Worthy News: Dems push minimum-wage state by state - MSNBC

[billie]

dems i mean

[O'Dannyboy]

Put up links to all the web sites you want. It still doesn't make you right. Nor would it make me right. You cannot convince me that our economy would collapse if the federal minimum wage were increased by 50 cents. I could argue that everyone who did manage to see some benfit from this would be spending more money and would boost the economy. Perhaps some of them might be able to afford to get off of food stamps or welfare. Wouldn't that be nice if fewer people were mooching off of us through government programs? There are pros and cons to every change but change is what we need. For a short time I went door to door trying to "give away" security systems in some of the poorest sections of town. I have seen how these people get by. Six to eight people living in a two or three bedroom paying the bills with everyones collective income. Cutting coupons just to be able to afford enough groceries while they drive their cars without the necessary insurance. Meanwhile the democrats continue to make them promises for some form of relief while the republicans whine about how it will affect the bottom line and manufacture dramatic scenarios about how people will lose their jobs if someone else in the company would get 50 cents more an hour. I mean, how many people do you believe actually make $5.15? While there may be quite a few companies that like to start employees at that rate, it does not mean they can't afford to pay them more. I would be willing to pay 20 cents more for my burger if I could see the window clerk smile a little more. Color it anyway you like. I still think it's time we stop ignoring those who live at or below the poverty line for sake of the big corporations bottom line.

[Marnie]

Put up links to all the web sites you want.

I still think it's time we stop ignoring those who live at or below the poverty line for sake of the big corporations bottom line.

Well, okay, since you want more, I am only too happy to oblige. Opposing the minimum wage does not mean I ignore the poor, it means I don't want to create more of them. Economics is not a zero sum game, which means just because one person gets rich, it follows that one person must become poor. That is totally faulty reasoning. I would think that you of all people would want to see a person earn a true and living wage, not some made-up hourly rate arbitrarily set by beurocrats in Washinton. What makes you trust a politician more than a businessman? Who is the bigger scoundrel?

The Minimum Wage Myth

Sense and Nonsense on the Minimum Wage

Liberal Myths of the Minimum Wage

Mythology of the Minimum Wage

[O'Dannyboy]

What makes you trust a politician more than a businessman? Who is the bigger scoundrel?

I don't trust either. Nor do I trust the figures and representations/assertions being made in the links you posted. I trust my eyes and my instinct. Poor people are struggling to make ends meet. Some people might say that it is their lot in life or that the poor are reaping what they sow. While there is some truth in both statements we cannot use them carte blanche. I still believe the poor need some help and rather than increasing funding to welfare type programs we need to find a more constructive solution, on a whole, to help them all, not just a percentage. Increasing the minimum wage is simply paying for it on the front side rather in the rear with taxes. We should also understand that it costs the taxpayers to pay the government to distribute and manage these funds when we could cut them out of the loop and pay it all up front at the counter.

[Marnie]

What makes you trust a politician more than a businessman? Who is the bigger scoundrel?

I don't trust either. Nor do I trust the figures and representations/assertions being made in the links you posted. I trust my eyes and my instinct. Poor people are struggling to make ends meet. Some people might say that it is their lot in life or that the poor are reaping what they sow. While there is some truth in both statements we cannot use them carte blanche. I still believe the poor need some help and rather than increasing funding to welfare type programs we need to find a more constructive solution, on a whole, to help them all, not just a percentage. Increasing the minimum wage is simply paying for it on the front side rather in the rear with taxes. We should also understand that it costs the taxpayers to pay the government to distribute and manage these funds when we could cut them out of the loop and pay it all up front at the counter.

Well, we agree partly. I also do not trust a politician--of either party. I also don't trust businessmen, however, they have a bottom line and a responsibility to shareholders and have to produce. I also have the option to ignore a businessman or his business if they are unethical. The marketplace is the best place to determine who is worth what. I agree that poor people do struggle to make ends meet. However, this is America. They don't have to stay there. Many choose to remain in low income jobs for whatever reasons, sometimes very good reasons (people in the ministry, teachers, etc.). Most minimum wage earners don't remain in those jobs for long; they are students or people just entering the workforce. We also agree that welfare is not the answer, at least not the long term answer. But, I don't think the government should impose on an employer what to pay their employees. I mean, the government has a vested interest in buying votes, which is why they should not micro-manage business.

You don't trust Ludwig Von Mises?? My goodness!