and/or addiction of some sort.

Not surprised by the "blessings given for cash" personal codes. LOL :p
 
I have, but it depends on the situation. I keep a set of tire plugs, tools, and an air compressor in all of my vehicles. I've plugged a few tires and aired them up. Mostly in some remote spots.

In early January I stopped to fill up about 1/2 mile from home. There was a young guy there (20ish) with an old Honda that had died. I tried to jump start him, but it was not working. Most likely a bad alternator. The kid was just getting off from work and lived in the next town over, 20 miles away. I had a good feeling about it and had nothing to do anyway so I gave him a ride home.
 
Now here's something that shows an extreme case of intentions and pavement to hell. Woman stopped her car in the left lane of a highway to save some DUCKLINGS. Motorcycle with a man and daughter on it hit the parked car, both died.

She was convicted of both criminal negligence and dangerous driving that led to death. Sentenced to ninety days in jail, 240 hours of public service, ten years without driving.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/woman...atal-crash-gets-90-days-behind-bars-1.2153205

Just being on foot on the highway carries a heavy fine here, meant to keep foot traffic out of driving lanes. Hitchers can be picked up on sight and arrested, or dumped at the next exit or destination

There have been times that I've stopped for critters, but not a highway, not on a lane,and certainly not DUCKLINGS.
 
When I see " will work for" signs being a small farmer I offer them work most beg off but some take me up and have turned out to do good work. One young couple accepted my offer for work and worked 2 days stacking hay on trailers, then helped rebuild a fence line then help unload the trailers into the hay loft. They worked for 5 days I paid them what was agreed from the start also gave them some food to travel on and a bonus because they worked hard without complaint. Yes those a few and far between but they are still out there.
 
A while back living just off a university I dealt with pan handlers a lot. Never gave money as there are plenty of programs available if they want to go through the process. One time I was making a quick stop after the grocery and guy asked me for money in the parking lot saying he is hungry. I had a box of frosted mini wheats on the top of the pile in my trunk so I just grabbed them and tossed them to him. Guy looks surprised pauses a few seconds, then says "I don't have milk a spoon or bowl" I replied "neither do I. I just snack on them dry" and he threw the box into my trunk and mumbled under his breath as he walked away.
 
I could not imagine running over ducklings!

If at all possible, I avoid critters in the road, and I would most certainly try to help a momma and her babies across if I could do so safely.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGMzGxeO1wQ

I always stop and carry turtles across although once a baby snapper PEED ON ME when I picked him up. :eek: I didn't drop him though and took him on across, putting him into the water in the ditch. I washed my hand off in the ditch and put on some hand sanitizer.

The passenger of a stopped van gave me a slow clap. :)
 
Okay, out on a crazy deep rural road I was approaching a stop sign and a lizard ran across the road. Slammed on the brakes. Seriously, who wants to run over a poor little lizard? My brother in law was wearing his belt, good for him, saving that lizard might have broken his nose without the belt.

Yep, I can imagine what would have happened if someone had been riding my bumper. I probably would have run over the lizard.
 
Recently near a Southwest Missouri town popular with tourists a young man on his way home from a local establishment saw a young lady on the side of the road. Her car "obviously" was having trouble. He stopped, and got out to see if he could help. Then two men jumped from the darkness, hit him in the head knocking him to the ground. One jumped in his car, and drove off. Followed by the young lady, and other male assailant in the "obviously" broken down car.
The proper response, if you are concerned about your own safety, and life as well as the supposedly stranded motorist. In Missouri *55 on your cell phone connects you directly to the Highway Patrol who will then send the appropriate help. Of course the young man in the story also couldn't call anybody. His phone was in the car that was stolen.
 
If predators need a different car, or money, or a hostage with an ATM card, there are several ways to go about obtaining those things.

Setting a trap by posing as a motorist in need is a tried and true strategy for that.
 
If predators need a different car, or money, or a hostage with an ATM card, there are several ways to go about obtaining those things.

Setting a trap by posing as a motorist in need is a tried and true strategy for that.
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I have no doubt that is true though I question the frequency of it. Those who chose to stop realize that doing so does pose a risk. It is a social interaction they have decided, for a variety of reasons, is worth it. I do around where I live because the risk to someone actually stranded is fairly high - there is a good chance they don't have cell coverage, there is a good chance they won't have another passing vehicle for awhile, and walking to get help is going to take awhile. I don't stop when those conditions are different.

Of course the obvious counter is that makes it an even better spot to lay a trap.
 
If the weather conditions are cold enough to endanger life I will definitely stop. If my wife was with me I would be in condition one but I would stop.

If the conditions are not life threatening but the area is very remote from help, the same as above.

If we are in an urban area, they can call the auto club.
 
To the OP's original question, I do, and always have; since I started driving and long before I ever carried or even touched a handgun. I'm cautious when I stop, and I have on occasion, when things didn't look quite right, passed by and then called local sheriff and described location of stranded vehicle/motorist and let them deal with it.

But I was taught, growing up, to help people when I could. My first such incidence is still memorable; leaving the house of a girl I had a crush on, age 17 or so, one night around 9 p.m., middle of winter, 2 inches of snow on the road, I came across a car stuck just beside the road, dead battery. In those days, long before cell phones and seemingly before random roadside serial killers, I took one look at the distressed father outside the car and the mother and two children inside the car and I stopped to give them a jump....always carry jumper cables to this day. Turns out, they were coming back from attending a visit by the Pope to Chicago. I've always hoped I banked a bunch of karma that night.
 
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