Reply #60: Really!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

Why do you think there are so many jobs for illegal immigrants, offered by (usually) wealthy cheapskates who don't think that anyone not of their social class deserves a decent life.

Anyone who can't make a living by offering a decent wage has probably expanded too fast.

The coffee shop in Portland's renowned Powell's Books used to be run by a woman named Anne Hughes, who is a staunch political activist. When the health care crisis first came into the news, a newspaper reporter revealed that Hughes offered health insurance to the employees of her coffeeshop.

Her reasoning was that she could never have kept the coffeeshop open the same hours as the bookstore (9AM-11PM, 365 days a year) without employees. They were therefore part of the reason that her business was successful and were entitled to share in the profits. As long as she was making a living, she didn't care about getting rich.

I think that the reason so many business owners are against the minimum wage is that they believe that simply by owning a business and working hard, they have a divine right to get rich. But they don't.

They never stop to think that high wages mean more buying power for everyone. If they pay higher wages, their neighbor's business will prosper, and if their neighbor pays high wages, their business will prosper.

I think it's a telling fact that in today's United States, only the stores for the very rich and the very poor are prospering. The old stalwarts that appealed to a middle income market are in trouble.

Our income distribution is moving toward that of a Third World country.

Oh, by the way, college students may be interested to know that it is no longer possible to attend the University of Minnesota for 100 times the minimum wage. Tuition is now 600 times the minimum wage.