The U.S. GDP per capita of $48,112 ought to do it.
It’s not a zero-sum game, with winners and losers fighting over slices of a fixed “pie” of wealth.
And who are the “losers”, exactly? Retail employees? $14,000 a year buys a level of comfort and luxury beyond the dreams of previous generations. It’s honest, productive work that one can be proud of, and can move through to more lucrative employment if one has the desire and capability.
Are they “losers” because others have more?
Well, for one thing, the unemployment rate stands at 7.9%, not 83%, so your systemic criticisms seem unfounded.
There is no the post, but here is one from post #106:
It’s not just importing products cheaper. It’s also labor. As long as there is anyone on earth desperate and starving enough to work for even less than I’m willing to, you should fuck me and hire the more desperate until the going wage is the lowest possible rate, globally. That is your idea of “globalization.”
It just so happens it is impossible to live in the US on 3rd-world starvation wages, so I’m interested in hearing your plan.
With apologies to you, why are you more important than the starving person? If we were to base the job on need I’d say the starving person is more deserving of the job (if we pretended that all jobs are zero-sum, which they aren’t).
That’s a good idea. Be angry at the people who actually do create jobs and generate wealth. Let’s punish them for their success.
Maybe everyone can’t be a lawyer, doctor or corporate executive. An economy like that wouldn’t work anyway. But you can work in the sandwich shop where they eat lunch. And if you think that job is beneath your intellect, take out a loan and go to law, medical or business school.
Plus where do you get your bizarro numbers that over %80 of college grads can’t find jobs? It’s at best half at graduation and usually most (%95) have a job within one year of graduation.
ALL job growth in the past 2 decades (including post 2008) has been in the college educated workforce.
We have minimum wage laws because some skill sets aren’t marketable. A person making minimum wage is likely overpaid because if left to market forces alone, the negotiated pay would be less.
[QUOTE=levdrakon]
Don’t know about other countries but the US is in debt because we gave everything to the rich, they spent it and charged up more, and then told the middle class it was lazy poor immigrants fault for both “stealing jobs” and “being too entitled and lazy to work.”
[/QUOTE]
Actually, we are mostly in debt because of middle-class entitlements like Social Security and Medicare. Medicaid and defense, too, but that is not a benefit to the rich either.
I suppose you could argue that TARP benefited the rich, but that’s been almost all repaid. And I doubt the GM bailout was money to the rich, unless you want to define the UAW as “the rich”.
Unless you are confusing “giving everything” with “not taking away everything”.
See, this is what I’m talking about. In these modern times we all realize the benefit of an education. It should be a collective “priority” of this country and its people. The answer should not be “take out a loan.” The answer is “how can we make education accessible and efficient?”
But some of us think that lower taxes are more important.
As I understand it, it’s tax cuts, lost revenue due to shitty economies, and increased government spending.
I think it’s more accurate to say the rich screwed up than blame it on middle class “entitlements.” If the middle class were in a position to negotiate fairly with business they’d have better wages, benefits and pensions and they wouldn’t need “middle class entitlements” to stay alive, much less live with some human dignity.
So, doesn’t look great for college grads and most work is low wage retail and waitressing but the good news is employers like their waitresses and bartenders to have bachelor’s degrees.
Wow. Soon you’ll need a bachelor’s to get a job as a waiter. And your career progression is what? Waiter, then… waiter at a different restaurant?
Going back to school seems like a great way to rack up debt just so you can get an unskilled job that won’t even pay the debt, much less starting a family or anything.
So, we’re looking at what is largely an unskilled, low-paying future for the bulk of humanity. Winners and losers. Moreover, I don’t think there are going to be that many food server jobs anyway. At some point, we have to make up jobs. The military and government already do. They’ll have to make more, or give people welfare to do nothing.