I can see this man from my bedroom window on the 5th floor of the Hamburg Sofitel. This is a luxury hotel and the guy is in his sleeping bag under a covered walkway. This morning I had a very pleasant breakfast followed by a stroll to the Hamburg Wunderland Model railway exhibit where I spent a very pleasant hour and a half gazing in awe at the magnificent model railway. It looks to me as if he is sleeping during the daytime because he doesn’t seem to have stirred since when I first saw him at breakfast and now which is around 1pm.
On the one hand I’m thinking it isn’t right for him to be out sleeping rough like that when my accommodation is extremely comfortable. What can I do to help him? I already give a chunk of cash every month to charitable causes via standing order. What is the right balance? I’m not a Communist which would point to a scenario where he and I would have pretty much the same lifestyle. One of the reasons that people work hard to succeed is the rewards that accrue as a result of the hard work. In my case this weekend that reward is manifested as a few days in the luxury hotel.
Makes you think…