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<DIV>In Avodah Digest, Vol 26, Issue 169 dated 8/17/2009 <A
href="mailto:rabbirichwolpoe@gmail.com">rabbirichwolpoe@gmail.com</A>
writes:</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" color=#000000 size=2
face=Arial><BR>>> This actually happened to a chaver of mine
"Avi"<BR><BR>It's YT in Wash Heights.<BR><BR>A Black Man approaches
Avi<BR><BR>Please! I need money to feed my baby milk!<BR><BR>Avi
silently procrasinates<BR><BR>BM follows up: I'm Jewish from Israel and
repeats his request in Modern<BR>Hebrew!<BR><BR>What would YOU do?<BR>What
does the halachah say?<BR><BR>(Note: handing him money is probably only a
direct violation of<BR>muktze. Mesayei'a lidvar aveira?)
<<<BR><BR></FONT></BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>>>>>></DIV>
<DIV>What is your friend Ari doing walking around on Yom Tov with money in his
pocket?! Or does he take the beggar home with him and invite him in while
he gets his wallet?! </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>So what would I do? I would say, "I'm sorry, it's a Jewish holiday
and I don't have any money on me." If the guy seemed to be fluent in
Hebrew I would say it in Hebrew. If he seemed likely to knife me, I would
offer him any jewelry I happened to be wearing and then run for my
life. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>BTW "my baby needs milk" is an old sucker ploy. Another one is, "My
wife is in labor and I have no money for a taxi." Some of these guys are
phenomenal actors. But choosing obvious Jews as your mark
and speaking in Hebrew is a creative twist. He had to have lived in
Israel at some point, unusual for a con man on Manhattan streets.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT lang=0 color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial FAMILY="SANSSERIF"
PTSIZE="10"><B>--Toby
Katz<BR>==========<BR><BR><BR><BR>_____________________</B></FONT></DIV></FONT><DIV CLASS="aol_ad_footer" ID="3bda9730a6a5bd53e11847d77990c656"><br/><font style="color:black;font:normal 10pt arial,san-serif;"> <hr style="margin-top:10px"/></font></DIV></BODY></HTML>