One of the most frustrating aspects of the Communist now in control of our government is they openly seek no solutions to problems. They simply want to ‘pay off’ the victims.
Here is a common conversation that constantly comes up between a communist and an American in regards to minimum wage.
**Communist:** *People cannot survive on minimum wage. It must be raised to $15 per hour .***American:** *That’s not true. My son works part-time and, like his friends, he has no real expenses. His mother and I take care of his basic needs. He uses his money to save for a car and go out with his friends. He’s doing just fine. ***Communist:** *I am talking about adults…especially single-parents. Minimum wage doesn’t cover their needs. ***American:** *Well, there is a simple enough solution for that. Get a better job. No one is forced to work at minimum wage. ***Communist:** *These people can’t get better jobs. They don’t have the education, or training. They are stuck at the bottom. ***American:** *Well, how in the hell does giving them more money get them off the bottom? It is still minimum wage and they still have no hope of moving up…they’re still stuck. ***Communist:** *They’ll make more money. That increase will provide for their needs. ***American:** *But if companies pay more for labor, won’t the prices go up? ***Communist:** *People cannot survive on minimum wage. It must be raised to $15 per hour. ***American:** *But we just covered this, it makes no sense. Raising minimum wage doesn’t provide any new opportunity for the worker. It will also raise costs so the new minimum wage will mean nothing. ***Communist:** *People cannot survive on minimum wage. It must be raised to $15 per hour…*
You just can’t have a discussion about anything with a communist. The reason it’s frustrating is ALL of there ideas are not meant to solve problems. Anyone who wants to discuss problem solving with a communist will end up talking in circles like the conversation above. Communists can’t hear logic or reason…it simply doesn’t register in their brains.
All of their arguments are for a single purpose: Gain power. To learn how this applies to minimum wage you simply need to ask two questions:
Who is helped? Who is hurt?
As the conversation above clearly points out, anyone ‘stuck’ in a minimum wage job now, is still ‘stuck’ in that same job if we raise minimum wage. A real solution would include changing our education system so that people aren’t stuck any more. Another way to say that is to empower people so they DO have choices.
And in case you know a communist that insists prices wouldn’t go up, just refer them to the fry-o-meter I have invented. Here’s the latest:
In 1971 I started working for McDonald’s. Minimum wage was $1.30 per hour. The cost of one small order of french fries was 20 cents. The current minimum wage is $7.25. The cost of one small order of french fries is $1.29 (That’s what I found on a Tempe, AZ McDonald’s web site.)
Minimum wage has gone up by a factor of 5.58. The cost of french fries has gone up 6.45.
Of course, none of these arguments address the loss of jobs that will occur (and have occurred) when minimum wage goes up.
Back to our two questions.
***-Who is helped?***
**Unions.** Many of them use minimum wage as a benchmark for union wages. If minimum wage goes up, new labor contracts will demand higher union wages.
**Big Government:** As prices go up, and jobs are lost, more people will need assistance from the government. This will give the government a larger role to play in the daily lives of more Americans. The bureaucracy will grow.
**High-school kids and university students still living at home:** Those that keep their jobs will have more discretionary income…for a while. (As my fry-o-meter demonstrates.)
**The Democrat Party:** An increase in minimum wage will be framed as empathetic toward anyone in a minimum wage job. (Although as I demonstrated above, it is not true.) Additionally, people who aren’t eligible to vote today because they are too young will be happy to vote Democrat when the reach 18 years old.
**Big Tech:** As the cost of labor for entry level positions go up, companies will be looking for ways to automate those jobs. They will be looking to big tech for help.
**Banks:** As more and more jobs are automated, companies will be borrowing more money for the capital investments needed.
**The communists:** As more people are left without jobs, or the ability to start small businesses, the need for government will increase. This will grow the support for communists as they will frame the increased unemployment as a function of greedy capitalism. Moreover, the unions will further embrace the communists.
***-Who is hurt?***
**People stuck in minimum wage jobs:** They will still be stuck there. There will be no discussion to help them, just pay them off. The pay off will be short lived as prices go up.
**Poor people without a high school diploma:** Many of these people will lose their jobs. As demonstrated with prior minimum wage increases, employers will higher fewer people. Moreover, the people they will hire will be more qualified (better education). If you’re going to pay $15 per hour, you’re going to hire the best you can get. Even if it means going outside of your community.
**Small businesses:** The most dangerous time for any new small business is during the start-up phase (first 2-5 years). Fewer people will want to start businesses, those that do will hire fewer employees.
**American consumers:** Prices will go up for everyone….just like that order of french fries has.
The communists supporting a minimum wage increase well know they cannot defend the move using logic or reason. They don’t care. They don’t have to care. They have the media to protect them.
The minimum wage issue is not about the poor. It’s not about equity. It’s not about the so-called ‘wealth gap.’
It is about power.