I was looking at a republican site on Facebook where hundreds of people were angry about a proposed hike to $15 in the minimum wage that wasn't on any ballot anywhere in America this past Tuesday. I think five states did vote for an increased minimum, as Illinois did, but I'm not sure all were binding. Illinois' wasn't. The employees- I mean, citizens- may want it (and they do) but it still has to be run by corporate for final approval. Governor-elect Rauner has warned outgoing gov, Pat Quinn, that he doesn't want any surprises in the lame-duck period between now and January when he takes over. He knows where Quinn (and others) live....
The approved hike in Illinois is $10. This is a figure that Rauner feels will kill business. Every business in Illinois, when they put their business plan together, evidently didn't figure payroll. Oops! Hey- you make mistakes too! It happens. Ten bucks an hour!? Why did billionaire Bruce Rauner even ever go into business when he could get a $10 handout for an easy job at McDonalds? It's bad enough that business has to pay people, which cuts deeply into profits, now they have to pay them more! Ex-governor Quinn may well compound things by pushing the minimum hike thing through a democrat- controlled state legislature. Well, it is what the people voted for. Say all you want about this recent republican tidal wave of a tsunami mandate but, the people in those five states did vote for it. That's supposed to count for something, right?
Well, this Ferrerman has written quite a bit about the minimum and dedicated non-readers know where I stand. Let's make this about the dipshits that are against the minimum.
A lot of the people on the aforementioned site said in so many words that they would quit their current job and seek a minimum wage position if that $15 wage transpired. Evidently, it would be a step up from their current rate. Yikes. Yet they are still against the raise, even though a rising tide tends to lift all boats. Are they afraid of success? Getting into a higher tax bracket? Fearful that they'd just blow it all buying new appliances or putting the kids through school? People on welfare, as we know from the Foxy Party news, get lobster for dinner, and free phones and computers from the government. They could go that route but, they have pride. Maybe they are happy where they are? Why mess with the status quo?
Some of the most brilliant minds on the threads and on Facebook have pointed out the folly of paying fast food workers what liberals call "a living wage". Why, because we'd be paying $20 for a Big Mac, they exclaim. Well, no. Australia has a minimum of @ $16 an hour and they pay 40 cents more for a Big Mac than we do. Now maybe that in "wallabies" or whatever they call their money and the 40 cents there is like $30 dollars here. I mean, a buck's a buck, right? Maybe their cents are different?
These same brilliant minds think that there should be no minimum wage at all. That the free market should set wages- not the gubmint. They also believe that, though you might less, you could make more. It's up to the free market- not the gubmint. Of course they want to pay you more! They just want it to be their idea, not the gubmint.
Well, what if there was no minimum? How would it effect the price of a Big Mac, in a Big Mac economy if there were were no minimum and the loser behind the counter was paid $2 an hour as the free market dictated? They would cut the price of that burger to reflect the HUGE savings in payroll, right? Maybe make it 49 cents like in 1973 like when the Mac was introduced? Naw, that's extreme. Costs have gone up since then...but just for business... Maybe they'd halve it though, considering they'd be saving millions on labor? I'm sure they would. They would still be making huge profits and surely they'd pass the payroll savings along to the rest of us. It's good business!
Alright, dedicated non-readers, stop laughing. Stupid kochsuckers really believe that shit! The price of a Big Mac would go up because up is profit. Duh. When illegals started to flood the construction business, no builder or developer advertised that he could sell you a home for tens of thousands less because, unlike his competitor, he used far cheaper immigrant labor- and passed the savings onto you! Business doesn't work that way. He charged the same for the house with cheap labor learning on the job and bought a bigger boat with the windfall profits. I don't want to make homeowners cry but, the motherfucker probably charged you more for his lowered payroll. Don't bitch. It's capitalism. You have to admire it or you're a Muslim socialist. That's the worst kind, by the way.
A rising tide and "the smart ones" are in leaky boats trying to sink the little boats still afloat. That's your free market. Well, that's the one you get.
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