Now, I've never considered myself an expert in economics by any stretch of the imagination but I think I understand the basics, unlike some of the utter fools that the people of this state have chosen to represent them.
Consider these comments from the utter fool from Brooklyn Center:
Sen. Chris Eaton, DFL-Brooklyn Center, who introduced the Senate bill, said that "whether it's a teenager in a part-time job or a low-income worker struggling to stretch each paycheck, putting money in the pockets of minimum-wage workers is good for the economy. The money is going to be spent in local businesses, on job training courses and rent."Think about that for a minute. Now you've thought about it for a minute longer than Sen. Eaton did. Does this moron seriously think that the legislature raising the minimum wage will result in employers magically unearthing piles of cash to use to pay employees? Of all the arguments in support of raising the minimum wage, this one has to be the most facile.
The only thing that raising the minimum wage will result in is fewer employees. If an employer can only afford three employees at $6 an hour then he can only afford two employees at $9 an hour. It's simple mathematics. There's no extra money being pumped into the economy, it's the same amount but it's being pumped in by fewer people.
Of course, those pushing to raise the minimum wage are not concerned about teenagers or low-income workers or even the ridiculous notion of stimulating the economy. No, they are only concerned with pleasing their union overlords:
Unions campaign to raise the minimum wage at least in part because it enriches them. Raising the minimum wage makes unskilled workers more expensive for businesses to hire, and so hiring skilled and highly paid union members becomes a more attractive choice. This effect increases union members' earned income but reduces low-income workers' job prospects and income. That unions support raising the minimum wage is understandable, but antipoverty advocates should reconsider their support for a policy that hurts the very people they seek to help.So, there are two conclusions to draw here. Either Sen. Chris Eaton is an idiot with absolutely no grasp on the basics of economics or she's a tool of the unions but doesn't have the courage or integrity to actually admit it. I'm going to go out on a limb and say she's both.
