# Can someone survive on minimum wage or near it? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 12, 2004, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089 "2004-01-12T01:12:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089/61 "2004-01-19T02:35:32Z")
> [@even sven](#): > > \*\* > > I’ll keep that in mind next time I can’t afford dinner. Somewhere, somehow, this is making somebody a better person. Yes, but don’t you see, Sven, if you survive poverty, someday you’ll become a Republican and be indifferent to the suffering of others. This will be a good thing, because then you can force others into poverty and help them learn to be indifferent to the suffering of others and become Republicans. This will make for a better world, in the long world. Or at least a world that isn’t particularly bothered if most of its inhabitants are suffering. And they will be. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089/62 "2004-01-19T06:44:21Z")
\*\*I’ll keep that in mind next time I can’t afford dinner. Somewhere, somehow, this is making somebody a better person. \*\* I’ve been there and it’s no coincidence that my work ethic got better really quick when I realized there was a direct connection between how much I worked and how likely I was to eat. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089/63 "2004-01-19T10:47:01Z")
**adaher:** _I’ve been there and it’s no coincidence that my work ethic got better really quick when I realized there was a direct connection between how much I worked and how likely I was to eat._ Oh. Well, by that logic, we shouldn’t be paying all those high salaries to rich corporate CEO’s. Since they’d have plenty to eat for the rest of their lives even if they never worked another hour, their work ethic must be really shitty, huh? :rolleyes: I trust the absurdity of such a notion needs no emphasis. There may be some logical and substantiated arguments against having a high wage floor, but “near-starvation wages are important for inspiring a good work ethic” is not among them. ---
**Author:** ![jacksen9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ce73a5/32.png) [@jacksen9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacksen9)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2004, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089/64 "2004-01-19T11:25:42Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > \*\*I’ll keep that in mind next time I can’t afford dinner. Somewhere, somehow, this is making somebody a better person. > \*\* > > I’ve been there and it’s no coincidence that my work ethic got better really quick when I realized there was a direct connection between how much I worked and how likely I was to eat. The difference between high wage jobs and low wage jobs is not solely a matter of work ethic or work effort. People that are earning a minimum wage are often working extremely hard. But, the work they perform is classified as low skill and the contribution of this work is not valued. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-someone-survive-on-minimum-wage-or-near-it/224089.md?page=3)