Panhandlers

[€uroMeinke]

I used to only give when traveling on the premise that it would keep the homeless abroad. I hate being approached in drive throughs & store fronts so never give in those situations. The long stories bore me, and I never believe them. If someone were honest and said they wanted to spend the money on beer and pussy, I'd probably support their cause - any reference to God and I shut down though.

Street musicians and entertainers are a different sort to me, I see busking as a job and support it accordingly.

[RStar]

Word of the day: busking

Street performance or busking is the practice of performing in public places, for gratuities, which are generally in the form of money and edibles. People engaging in this practice are called street performers, buskers, street musicians, minstrels, or troubadours.
The word "busk" comes from the Spanish root word "buscar", meaning "to seek" – buskers are literally seeking fame and fortune.

I have heard of all of the other terms for such activity, except buskers. Cool.