Nobel Economists: Republicans Wrong on Minimum Wage
By Bob Geiger
Created Oct 13 2006 - 11:26am
With the buying power of the Federal minimum wage at its lowest point in 55
years, five Nobel Prize-winning economists have been joined by 650 of their
peers, in calling on the Republican-led Congress to increase the minimum
wage. Describing the last increase almost 10 years ago as now "fully
eroded," the economists said that they agree with a report written in 1999
by the Council of Economic Advisors declaring that "modest increases in the
minimum wage have had very little or no effect on employment."

"We believe that a modest increase in the minimum wage would improve the
well-being of low-wage workers and would not have the adverse effects that
critics have claimed," the economists wrote in a paper delivered this week
on a conference call hosted by the Economic Policy Institute [1], an
economic research group based in Washington, D.C.

In addition to asserting that the real value of the minimum wage is at its
lowest point since 1951, the economists also noted that the ratio of what a
minimum-wage earner makes and the average pay rates of other hourly workers
is at a significant low.

What do 650 economists know about economics? The 2 doing the GOP-paid
studies know a lot more.

It's only common sense that requiring increased wages will reduce jobs.

Employers will be laying people off left and right, shutting down their
plants and not hiring if they have to pay 50 cents an hour more to have
their floors swept. That financial burden will force plants to close, and
prices will rise due to the increased demand, creating jobs and profits.
(Ok, that sounds a little backwards in the long run, but it's just common
sense that minimum wage is bad.)

Common sense says that paying the lowest workers a barely living wage is
un-American, that employers will choose to not have work done, then the
infrastructure will go to hell and America will collapse, and that
competition is the key.
Free market competition has worked in third world fish markets for a
thousand years, and look at their growth rates compared to the growth,
productivity and health of those socialist countries of northern Europe.
(Ok, wait - don't use that comparison. It's an unfair comparison - Their
government officials don't line their own pockets, and the US is different.)

oh look, another 456 copy & pastes by "Gandalf" for nearly everyone to
ignore.

Thank you for your wonderful contributions, Gandalf. I don't know what
this "discussion" group would do without you posting 827 articles by
other people nearly every day without even offering your own opinion on
any of them.

Idiot.

"Vandar" yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:pGQYg.3269$ya1.315@news02.roc.ny...

1. You're a liar.

2. I post app. 10-15 articles/day for the general interest and comments of
readers.

3. I post app. 35-40 articles on Mondays which are a compilation of articles
read from Friday to Sunday.

4. If you don't like them, don't read them. Others have found them useful
and interesting.

5. Continue to rejoice in your ignorance, and

6. Learn how to count.

Gandalf Grey wrote:

It's called exaggerating to make a point.

Yet you offer nothing of your own.

I know. Everyone who cares has already seen the information.

"Vandar" yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:4cVYg.3291$ya1.1780@news02.roc.ny...

It's called lying.