“Maximum Greed”

Ted Kennedy’s blood was boiling when he said, “When does the greed stop?!” Thankfully someone in the Senate was saying what needed to be said. How can anyone think that increasing the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour could be wrong? If a person works full time at $7.25 an hour, they bring home around $210 a week, $840 a month, around $10,000 a year.

$7.25 is pretty minimal to me. You figure depending on where you live a one bedroom apartment rents for $800 a month. Okay, let’s say you got a real good deal on rent - $500 and that’s my final offer. You are left with less than $400 to cover monthly expenses.

Wages across the board have been stagnant since George Bush was smuggled into office, and since then corporate profits have doubled. The inequality between executives and their workers has increased by,…, lets say – lots! The incredible unfairness is when you look at the worker working away as the terminated CEO walks out with millions.

The federal minimum wage has not been increased in ten years, but congress has given itself about $31,000 each during that same time period. So the Senate had to pass the increase for the minimum wage, but the vote breaks down to 54 to 43. I have no idea who voted what, but I bet that most of the forty-three were Republicans.

Eighty percent of the American people wanted to see the increase passed. It makes you wonder how there could be such a discrepancy in votes then? Were they voting as their constituents’ wished? The Republicans wanted to attach a tax break for businesses to the bill. Without sixty percent of the vote the bill now will be delayed and discussed and,…, well, you’ll see what’ll happen.

The number one complaint is that by raising the minimum wage it will hurt small businesses, which can be disputed by looking at past increases. By increasing a person’s pay scale wouldn’t they purchase more? Doesn’t that help the economy?

Write your congress people – better yet get angry at that selfish, greedy forty-three!


Jake Drew
Come relieve your frustrations at http://www.livinginlethargy.com/