Minimum wage increase

shop deals on amazon
Advertise with us
Shop deals on ebay
House Repair Talk

Help Support House Repair Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
mmb617 said:
Higher wages = higher prices. I don't see how anyone can argue this isn't the case.

No one can force the market to adjust wages up while holding prices level. It just won't happen.

So those minimum wage workers who get a temporary raise will see it dissipate as prices catch up. And everyone who was already making more than minimum will see their buying power lessened unless they receive a proportionate raise, which will be a hard sell since it's not mandated.

The real losers are people like me, retirees who can do little to increase our income as prices shoot up.
Click to expand...

I guess it would be safe to assume you are a member of the middle class. You haven't kept up with inflation for 30 years. Prices go up whether the min. wage moves or not. It is true companies that have min. wage employees will have trouble moving everyone up the ladder and they will have to because they do pay more important employees a little more, but that happens pretty fast, as soon as they figure out all their compeditors have the same problem.

It is true that the real losers are the ones on fixed income, but we have choices on how we look at that. You might of been a lower pay scale so you couldn't afford to save for your retirement or you just choose not to bother.
The world dosn't stop when we get off the merry go round.
And to be fair, you don't have to buy a wardrobe or special boots for work, or pay for transpertation 5 days a week or babysitting, and hopefully you have paid off you education loans. As well as the fact you could choose to find a location with a cheaper cost of living.

These are just thoughts in general and not ment to be a personal attack.:D
 
mmb617 said:
Higher wages = higher prices. I don't see how anyone can argue this isn't the case.

No one can force the market to adjust wages up while holding prices level. It just won't happen.

So those minimum wage workers who get a temporary raise will see it dissipate as prices catch up. And everyone who was already making more than minimum will see their buying power lessened unless they receive a proportionate raise, which will be a hard sell since it's not mandated.

The real losers are people like me, retirees who can do little to increase our income as prices shoot up.
Click to expand...
definition of inflation.
 
bud16415 said:
I used to have that very same circular slide rule, I wonder what ever happened to it. I bet it’s in the back of a desk drawer here some place.

As to the min wage milker never dumping hot milk into the bulk tank when the cow was tagged. We had one guy I nicknamed “Lumpy” that did it twice in one week. The first time he had a list of ear tag numbers of who was treated and the treated cows had bright red vet wrap on each hind leg about 6 inches wide and he was told 50 times when you milk a treated cow pull off the hose from the pipeline and attach it to the bucket. Milk the cow and then flush everything out with water and reattach the hose. So he milks one into the tank right at the end of milking and guess what open the valve and dump 10,000 lbs of milk in the manure pit. Few days later he has numbers, he has red tape and now he has cows that are spray painted red that you couldn’t miss from 100 yards away. Same thing another 10,000 lbs down the drain. Lumpy got fired after that and is now a certified KIA mechanic at the local dealership changing oil. I bought my filters and left.

Getting back on topic I never said there wasn’t a great out sourcing of work out of the country and there wasn’t a great deal of workers out of work in the country. What I said is automation and robots are not responsible for job loss (net) or work being taken to other countries.
Neutron Jack Welch mantra was “Automate, Immigrate or Evaporate”.

Companies are not automating to get rid of jobs they are doing it to increase productivity. When that happens sales go up and companies expand and hire more people. Automation is a way to keep work from being outsourced to countries that pay nothing.

The way I apply logic is to look at a problem in reverse. Take Neal for example where he lives I’m sure they could use more jobs. Let’s look at his well automated profession and view it in reverse. Let’s de-automate all the products he uses and employ more people. We could start simple and take away his job killing power saw and nail gun for starter. That would employ at least 4x Neal. Get rid of the excavation equipment and we will save on pollution and make more jobs. One Neal in an excavator or 30x Neal with shovels. Keep in mind my calculations are based around building a home in the same amount of time we do today. I could go on about the job site but the true automation happens up stream of Neal he doesn’t see. Instead of getting a load of plywood and 2x4s lets deliver some logs to the site and saw them with a pit saw like the 150 year old homes here are made with. To get enough lumber and decking I would say you would need another 50x Neal. In short order at min wage labor we would have his town fully employed but the cost of the home would be out of reach of anyone working so we wouldn’t have a buyer and no buyer no jobs.

Take that analogy times a million and you have an economy.
Click to expand...

I like your lumber reference,
lumber mill over here does not use automation
I am not counting a conveyor belt or mill saw as automation
and employs around 5 people
in the actual process, of course i am not adding the office worker or truck driver.
you are debating minimum wage, that is already passed into law in seattle.
what I was referring to is the affects of minimum wage. or rather the unseen effects. being reported by fox news and other news agency's.

employer's cutting out 410 k, vacations, "freebie" meals.
patrons not leaving tips, due to meal price increase.
which I am in favor of..
and the consequence that makes me chuckle, the worker now wants their hours cut so they do not loose their "benefits"
I did a little math. 15 an hour is 30k per year and DOES make you ineligible for food stamps.and other "goodies"

11 dollars is 22,880 a year


Household Size in Seattle Washington food stamp eligible income criteria

Monthly Income
persons per household....
1 $1,945
2 $2,622
3 $3,299
4 $3,975
5 $4,652

11.00 an hour is $1,760 per mth
this will leave the person eligible for reduced food stamp benefits

this is what they are complaining about, unforseen consequences
 
Last edited:
nealtw said:
I guess it would be safe to assume you are a member of the middle class.

I don't think I've been a member of the middle class for the last 25 years, since I've never made much over $30k/year in that time period. By most definitions I think we'd be the "working poor". I'd say we were middle class when we had two incomes, but my wife quit working to raise our son then never went back. That was our choice and I wouldn't change it.

You haven't kept up with inflation for 30 years.

I don't know about that. I usually got a raise each year and in low inflation times like we've had lately it was often enough to offset the inflation.

Prices go up whether the min. wage moves or not.

They do indeed. However I contend that higher minimum wages increase the rate at which they go up. You don't see it that way. We'll have to agree to disagree as I don't think either of us will swing the other to his view.

It is true companies that have min. wage employees will have trouble moving everyone up the ladder and they will have to because they do pay more important employees a little more, but that happens pretty fast, as soon as they figure out all their compeditors have the same problem.

And yet somehow this doesn't increase the rate of inflation?

It is true that the real losers are the ones on fixed income, but we have choices on how we look at that. You might of been a lower pay scale so you couldn't afford to save for your retirement or you just choose not to bother.

Or you could think that you were adequately prepared till runaway inflation changed things. And in my mind massive increases in minimum wage can only fuel massive inflation. I hope I'm wrong.

The world dosn't stop when we get off the merry go round.

It does not. There's no reason those who are still working should have any empathy for those who've worked their entire life and are now retired. Until they are in that position themselves, at which time they might feel differently.

And to be fair, you don't have to buy a wardrobe or special boots for work, or pay for transpertation 5 days a week or babysitting, and hopefully you have paid off you education loans.

LOL, at my last job I had company supplied uniforms, didn't need special footwear, drove a company van to and from work and had no kids at home, and of course no outstanding school loans.

I only mention this to show how far off assumptions can be.

As well as the fact you could choose to find a location with a cheaper cost of living.

If there's a place where the cost of living is substantially less than Altoona PA I'd like to know where it is. That is one big thing going for us.

These are just thoughts in general and not ment to be a personal attack.:D
Click to expand...

I didn't take anything you said as a personal attack. There's nothing wrong with an exchange of ideas among people with differing viewpoints.

Maybe I've just been playing the game wrong my whole life. I never made big money, but never felt poor either. I think we have a lot. A nice home that's paid off, several nice although older vehicles, also paid off, and in general live what I consider comfortably. And I never needed the government to assist me, I made my own way.

But when I see things like people in entry level jobs thinking they should get a huge raise, and the government stepping in and mandating that they get it, I have to wonder, am I just a fool?

Maybe I should just sit back and let the government take care of me. That seems to be the trend these days.
 
mmb617 said:
Maybe I've just been playing the game wrong my whole life. I never made big money, but never felt poor either. I think we have a lot. A nice home that's paid off, several nice although older vehicles, also paid off, and in general live what I consider comfortably. And I never needed the government to assist me, I made my own way.

But when I see things like people in entry level jobs thinking they should get a huge raise, and the government stepping in and mandating that they get it, I have to wonder, am I just a fool?

Maybe I should just sit back and let the government take care of me. That seems to be the trend these days.
Click to expand...

Working poor, you would have benefited from occasional raises that would have occurred with raises in min. wage.

We often see people saying the poor should pull themselves up by there boot straps. With that in mind your wages kept up with inflation but you should have been able to work your way up to better wages. The fact is there may not have been a better avenue to take for a whole bunch of reasons.

You are saying that there is a cause and effect to inflation and there may be but greed at the top, I think, has a lot more to do with it.
If a business man like Criss hires a worker for $25 an hour, he would like to send him out to work and charge maybe $50 an hour. That dosn't give Criss $25, he has all the supprot staff, and all the other expences and maybe if he is lucky he makes a little because he hired the man. Some like the hamburger guys, who pay 8 billion in wages world wide come home with a profit of 8 billion. These companies could well afford to pay a person what he or she is worth, or at least sell hamburgers at a much lower price, lowering inflation.

Run away inflation, while the banks are borrowing money from your government at less than inflation and what are they doing to grow the economy, shuffle money and give themselves raises, buy up companies give CEOs a golden parachute and hire another one for even more money who figures out how the lay some people off and raise the prices of the product.

Raising the min. wage wll increase inflation but it will also be used as an excuse to raise prices far beyond the actual cost.


I do agree we should not make assumptions and I don't like making them, that's why I did the disclaimer at the end of my post.:)

People in entry level jobs, who ask for a big raise. Not everyone can get an education and move up with a good firm and get stuck working in those jobs for people who could care less about their empoyees. It is the food workers that have been raising hell, but not likely where you live. Perhaps if they were a good firm, we wouldn't be talking today.
 
I think $15 is too high, but I do think the current minimum wage is too low. It would be nice if people were being paid a living wage.

Unfortunately there is no legal way to stop companies from being greedy. My brother works at a department store where they are supposed to have a minimum of 12 employees to do all of the work. They have 7 and most of them are only hired part time so they don't have to pay for any medical benefits.

It seems that every time the government tries to make companies give benefits or more pay to the employees, even the companies that can afford it, are screwing the employees by laying them off, cutting their hours, or cutting raises. Unfortunately, I agree that raising it to $15 would prompt the greedy companies to drastically inflate prices, lay off workers, and cut hours again.

The area where I live is pretty much poverty levels. Median household income is less than $25k and sales tax is 10%. So, basically, it sucks.
 
Just FYI a 15 dollar an hour guy costs me after work comp and taxes about 23 per hour. That is before any support staff, trucks, fuel and consumables.
 
nealtw said:
Working poor, you would have benefited from occasional raises that would have occurred with raises in min. wage.

.
Click to expand...

when an employer is forced to increase the minimum wage of a worker.
he will use the money he was going to use as your raise for that forced raise
 
Let me just add, and maybe it's not relevant to this discussion, but when I first entered the workforce in 1969 the minimum wage was $1.60/hr and that's what I was paid. I didn't feel that I was somehow entitled to a higher wage, and I didn't intend to work for that wage indefinitely. I was a kid in my first full time job, and I had a lot to learn. Why should my employer be forced to pay me more than I was worth? First jobs are learning experiences, and other than the managers that's what fast food jobs generally are. The kids are learning about the world of work and should have an eye towards moving on to jobs that will pay more than minimum.

If you intend to make a career out of working a minimum wage job then you probably have other problems that prevent you from moving on to a real job. Does that mean society owes you a "living wage" job? I don't really know the answer to that. Maybe the fact that you're at least willing to go to work means it does. At least you have more initiative than the multitudes that use bogus disabilities to collect a government check without working at all.

The main problem in my eyes is that the living wage minimum is a moving target. Mandating higher minimums moves all wages up long term and that raises prices on everything, so that the new higher minimum then needs raised again in order to remain a living wage thus starting the cycle over again. All this because government is causing a wage to be higher than the free market would dictate.

This is all a pretty academic discussion anyways. We have gone so far towards socialism that the concept of government setting wages is accepted without much dissent. It's just the way things are.
 
Well 15/hr just passed in NY. I think it's over 7yrs. But from my understanding, it's for fast food workers. So a minimum wage grocery store worker it dosn't effect.
 
frodo said:
when an employer is forced to increase the minimum wage of a worker.
he will use the money he was going to use as your raise for that forced raise
Click to expand...

This is already happening at Walmart. They anticipate the minimum wage will go up to $9 so they increased it and then cut the raises for longer term employees in half.

mmb167, one of the problems is that in some areas, about the only jobs available are minimum wage.

The idea of a person making $10 is practically unheard of around here. It's not even that people aren't trying to work their way up or get better jobs, sometimes there just aren't better jobs available and the people can't afford to just pick up and move. It's not like the old days where you could walk into a business and ask if they were hiring. Now they tell you "don't even call, you have to apply online". Only some of the places don't have their online stuff set up properly. And a lot of places are being cheap and are employing only half the workforce they actually need.

I wonder if the $11 an hour as Frodo suggested would work here. I think Walmart would just fire employees-- they already have a BS thing where they fire people who are eligible for bonuses for made-up reasons and write people up for BS when they are eligible for promotion so they can keep them at a lower pay. wage (aside from employer affordability or greed-- greed in the case of large corporations that make huge profits) is medical insurance rates. A friend of mine who works at Walmart juts got a small raise (less than $1) and her insurance raised her premiums by $100. She is not making an entire $100 more per month though, so its really screwing her.
 
zannej said:
This is already happening at Walmart. They anticipate the minimum wage will go up to $9 so they increased it and then cut the raises for longer term employees in half.

mmb167, one of the problems is that in some areas, about the only jobs available are minimum wage.

The idea of a person making $10 is practically unheard of around here. It's not even that people aren't trying to work their way up or get better jobs, sometimes there just aren't better jobs available and the people can't afford to just pick up and move. It's not like the old days where you could walk into a business and ask if they were hiring. Now they tell you "don't even call, you have to apply online". Only some of the places don't have their online stuff set up properly. And a lot of places are being cheap and are employing only half the workforce they actually need.

I wonder if the $11 an hour as Frodo suggested would work here. I think Walmart would just fire employees-- they already have a BS thing where they fire people who are eligible for bonuses for made-up reasons and write people up for BS when they are eligible for promotion so they can keep them at a lower pay. wage (aside from employer affordability or greed-- greed in the case of large corporations that make huge profits) is medical insurance rates. A friend of mine who works at Walmart juts got a small raise (less than $1) and her insurance raised her premiums by $100. She is not making an entire $100 more per month though, so its really screwing her.
Click to expand...



, mcdonlds type jobs are not for entry level anymore.
that thinking is outdated.
with no jobs to be found.
people with degrees are working fast food or as wait staff to feed their families.
THAT is what everyone tells them to do.
IF you cant find a job in your field, get a job flipping burgers.
teenager entry type jobs are now being jobs for the downsized

common since and business savy
tells you if you have a bucget of $100 k a year for employees. and the wage is raised
you still have just 100 k..someone has got to go because of the budget
you can argue, the management is making to much money.
that arguement. IMO makes about as much since as square wheels

why would someone run a business to make no money? they would not.
when their is no profit to be made, you close the doors and no one works
 
mmb617 said:
Let me just add, and maybe it's not relevant to this discussion, but when I first entered the workforce in 1969 the minimum wage was $1.60/hr and that's what I was paid. I didn't feel that I was somehow entitled to a higher wage, and I didn't intend to work for that wage indefinitely. I was a kid in my first full time job, and I had a lot to learn. Why should my employer be forced to pay me more than I was worth? First jobs are learning experiences, and other than the managers that's what fast food jobs generally are. The kids are learning about the world of work and should have an eye towards moving on to jobs that will pay more than minimum.

If you intend to make a career out of working a minimum wage job then you probably have other problems that prevent you from moving on to a real job. Does that mean society owes you a "living wage" job? I don't really know the answer to that. Maybe the fact that you're at least willing to go to work means it does. At least you have more initiative than the multitudes that use bogus disabilities to collect a government check without working at all.

The main problem in my eyes is that the living wage minimum is a moving target. Mandating higher minimums moves all wages up long term and that raises prices on everything, so that the new higher minimum then needs raised again in order to remain a living wage thus starting the cycle over again. All this because government is causing a wage to be higher than the free market would dictate.

This is all a pretty academic discussion anyways. We have gone so far towards socialism that the concept of government setting wages is accepted without much dissent. It's just the way things are.
Click to expand...

Why shouldn't wages be a moving target, the price you would sell your house for is a moving target, everything is a moving target. It is supply and demand as well as what ever the market will bear. We buy houses and invest in the market and hope for inflation so we can make some money, inflation is a good thing we hope. Anytime in history that there is a shortage of labour the country brings in more people to keep wages down and if the country woon't do it some companies hire illegles. When all that fails we just move the jobs elsewhere for cheap labour. It's not the poor that have their hands in your pockets. It's the companies that have empoyees on food stamps that are ripping you off.
 
nealtw said:
Why shouldn't wages be a moving target, the price you would sell your house for is a moving target, everything is a moving target. It is supply and demand as well as what ever the market will bear. We buy houses and invest in the market and hope for inflation so we can make some money, inflation is a good thing we hope. Anytime in history that there is a shortage of labour the country brings in more people to keep wages down and if the country woon't do it some companies hire illegles. When all that fails we just move the jobs elsewhere for cheap labour. It's not the poor that have their hands in your pockets. It's the companies that have empoyees on food stamps that are ripping you off.
Click to expand...


I have been biting my tongue but it has to be said.
Inflation is never a good thing.

This idea that at 20 years old I buy a home and have to pay on it for 30 years and during that 30 years inflation causes the prices of everything to go up and the follow on effect is my employer is going to give me meaningless raises to keep up with inflation and that’s a good thing as I’m paying off my home with inflated dollars. So at the end of the 30 years my last payment is really say one tenth of my first payment in terms of real buying power. But do to inflation my house has also went up in value. That sure seems like a great thing doesn’t it.
So where did the extra real buying power go? There is no magic in economy the tally sheet has to balance at the end of the day. Think about it if my house payment started out at $100 per month and my pay was $100 per week in the beginning and my home was valued at say $10,000. Now fast forward 30 years my payment is still $100 my earnings are now $1000 per week and my house is now worth $100,000. Those are fairly accurate numbers during my life. Again who took the hit for my good fortune? Was it the evil banking institutions backed by the excessive profits of the evil industrial complex. Was it the government? Think about that where did the extra money come from?
Suppose Neal had a car for sale and Bud went over and said wow that’s a nice car Neal I’ll take it you want $10,000 for it sure that’s a good price. So here is my offer I’ll take the car and I will pay you in 30 years for it and then at the end of the 30 years I’ll give you $5,000 and we will be all square. Neal says sounds good to me, we shake hands and I drive away in my new car.
Again who’s taking the hit for inflation? If it was magic and more money could grow on trees why not let it just run rampant after all it’s a good thing right. Why make a guy wait 30 years for a house for half price lets ramp up inflation 10X and we could all have nice houses paid off in 3 years not 30, oh and we could all be making a million a year in no time.
Who can tell me who’s taking the hit? There is an old saying and it’s very true. “There is no such thing as a free lunch.”
:confused:
 
bud16415 said:
I have been biting my tongue but it has to be said.
Inflation is never a good thing.

This idea that at 20 years old I buy a home and have to pay on it for 30 years and during that 30 years inflation causes the prices of everything to go up and the follow on effect is my employer is going to give me meaningless raises to keep up with inflation and that’s a good thing as I’m paying off my home with inflated dollars. So at the end of the 30 years my last payment is really say one tenth of my first payment in terms of real buying power. But do to inflation my house has also went up in value. That sure seems like a great thing doesn’t it.
So where did the extra real buying power go? There is no magic in economy the tally sheet has to balance at the end of the day. Think about it if my house payment started out at $100 per month and my pay was $100 per week in the beginning and my home was valued at say $10,000. Now fast forward 30 years my payment is still $100 my earnings are now $1000 per week and my house is now worth $100,000. Those are fairly accurate numbers during my life. Again who took the hit for my good fortune? Was it the evil banking institutions backed by the excessive profits of the evil industrial complex. Was it the government? Think about that where did the extra money come from?
Suppose Neal had a car for sale and Bud went over and said wow that’s a nice car Neal I’ll take it you want $10,000 for it sure that’s a good price. So here is my offer I’ll take the car and I will pay you in 30 years for it and then at the end of the 30 years I’ll give you $5,000 and we will be all square. Neal says sounds good to me, we shake hands and I drive away in my new car.
Again who’s taking the hit for inflation? If it was magic and more money could grow on trees why not let it just run rampant after all it’s a good thing right. Why make a guy wait 30 years for a house for half price lets ramp up inflation 10X and we could all have nice houses paid off in 3 years not 30, oh and we could all be making a million a year in no time.
Who can tell me who’s taking the hit? There is an old saying and it’s very true. “There is no such thing as a free lunch.”
:confused:
Click to expand...


your forgetting something.

the house cost 100 dollars
the bank loaned you the 100 dollars
you paid the buyer
the bank is charging you interest compounded for the life of the 30 year loan,

the bank will get the interest of 200 dollars before you pay the principal of 100

so the bank wins a 200% profit on the loan

YOU, being the borrower, are taking the hit

if you want to beat that game, go with a 15 year loan and double up on payments, make 2 payments each mth
1 to principal, the other to interest
...........................................
rounded numbers for clariety
 
bud16415 said:
I have been biting my tongue but it has to be said.
Inflation is never a good thing.

This idea that at 20 years old I buy a home and have to pay on it for 30 years and during that 30 years inflation causes the prices of everything to go up and the follow on effect is my employer is going to give me meaningless raises to keep up with inflation and that’s a good thing as I’m paying off my home with inflated dollars. So at the end of the 30 years my last payment is really say one tenth of my first payment in terms of real buying power. But do to inflation my house has also went up in value. That sure seems like a great thing doesn’t it.
So where did the extra real buying power go? There is no magic in economy the tally sheet has to balance at the end of the day. Think about it if my house payment started out at $100 per month and my pay was $100 per week in the beginning and my home was valued at say $10,000. Now fast forward 30 years my payment is still $100 my earnings are now $1000 per week and my house is now worth $100,000. Those are fairly accurate numbers during my life. Again who took the hit for my good fortune? Was it the evil banking institutions backed by the excessive profits of the evil industrial complex. Was it the government? Think about that where did the extra money come from?
Suppose Neal had a car for sale and Bud went over and said wow that’s a nice car Neal I’ll take it you want $10,000 for it sure that’s a good price. So here is my offer I’ll take the car and I will pay you in 30 years for it and then at the end of the 30 years I’ll give you $5,000 and we will be all square. Neal says sounds good to me, we shake hands and I drive away in my new car.
Again who’s taking the hit for inflation? If it was magic and more money could grow on trees why not let it just run rampant after all it’s a good thing right. Why make a guy wait 30 years for a house for half price lets ramp up inflation 10X and we could all have nice houses paid off in 3 years not 30, oh and we could all be making a million a year in no time.
Who can tell me who’s taking the hit? There is an old saying and it’s very true. “There is no such thing as a free lunch.”
:confused:
Click to expand...

I pointed out the one or two places the little guy can take advantage of inflation. How would it be if you were still making $400 momth, if you never got a raise. Do you think inflation would have stopped. I am not advocating for the little guy to get ahead just the tools to keep up. Do you really think the country, any country is better off when there are more and more poor every year?
 
nealtw said:
I pointed out the one or two places the little guy can take advantage of inflation. How would it be if you were still making $400 momth, if you never got a raise. Do you think inflation would have stopped. I am not advocating for the little guy to get ahead just the tools to keep up. Do you really think the country, any country is better off when there are more and more poor every year?
Click to expand...

you are born with a tool box [your brain] it is up to YOU to fill it with tools[knowledge]

it is not the responsibility of the government

if you are making $400 a month, it is up to YOU to move your self up

not the government.

some people seem to want to ignore the fact that you are responsible for you

that if you lack ambition, that is your problem.
 
nealtw said:
I pointed out the one or two places the little guy can take advantage of inflation. How would it be if you were still making $400 momth, if you never got a raise. Do you think inflation would have stopped. I am not advocating for the little guy to get ahead just the tools to keep up. Do you really think the country, any country is better off when there are more and more poor every year?
Click to expand...

Frodo hit the nail on the head. There is no such thing as a free lunch. As a young man buying that first home in the days of Jimmy Carter with high inflation You had to pay 18% on a 30 mortgage to get that dream house to pay off with inflated money. People were camping in bank parking lots to get 12% government backed loans to encourage first time buyers. I know because I spent two days sitting in a lawn chair in line. During those two long nights in the aluminum chair I had time to think about inflation. My father in law stopped by with a couple burgers for me for dinner and explained if I thought the interest rates were high to buy a house think about what those same rates were doing to small business loans. Inflation was then and will always be a crippling disease to a country. No one wins ever. The price you pay for any of this nonsense really boils down to your children and grandchildren are going to pay the price.

Frodo’s advice is solid about repaying a loan. Two years ago we took it a step beyond his advice even and bought an abandoned rat trap of a short sale property for 24k cash. We added a lot of sweat equity with maybe another 15k of new and used materials over 2 years. We now have a nice place with paying absolutely zero interest to any bank and no house payment. We could have very easily went the easy route and financed 250k and had a really great place to live in and felt the blood drain from our bodies for the next 20 or 30 years.
How many people remember when 3 years was the longest term you could get a car loan for? Now it’s 5 or more years. As a young kid my dad explained to me about buying a car. He said you want the shortest term you can possible handle and cash is best. He said if you can afford a brand new car you need to be able to pay it off in 2 years if it’s going to take 3 then you really can’t afford it. I said what difference does it make 2, 3 or 10 years. He said cars depreciate and at 3 years you risk being upside down. That’s whenever you still owe more than it’s worth. Sounded right to me then and it still does. Cars still depreciate maybe even faster and most of the cars on the road people are upside down on payments.

Inflation is not good, and I don’t think any country is better off when there are more and more poor people every year. Inflation causes poor people it doesn’t ever help them. What gets rid of poor people is a prospering economy, a healthy economy and jobs not wages. If it was so simple everyone could stop working except a few people at the mint printing money. Let the presses fly and send out cash to everyone. As it is right now we are going down that path not sending it to everyone just maybe 1/3.

In the end all economy works the same and the balance sheet has to balance. Every year at Christmas I used to give my brother in law a card with 50 bucks in it as a gift. He would give me a card with 50 bucks also. Couple years ago around thanksgiving he said you know Bud times are getting tough I think we should cut back this Christmas to 20 bucks. I was really relieved as it was getting hard to come up with 50.
 
Well, governor signed the bill. Over the next five years the minimum wage will climb to 15 dollars an hour.

The news interviewed several business owners and several minimum wage workers. All the workers think it's the greatest thing and every owner said how they are just going to have to raise prices.

At first I thought it wouldn't affect me as I only have one employee at close to minimum but my other employees who are currently making 18 an hour are making comments about how they need a raise so they aren't taking such a big pay cut. Right now they are double the minimum but will be close to minimum once the increase goes into effect. Then what?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top