Yeah, it’s another “You can’t Win Question”. Seeing that a doper actually got the answer for the “May 33rd” question, I’m hoping one of your will help me out on this one too.
http://home.wi.rr.com/youcantwin/
Pardon me for saying so, but it’s a stupid question. It no doubt has countless correct answers, given the zillions of possible job descriptions there are. I suggest you reply “doorknob polishers” and if they say no, ask them prove that doorknob polishers weren’t paid $2.75 in 1923 and $40 in 2000.
I’m sure, though, that they nabbed this from the Commerce Departments series of historical statistics. Any large library should have 'em. Have fun paging through page after page of dusty statistics.
Based on the idea that “it’s a lot more specific than that”, I’m guessing it’s something like, “a security guard at Fort Knox” or “the ringleader of Barnum & Bailey’s Circus”.
I know they’re usually specific, but this phrasing seems strange – there’s also the possibility that they might pull the trick of ‘amortizing’ a yearly salary to equate with dollars/hr. $40/hr. every hour for a full year is about $350,000. I thought they might be going for the Pres. of the US, but that job pays $400,000 + expenses, so that doesn’t fit. The VP makes under $100,000/yr.
I agree that it’s a stupid question-- most of their questions are stupid in the sense of being vague and answerable in many ways. You just have to figure out what they’re thinking of, not an actual answer.
I think the question means,
“It used to pay $2.75 an hour.”
“Now it pays $40 in 77 years.”
I don’t know what the answer is, though.
Well, $2.75/hr to $40/hr after 77 years corresponds to a 3.54%/year inflation rate, which I believe is a fairly typical average inflation estimate. So any job that currently pays ~$40/hr today and existed in 1924 should suffice ($40/hr, 40 hrs/week, 52 weeks/year = $83,200/year).
$40/hour for a 40 hour/wk. job is an annual salary of $83,200. The first inflation calculator I found with google equates $2.75 in 1923 dollars with $27.36 in 2000 dollars, or a 2000 annual salary of $56,908.80. The place to start looking would be jobs that fall in those pay ranges that existed both in 1923 and 2000. Probably not computer techs.
The VP makes $186,300/yr.
http://www.govspot.com/know/presidentsalary.htm
I’ll second that. Wasn’t there one about a license plate on a wall at a resturaunt in Arizona or something? And the show is where? Wisconsin? Come on, that’s just stupid…
Before I devote my Massive Brainpower 
to solving another one of these things, what’s the prize for this one? 
Had you opened the site that appeared in my OP you would know:
110 CD’s from 5 Milwaukee area Exclusive Companies, a Sony 200 disk programable CD changer from Flanners Audio & Video , a $300 gift certificate from Connection Ticket Services, palm pilot personal organizer from Carspot.com , a softball package from Boycott sporting goods, a $1500 intel family system from Custom Edge PC .
is it airplane pilots?
Commercial airline pilots make ALOT more than that.
A close personal friend is a TWA pilot and I know he doesn’t make alot more than that.
Not to be a smartass or anything. 
But $2.75 an hour is not a salary, It’s a wage.
My guess would be a pro football player. But I don’t know how they would figure the $40. What was the minimum salary in the NFL in 1999 (77 years after the NFL started in 1922)?
My neighbor is a USAirways pilot and he makes about $170 an hour.
Again, it’s not $40 per hour.
It just says $40.
Or, $40 in 77 years.
Is there a ‘job’ that used to pay $2.75 an hour (not 77
years ago, just anytime), that now ‘pays’ at the rate
of $40 every 77 years?
I’m thinking some job that used to be real, that is now just
an honorary position.
I’m thinking jury duty…
Seeing as these types of questions always seem to have some weirdo answer…
Something to do with Haley’s Comet? That comes around once every 77 years, right? Is there some one-shot job associated with it, like, “Extras Needed for Comet Movie”?
I gotta say I’m a little worried about this thread because I still remember what happened the last time. Somebody had the unmitigated gall to actually post the answer to the question right in the thread. And he was roundly denounced for it (but not, as far as I can tell, by pkbites himself).
This is General Questions. It is the answer-this-question forum, not the help-me-win-this-prize forum. The idea is to provide the answer here in the thread for all the world to see. Otherwise, the question doesn’t really belong here.
If you know the answer, you are not required to post it. But if somebody else posts the answer, I don’t want to hear any complaining about it.
bibliophage
moderator GQ
Major Commercial Airline Pilots and all Professional Sports Athletes currently start at much higher pay rates than 40/hr.
I’m not familiar with this, but I’d go somehwere in the direction of some political officer’s salary.
Nevertheless the website and editing certainly suck ass.