It’s not tough.

Look them in the eyes like a human being and say “sorry dude, not today”.

Alternatively just carry small amounts of cash to give to them.

Another alternative is asking them if they would like some food instead.

No matter what you do, keep in mind you are very likely a small step away from homelessness yourself.

This is not good news imo. The last thing Lemmy needs rn is the attention of the US government.

I settled on using the https://phtn.app/ front-end in a browser.