Anyone who doubts that begging is big business would be well advised to take heed to the top story in Thursday's STAR.

To make $200 in under an hour, this in a country where many persons earn under $4000 for a full week of work, is not a small change matter. But that is just what The STAR's reporter did and came back and told her story.

Those who are giving money to beggars should remember that not only does 'one one coco full basket', but also 'one one coco empty basket', so if they keep giving the proverbial 'small change' away to those who beg, then very soon their coffers will cease jingling. And, they will not be rustling with paper money either.

For those who work, and even some who don't, begging is a plague that they are faced with every day, and sometimes under the most trying of circumstances. It is very unpleasant to park a car, step out and be greeted by an outstretched hand and a sob story, or to have someone say "when yu come out" as you are walking into somewhere to buy something to eat.

The solution is, of course, for a universal no to be said to street beggars, the good who have a genuine, immediate need suffering for the bad, who are simply 'working brains'. The less people give to beggars, the fewer there will be on the streets.

And let us not forget that, as the same story informed us Thursday, many of the begging activities are illegal. The police should be as vigilant in that regard as they are with traffic offences, or is it a matter that there is often begging of another sort involved when motorists feel the long arm of the law?