In spite overwhelming evidence, the House GOP has called for a raising of the minimum wage over the next three years from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour. So why are the Republicans caving to leftist pressure. Why is the party that presumably supports a robust and sound economy instituting legislation which will drive up costs for businesses and consumers, reduce economic expansion and limit availability of low skilled jobs? Why? Because the GOP, like their Democratic counterparts are politicians first and foremost and its an election year and the faltering Republicans will try anything to win votes (as if it will matter).

With Republican support in the house for the wage hike, it is all but certain to pass with near universal support amongst the party of the “common man.” For their part the GOP has tied the wage increase to a corresponding decrease in the inheritance tax, a tax which should not exist in the first place, but then again neither should a minimum wage. The Republican effort, will fail, no one who is affected by this minimum wage bill (i.e., low skilled workers) is going to shift their vote to the GOP over this act, largely because these leftist constituents are bought and paid for by the Democratic Party, they owe their loyalty to the party, as the Democrats, being the party of the entitlement generation, are bound to support continued serf like initiatives which bind the electorate ever closer to the party and the state.

For the most part the public, which the left has groomed to accept such mandates from on-high, have supported an increase in the minimum wage. This is not surprising as the uneducated masses within the US electorate continue to grow, thus serving as easy prey for the smooth talking demagogues of the American left who argue that lack of skill and lack of training should not impede one’s ability to be a success in America, indeed, the leftist rallying cry is quite simple: once you are born you are entitled to a all the perks enjoyed by those who actually work hard.

Regardless of public opinion, neither the federal, state or local governments of this nation have any business in mandating the wages of this country’s workers. The marketplace is a more than adequate tool for regulating salaries. For the federal government to artificially increase the wages of low skilled workers does a great disservice to American consumers and the economy as a whole.

Individuals should be paid based upon the value of their work to the employer. A job requiring a person to man a cash register or stock a shelf is of minimal value, because such workers are easily replaceable and have no level of specialized skill or training. Thus their value to an employer is distinctly limited. Minimum wage laws strike at the very heart of the Free Enterprise system by removing the primary motivator for individuals to achieve success: incentive. If one can achieve without the requisite hard work, then what incentive is there to work in the first place? Why bother going to college why bother to study hard, why bother to put forth that extra effort, when the state will mandate a minimum salary, regardless of effort?

Then off course there are those who contend that the minimum wage is too low to raise a family, a dazzling deduction indeed. Given this knowledge, would it not be prudent to forgo having children until one is actually able to afford it? Perhaps that level of cognitive reasoning is lacking amongst the minimum skill crowd.

The Free Enterprise system allows for success based on merit and initiative. The Free Enterprise system does not reward sloth and those who frequently and persistently squander resources and opportunities. This minimum wage bill will succeed in two things: placating minimum skill workers and slowing the economy.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-07-28-minimumwage-vote_x.htm


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