Sunday, October 12, 2014

Griffin Pontius chapter 6 question 5

       Over the past couple of years, there has been many movements towards raising the minimum wage.  Initially, I don't think this is a bad idea however, I refuse to believe someone flipping burgers for McDonalds deserves a wage of 20 an hour.  Yes this is a blunt statement but, basis that people with a higher human capital are more valuable to society, they should be paid more.  While the author appears to make the assumption that everyone who flips burgers is a highschool dropout, the assumption does hold a common truth with a message conveyed throught the chapter.  In general, people with a valuable skill set are going to make more than a person with a lesser skill set.
       While the argument could be made that minimum wage is not enough to support life in the U.S, a vast majority of the people working in low income jobs made decisions that landed them there in the first place.  This implies that if a persons diggs themself into a whole, it should be up to them to dig them self back out.  By no means does this mean they cannot be helped, but I think the real issue is lack of an incentive to do productive things.  Why would you search for a job paying 7.25 an hour when the government can and will pay you more? You wouldn't.  There does need to be more incentive to work harder, and wether that is a higher wage or something else, I don't really know the solution.

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