What prospect does a beggar have in a society that makes extensive use of digital communication media?
It is a question you would never ask yourself; yet it crossed the minds of researchers at the famous University of Oxford. So they started a project that equips beggars with a barcode card: by scanning it, the passing philanthropist sees the profile of the person in financial difficulty, including the story of how they became homeless or unemployed. If the donor decides the person is “worth it,” they transfer their “spare change” to an account that states (on the screen) what it will financially support (for that specific individual).
It is interesting to note that this university technology project emerged after it was observed that the magazine sold by homeless people at various points in English cities (“The Big Issue”; in Greece, the equivalent “Shedia” is sold) has seen a steady decline in sales because of this: fewer and fewer people carry money in any form other than card.
If things evolve to the point where beggars carry portable card scanners, who will be the one to frown?