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Community Corner

minimum wage yes or no

While there seems to be differing points of view on the effects of the minimum wage and the increasing of it, that really is not the issue at all.

The argument goes that jobs will be lost. Regardless which economist is asked the answer is, yes. The more conservative ones say many jobs will be lost while liberal ones say only a very few and that is considered tolerable. Tolerable to the ones that didn’t loss the job at least.

The other argument is whether such increases contribute to the inflationary effect in the economy. Again the answer is, yes. Only to what degree is the real argument. So what if the poor and elderly are harmed by inflation. Why do the minimum wage supporters hate the poor and elderly?

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The next argument is that the minimum wage isn’t enough to live on. Again all agree to this statement but not all agree that they need to live on it. What? People should not be able to live on their wages? No one is saying that they should not be able to live on their wages instead it is being said that they are not trying to live on minimum wages. Of those that work for minimum wage 96% don’t rely on it to live on. Almost half are teens that live at home and are developing a work history and work ethic. I know I know, a work ethic is so passé. And the other half is adults that are supplementing their house hold income which is above the poverty line. Why do the minimum wage supporters hate teens and hard working adults trying to get by?

 So what of the very few 4%? One might ask what responsibility do they take for having a family and no work experience or skills that can command a higher wage? Why do they not move to areas of the country that have low skill work that do pay more? What is a grown adult doing with 3-4 kids and never worked before?

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Yet another argument is that big businesses make a lot of profits and can afford it so we should force them. Where is the sympathy for the business that can’t afford it? The ones that may even be losing money. The ones that have put up their own savings and homes and gone into debt and work 60-80hrs a week to open a business while not getting a minimum wage. Should they be thrown under the bus for the sake of a few and their very bad life decisions? What of the elderly that have invested in the big profitable companies and rely on the income dividends to live off of? Should we take the food out of their mouths and the roof over their heads? Why do the minimum wage supporters hate the elderly?

 All these questions and arguments are supplemented with the fact that our national economy sucks. But it sucks due to the Federal Government. The Government tries to interfere with the Free Market with tax policies, regulations, employment policies, production rules and fiscal policies. The reason so many manufacturers has left these shores with more to leave is because of those interferences. The reason the dollar has been devalued and will be devalued more is due to those interferences. The reasons the price of goods and services are high and will go higher yet are due to those interferences. The reason low skilled workers are so plentiful is due to those interference. The reason hamburger flippers and deep fryers are being discussed is because the Federal Government has made the market so bad that these are to be new normal middle class jobs. The Free Market still works no matter what the Government does, we will just suffer because of it.

 But, all these questions and arguments are a smoke screen to deviate from the essential question. What are these jobs and should there be a minimum wage law? The first is easy; the jobs are entry level positions. These are jobs that a business takes a chance to hire someone to see if they are someone that can and should be moved into greater positions of responsibility which brings more pay for those duties. The person applying for employment has yet to prove that they are capable of performing very basic tasks. Nor can they show that they are responsible for their own behavior let alone be allowed responsibility for others and the company.

The next question of whether there should be a minimum wage law is not so cut and dry. Since the Government has so screwed up the economy it seems logical that they need to help all those that have been so totally screwed by the Government. I maintain that that the Government was so inept at what they have done they should not be given any authority in fixing their mess only to make matters worse.

More importantly than anything else is that minimum wage is immoral. If you own a business nobody has a right to tell you how to run it. What you pay employees and for whatever criteria are totally up to the owner. If you want to pay someone more than another for any reason it is nobody's business other than the payer and payee. If the owner fails then the owner pays the consequences. I do not see the proponents of minimum wage laws and higher minimum wages coming to the rescue of businesses that fail. Should we implement a tax only on those that vote for a minimum wage? I expect that if the proponents were held responsible that they would be a lot less aggressive or vocal. They may even just melt away.


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