TAIF, 6 October 2006 — After mosque attendees listened to the heartbreaking work of staggering pathos from a not-so-convincing beggar, the imam decide that the man was a hustler and not really as down and out as he said in his lengthy testimonial before a congregation of devout Muslims, the Al-Madinah newspaper reported yesterday.
Ramadan is the high season for the begging profession, as the holy month is a time for people with means to give special attention (and food and money) to people without means.
Predictably, many people who aren’t in need take advantage of the charity season to hem in on those who are truly in need. The imam decided that this particular sob story was a sham, and he threw the man out of the mosque, threatening to call the anti-beggary department if the man didn’t go away, and fast.
