More Wealth Re-distribution
I heard on the radio (News Talk 990) this morning a commercial for a living wage. There’s some group proposing one in Knoxville. It got me curious so I looked it up. For information, go here.
Some people think that raising the low-end of the salary spectrum (to about $19K apparently) will bring great wealth and happiness to the land. From the aforementioned site:
What is the living wage campaign? It is an organized effort to force employers to inject a welfare mentality into the workplace. emphasis added
Don’t we have minimum wage laws already? Aren’t they largely ineffective? Don’t these wage increases typically lead to goods and services costing more? My understanding was that an increase in minimum wage leads to temporary relief of those it targets followed by a leveling out. Then, the people who make more end up paying more for lower-skilled services than before. So, the end result is temporary relief for the low wage earners, higher prices for everyone, and at the end it’s like the wage increase never happened, except that the middle class now fundementally earns less.
And how in the hell is a welfare mentality good for any thing? The problem in our country is we collectively have a welfare mentality. Nothing is anyone’s fault and everyone should pay for everyone else right? Bunch of crap!
And why should companies have to pay for this crap? Oh yeah, because business is evil and doesn’t pay its fair share. And, damnit, they should give! Never mind that they’ve given folks jobs, provided services, and pay taxes. It’s not enough! Now we must unite and demand that they pay more! So, when your 99 cent value menu at Wendy’s goes up to $1.19, you’ll know why.
Oh, and in case you didn’t notice, I’m opposed to this living wage crap!
