In my sociology class, I have an assignment in which we must discuss minimum wage. Minimum wage is an issue in this country, especially for those living with a family. A show called 30 days, is a show in which a man lives in conditions that most would seem hard to live, but does it for a cause. He does it to show the average american the issues that are barely discussed, and he wants to expose the average person to the issues, because in the end, we can help. Minimum wage was set up in 1938 for one reason. So people could live at the bare minimum living styles. It was setup so that one could just barely get by, and not have to worry about being dirt poor. Unfortunately, minimum wage was set up for a single person themselves, and did not take into consideration the fact that one working for minimum wage may start a family. Since 1977 minimum wage has only increased $2.10.
The man in the show tried living a month off of a $7.25/hr income, and found himself living in inhumane conditions, and a huge factor that seemed to affect him and his wife was healthcare. He found himself wasting a day in the free-clinic when he could have been working, and didn't even get to see a dr. because the line was so long. He was then forced to go to the emergency room. He got the bill at the end of the month, and it was over $500, which was more than his entire month's income. My point is, can we help those in any way living under minimum wage? As time passes, it seems that the people in this country act oblivious to issues unless they are the ones affected. What can we do to help the minimum wage affects?
3 comments:
I think this is a very good post that poses a good question to a fautly government protocol. To go further, I think you should give the readers more options to consider. Like maybe implementing a "family support" amendment, in which one who is supporting a family and only earns minimum wage is given a larger paycheck paid partly by the government. This is just one option, but by giving a few of your options, will enhance the feedback that you get back from your readers, and strengthen the weight of the blog. Good post nonetheless.
I think that you bring up an important issue. I have seen this show you discuss, and I too was appalled. However, I don't know if I have much to say about the issue. Minimum wage is awful, and I don't think that anyone should have t live on it. But, on the other hand, I believe that you can control your fate, and that the decisions you make ultimately decide what you do and who you become. I don't have any specific sources here about this, but it's just something I believe.
As for your blogs as a whole, I think they bring up some very good issues. However, some of them tend to drag on a little bit (the immigration one) and lose the reader's attention. It might help to break them up into smaller paragraphs so the reader's eyes get a break- I know thats what I do. Also, try and proof-read them some more, I found a few spelling errors.
This is an important topic, and the subject of the SMU common reading two years ago, the book Nickle and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich. The author went undercover to work at Wal-Mart and in restaurants like Denny's. This book really puts the problem right in our faces, and shows how limited people's choices are if they are poor to start with. For example, you can't go to college if you can't afford it, no matter how much you are willing to work. The answer is to raise the minimum wage, for starters, and take a look at the inflated incomes of people at the top of businesses like Wal-Mart that do not let their workers organize.
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