How do people survive on minimum wage?

[LoneLaugher]

What is "personal responsibility" to a low wage earner? The decision to pay the electric bill rather than buy food or pay the car insurance?

No, it would be making the sacrifice and exercising the self discipline required to improve their position. There's no magic involved. It's just not that complicated.

A low wage is not a death sentence. It is a temporary condition that most of us have experienced. We just chose to do something about it, rather than waiting for someone else to do it FOR us.

.

Again. Arrogance and bullshit.

A low wage USED to be temporary. Things have changed.

 

[Inthemiddle]

well damn life it tough some times...but what would we do with out all you bleeding hearts to remind us how bad our lives are

Probably starve. We subsidize low wages in the private sector with food stamps and other assistance and here we have republicans wanting to add new levels of difficulty and expense to both sides of that shitty little equation.

It's not Republicans, it's the taxpayers of this country who is saying, enough..we are being BLED dry to the point we are struggling to take care OF OUR OWN families..

WHAT THE FUCK is that supposed to mean? Increasing the minimum wage doesn't cost taxpayer money. Get out of here with that kind of stupid shit.

 

[LoneLaugher]

well damn life it tough some times...but what would we do with out all you bleeding hearts to remind us how bad our lives are

Probably starve. We subsidize low wages in the private sector with food stamps and other assistance and here we have republicans wanting to add new levels of difficulty and expense to both sides of that shitty little equation.

It's not Republicans, it's the taxpayers of this country who is saying, enough..we are being BLED dry to the point we are struggling to take care OF OUR OWN families..

Bullshit!

How many able bodied adult Americans are refusing to work and are living off of the taxpayer?

How much of the nations tax dollars is going to support these unwilling, lazy peole?

Numbers! What are the numbers?

 

[occupied]

well damn life it tough some times...but what would we do with out all you bleeding hearts to remind us how bad our lives are

Probably starve. We subsidize low wages in the private sector with food stamps and other assistance and here we have republicans wanting to add new levels of difficulty and expense to both sides of that shitty little equation.

It's not Republicans, it's the taxpayers of this country who is saying, enough..we are being BLED dry to the point we are struggling to take care OF OUR OWN families..

It's not taxes that are doing the bleeding it is stagnant incomes in the face of ever increasing mandatory personal spending (rent, food, energy, medical care), America has not had a real raise in decades.

 

[Mac1958]

What is "personal responsibility" to a low wage earner? The decision to pay the electric bill rather than buy food or pay the car insurance?

No, it would be making the sacrifice and exercising the self discipline required to improve their position. There's no magic involved. It's just not that complicated.

A low wage is not a death sentence. It is a temporary condition that most of us have experienced. We just chose to do something about it, rather than waiting for someone else to do it FOR us.

.

Again. Arrogance and bullshit.

A low wage USED to be temporary. Things have changed.

I think it's possible that you truly, sincerely believe that.

You make my point, vividly.


.

 

[LoneLaugher]

No, it would be making the sacrifice and exercising the self discipline required to improve their position. There's no magic involved. It's just not that complicated.

A low wage is not a death sentence. It is a temporary condition that most of us have experienced. We just chose to do something about it, rather than waiting for someone else to do it FOR us.

.

Again. Arrogance and bullshit.

A low wage USED to be temporary. Things have changed.

I think it's possible that you truly, sincerely believe that.

You make my point, vividly.


.

No I don't. Wages have not increased at pace with the cost of living in this country. Low wages are systemic.

You fail.

 

[NeoTemplar]

Again. Arrogance and bullshit.

A low wage USED to be temporary. Things have changed.

I think it's possible that you truly, sincerely believe that.

You make my point, vividly.


.

No I don't. Wages have not increased at pace with the cost of living in this country. Low wages are systemic.

You fail.

Yes i agree the cost of living has increased so the minimum should have done likewise unfortunately it never did and probably never will.

 

[LoneLaugher]

I'm not discussing the minimum so much as the maximum.......when it comes to blue collar wages.

A guy who got a job in a machine shop 40 years ago could be pretty sure of being able to buy a house, send his kids to college and insure the healthy of his family.........plus take a yearly vacation and save for retirement after working there for 20 years. Now.....no fucking way. The wife needs a job and the kids better get scholly's.

The money has moved upward and the have's ain't interested in letting go of it.

 

[Mac1958]

Wages have not increased at pace with the cost of living in this country. Low wages are systemic.

You fail.

Oh crap. Okay, now that you announce that I "fail", I guess you've "won". You've talked me into it. I now agree with you so much that I'll contribute to the cause. From here on in, I'll support a new movement, but it needs to have a name:

"LOW WAGE WORKERS - FUCK IT, WHY BOTHER?"

DON'T put in any extra effort at work, trying to get a promotion to improve your place in life. Only rich kids get promoted. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T burn time taking any classes or training that would improve your skills. Only rich kids with connections get good jobs, you should know that. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T work more than one job to increase your income and maybe put a few bucks aside to pay off bills or for additional schooling or training. You don't have a chance anyway. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T think that it takes hard work, sacrifice and discipline to build a good life. You have no chance. You are a victim. Someone else is taking advantage of you. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T, under ANY circumstances, pay ANY attention to those who are putting in the extra effort - the single working moms, the college students working multiple jobs and carrying a full class load, the husbands coming home from a hard day at work to study for their course. That's all bullshit, lies perpetrated by the rich to hurt you. Fuck it, why bother?


Thanks LoneLaugher, I have seen the light since your announcement that I "failed". A low wage is, indeed, permanent and cannot be changed. Boy, those folks are FUCKED.

.

 

[The Rabbi]

Not one liberal has rebutted the fact that only 2.2% of American workers are paid minimum wage, of which the vast majority is teenagers and food servers.

Oh the irony. And not one Rethug has proved their assertion that raising the minimum wage, oh lets say a dollar an hour, on 2.2% of the American workforce, is going to force the employers to raise their prices on everyone.

What buying power 8 bucks an hour has eh? Who would have thought that minimum wage workers had such power in the economy. All 2.2% of them.

It won't.
But it will make employers lay off people who aren't worth the extra money.
Of course since you've never held a job it won't matter. And what do you care if people are working? You're a democrat. Let them take welfare!

 

[occupied]

Wages have not increased at pace with the cost of living in this country. Low wages are systemic.

You fail.

Oh crap. Okay, now that you announce that I "fail", I guess you've "won". You've talked me into it. I now agree with you so much that I'll contribute to the cause. From here on in, I'll support a new movement, but it needs to have a name:

"LOW WAGE WORKERS - FUCK IT, WHY BOTHER?"

DON'T put in any extra effort at work, trying to get a promotion to improve your place in life. Only rich kids get promoted. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T burn time taking any classes or training that would improve your skills. Only rich kids with connections get good jobs, you should know that. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T work more than one job to increase your income and maybe put a few bucks aside to pay off bills or for additional schooling or training. You don't have a chance anyway. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T think that it takes hard work, sacrifice and discipline to build a good life. You have no chance. You are a victim. Someone else is taking advantage of you. Fuck it, why bother?

DON'T, under ANY circumstances, pay ANY attention to those who are putting in the extra effort - the single working moms, the college students working multiple jobs and carrying a full class load, the husbands coming home from a hard day at work to study for their course. That's all bullshit, lies perpetrated by the rich to hurt you. Fuck it, why bother?


Thanks LoneLaugher, I have seen the light since your announcement that I "failed". A low wage is, indeed, permanent and cannot be changed. Boy, those folks are FUCKED.

.

A whole platoon of straw men, don't see that too often. If success was as simple as working harder things would be awesome right now. Worker productivity and secondary education has steadily increased over the years yet income mobility has never been worse in our lifetimes. Must be some limiting factor involved other than just laziness.

 

[DiamondDave]

They don't, they can't, I've been saying that for years, more than 75% of those working for minimum wage are adults and minimum wage currently has the lowest spending power in history. In the richest country in the world, the poorest worker should make a living wage.

If you are 30 years old and have 3 kids.. you making minimum wage is YOUR problem... Jesus Christ, even a mentally challenged person working at McDonalds would have received pay raises by now...

And if you need more money because somehow you are making poor enough decisions, being lazy, not trying to advance yourself etc, what is stopping you from getting job 2 or job 3??

 

[Texanmike]

I really want to know. If the current minimum wage is too low then what should it be?

Mike

 

[Katzndogz]

There should be no minimum wage. Minimum wage was never supposed to be a wage that someone could survive on in the first place.

 

[occupied]

There should be no minimum wage. Minimum wage was never supposed to be a wage that someone could survive on in the first place.

Minimum wage made a lot of sense in a country full of company towns, it makes even more sense in a present day America filled with big-boxes and franchises full of anonymous toilers.

 

[Texanmike]

.

Guess noone is going to refute that... If not then why are we going to have this discusssion?

 

[buckeye45_73]

There should be no minimum wage. Minimum wage was never supposed to be a wage that someone could survive on in the first place.

Minimum wage made a lot of sense in a country full of company towns, it makes even more sense in a present day America filled with big-boxes and franchises full of anonymous toilers.

all it is, is controlled inflation. How is this so hard to see?

 

[buckeye45_73]

I also know people who exploit government assistance...what does that have to do with a woman that is over 50 and can't find a job? BTW, she's not on ANY assistance right now other than the assistance she is getting from her family. Her unemployment ran out a long time ago. And more importantly, what does that have to do with raising the MW? There are a lot of people today who don't want charity, they want to work and they want to pay their own way, our country, our economy and our government has made that impossible for now.

Because you offer that one example of that 50 year old woman that has no job and is not homeless and not on government assistance and that is supposed to prove your entire premise.

I personally don't believe your example, but that is neither here nor there.

Not one liberal has rebutted the fact that only 2.2% of American workers are paid minimum wage, of which the vast majority is teenagers and food servers. The myth that adults are forced to raise a family on minimum wage is bullshit. I personally know illegal immigrants, I work with them, that have several children and make more than minimum wage washing dishes.

Real world experience disproves the false narrative that you so desperately cling to.

Your illegal friend and his kids are why so many Americans are underpaid and can't find jobs today. I have a friend who started working in construction in 1976, making $15.00 an hour, thanks to your illegals, he's making that same pay today, mostly fixing the mistakes the illegals have made. You've called me a liar, I call you a traitor to your country and your people. Don't bother answer, I've ignored you.

Then tell the liberals to kick their asses out

 

[The Rabbi]

There should be no minimum wage. Minimum wage was never supposed to be a wage that someone could survive on in the first place.

Minimum wage made a lot of sense in a country full of company towns, it makes even more sense in a present day America filled with big-boxes and franchises full of anonymous toilers.

Really? What kind of sense did it make?

 

[buckeye45_73]

Again. Arrogance and bullshit.

A low wage USED to be temporary. Things have changed.

I think it's possible that you truly, sincerely believe that.

You make my point, vividly.


.

No I don't. Wages have not increased at pace with the cost of living in this country. Low wages are systemic.

You fail.

Well that's true. IF we had say cheap gas, that would help. If we didnt waste billions on Ethanol bullshit and other bs boondogles. Food prices wouldnt have soared.
Environmentalism is expensive as hell, now they took away the cheap incandescnet light bulb. so we can have more expensive mercury filled light bulbs that produce shit for light. And if we really love the planet, we can plop $50 down for a LED light bulb.

Sorry man, but regulation is expensive and that's what the min wage is as well as all these "green" initatives. Get poor to save the planet, YAY!!!!