UN FUCKING BELIEVEABLE.............

No problem; just blowing off steam....I understand.

Keep reading and commenting.....the more the better.

BTW; kudos to your son for getting up everyday and heading out to a paycheck, even if it isn't even close to what he was paid before this economic fiasco.

He has had better jobs, but the economy tanked and he has had to resort to working for minimum wage.

I read a lot of these political threads and rarely comment. But I truly believe most Americans just don't realize how much people are hurting right now.

And no one seems to have the answer; indeed there might not be one.

Sorry for the name calling Whirlaway. Originally Posted by trynagetlaid

You're a dumbass Whirlaway. I have a son who works for minimum wage and he would dearly love to have his own place, health insurance, maybe even start a family some day.

How would you like to live on $290 a week, before taxes? Thank God you and all your silver-spoon motherfucking friends will never get full control of this country. Originally Posted by trynagetlaid

I see you and whirly have worked it out...
and by the words at the end of your posts, it seems you and i dont have all that much disagreement...but before i saw that..i had written the below, which is still applicable in many regards.

seems like the minimum wage isnt doing a thing for your son then, so why be so attached to it and think whirly is a "dumbass"?

the minimum wage may even hurt your son, not only in limiting job availability, but also in just treating lower skilled workers the same.

it is a misguided public policy and hurts those it purports to help, and as you yourself have so ably stated, it doesnt help.

so many things the government forces upon the people or in clumsy and feelings based attempts to "help" people, is, despite some having good intentions, destructive to those same people.

although i am fully aware of all levels of talent and ability and some (a very minor segment) cannot aspire to some skill, the way your son can improve his lot is not by some minimum wage but by the attainment of some skill.

the minimum wage has been studied for 60 plus years and there is agreement among a majority of economists that it limits job availability, is applicable to mainly teenagers and college students, that most those in a minimum wage job remain there for only a short period of time.

it has the effect of raising prices and therefore making life more difficult for the very people many misguided types cry it helps. a young family of four with an entry level skilled postion or lower-skills type job wind up paying more for goods, food (fast or otherwise), or services because of the minimum wages paid to teenagers, many who live at home.

it also has the effect of limiting the people who need to develop a work ethic and learning to be responsible or find worth in self-reliance from ever getting that first job and perhaps their one shot just passed them by.

If your son has the character that it sounds like he has, he will move up from where he is soon. There is a shortage of jobs, but there is a bigger shortage of people who want to show up and do a good job. He'll find his place. Just keep him from losing hope, then it's very hard to recover. When a person gets dumped like that, the emotional loss can be greater than the financial loss. We tend to identify with our jobs, and then when that gets taken away, we lose a part of ourself, or so it seems. He needs to understand that what he does is not who he is. Believe in yourself, take pride in even the menial job you have, and you will move quickly out of there.

Sorry for the sermon, and I hope it isn't offensive. I just truly believe that each one of us has our place, that everything happens for a reason, and that if we keep looking for the best, we will find it.