DBM,
Thank you for communicating how it feels to be on “the other side of the fence” (or, should we say, “of the dollar”). Your words made an impression on me and I hope I will view aniyim in a more compassionate light from now on.
I have been somewhat guilty of complaint #1 about being numb. Apparently, when someone comes around collecting, the taiva to not give is so strong that it creates a barrier that prevents me from appreciating the depth of his need. I consider him to be an inconvenience and then just give a dollar to be yotze (complaint #2). But since you’re a poster on an anonymous forum where there’s no danger of my having to give anything, there was no barrier! So your words were able to penetrate.
(To all mussar mavens out there: do you feel my psychological analysis is correct? Or is there some other reason some of us have trouble feeling for our fellow Jews when they come collecting?…)