The Ethics of Human Intervention on Behalf of ‘Others’

I regularly pass several homeless persons surviving on the streets even in winter. One sits on a folded scrap of a blanket leaning against a wall looking thin, pale and resigned, doing some calligraphy of messages on card for those who want them. Almost everyone walks quickly past, some manoeuvring to the opposite side of the wide pavement, others almost treading on some of their sparse belongings. Hardly anyone makes eye contact. The harsh reality of living on the street is some days without enough food and basic provisions.