Flap Your Lips Friday
Posted by Michelle Moquin on April 25th, 2014
Good morning!
The minimum wage is still a hot topic in the news and rightly so. Unfortunately, as you know, it is always the repubs that say “no.”
Congressman Tells Low-Income Worker: Higher Minimum Wage Is ‘Not Right’
TAMPA, Florida — People like Shaneeka Rainer are often told that they shouldn’t try to get the minimum wage increased because it only really applies to teenagers working entry-level jobs. That indeed may have described Rainer 10 years ago, when he first entered the workforce. But a decade after he got his first job in fast food, Rainer still finds himself working at Arby’s for minimum wage.
In other words, Rainer has worked an entire decade receiving only one raise: when Congress increased the minimum wage in 2007.
And so he showed up at his congressman’s public forum on Tuesday to ask Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL) to finally give him and millions of other low-income Americans a raise.
Ross, who is seeking a third term representing Tampa’s northwest suburbs, was unmoved by Rainer’s plea. “It’s not right,” the Florida Republican said. “If we are going to make it a living wage, who’s going to pay for it?”
An audience member declared that he’d gladly pay slightly more for a hamburger in order to increase the minimum wage, prompting applause from the crowd.
Rainer asked the congressman whether he would be willing to come work at Arby’s with him for one day so he can see how difficult minimum wage work is, but Ross demurred. Instead, he railed against the very notion of a minimum wage and even the concept of labor laws in general. “If the government’s going to tell me how much I can get paid and when I can work and when I can’t work, then we have a serious problem in this country,” Ross said.
RAINER: Would you support the Obama act of raising the federal minimum wage?
ROSS: No. [...] I think it would do more harm to our economy than anything. You work at Arby’s, the cost of products, the cost of services are going to go up. [...] If we are going to make it a living wage, who’s going to pay for it? Who’s going to pay for it?
AUDIENCE MEMBER: I will. I’ll pay 20 cents extra for a hamburger. [Applause]
RAINER: He said he’ll pay. So if he’ll pay, I’m going to work every day busting my butt. I want to know, would you take a walk in my shoes? Lay your tie and your suit down, just for a day, 24 hours, and take a walk in my shoes. The people that I work with, we’re keeping the economy floating and going in the cycle. But the people that hire, they’re just paying money, just throwing money. But I’m actually working every day. So why wouldn’t you support it?
ROSS: Because it’s not right. Economically, it’s not right. It does more harm to our economy. [...] If the government’s going to tell me how much I can get paid and when I can work and when I can’t work, then we have a serious problem in this country.
Watch it:
“I felt like he blew off my question,” Rainer told ThinkProgress after the town hall. “He doesn’t understand what it’s like.”
Indeed, for millions of workers, a stagnant minimum wage is actually a falling real wage. That’s because the minimum wage isn’t indexed to inflation, so $7.25 is worth about 6 percent less in 2012 than it was in 2009, for instance.
Over the past few decades, the lower and middle classes haven’t just seen dwindling incomes, but also declining opportunities for advancement. Stories like Rainer’s of workers being stuck in minimum wage jobs for years are increasingly common.
Towards the end of our conversation, Rainer’s exasperation became apparent. “I bust my butt for these people everyday,” he said in disbelief that lawmakers like Ross don’t think he deserves a raise. “Come down to Arby’s for 24 hours. Take the broom, wipe down the bathroom. See what it’s like.”
*****
Readers: Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL), like so many who don’t live on minimum wage salary, is so out of touch on how challenging it is to support oneself on a minimum wage. When the wage isn’t even indexed to inflation, how can anyone say that raising the minimum wage “Is not right?” As usual, the Repubs who don’t live on it, and don’t care about the ones who do.
The solution is to raise the minimum wage. I’ll have more to support how important it is to raise the minimum wage on Sunday, so stay tuned.
Gwen, et al: Thank you for blogging your support of Grimes! I HOPE that you all saw the additional comment from the DSCC saying that they would match your donation…and that you made a donation before the deadline. It is these small steps that could help us keep the Senate blue, baby.
Henry: I HOPE she does too but HOPE is not enough, we need to take action to insure that she wins. And I have to say, I disagree with you, a massive cash advantage is important. It could win the election. Hence, donations toward Grimes winning is important. Money and the more of it always has more power. People are easily swayed and money is the impetus. We want that money on the blue side.
Georgia: Me. too. It’s going to take lots of work, but HOPEfully the Dems are up for it and into it.
Happy Friday! Thanks for your support and for being here with me.
Peace out.
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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April 25th, 2014 at 4:16 pm
Face it. these republicans are just fucking idiots.
April 25th, 2014 at 5:56 pm
Thomas, they are not idiots, they are just corrupt.
April 25th, 2014 at 5:59 pm
The state owned media holds conservatives and even republicans to a different standard than they do democrats.
This blog is like a state owned media outlet.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:16 pm
“California must reverse billions of dollars in brutal cuts to education, healthcare and other essential programs that politicians passed after Wall Street crashed our economy.
Pass a budget that invests $5 billion more in education and health and human services than Governor Brown has proposed. You can do this easily by taxing Big Oil, spending less on unnecessary prison expansion, refusing to unnecessarily accelerate debt payments, and using money now that Governor Brown has earmarked for the rainy day fund.”
April 25th, 2014 at 6:18 pm
After Mitch McConnell and his friends outspent Democrat Alison Grimes by $442,366 last week alone, a new poll released just hours ago from the New York Times shows that it has reversed her one point lead: Grimes (D) 43 – McConnell (R) 44.
This race is a dead heat right now, but if these attacks continue unanswered and we let them propel McConnell to victory, Nate Silver warns that it could hand Republicans the majority-clinching 51st seat in a crushing Senate takeover.
We REFUSE to let McConnell win and lead a Republican takeover of the Senate. To stop that, we must match his attack spending dollar-for-dollar with grassroots support — and raise $442,366 by midnight tonight. We’re so close: we have just $50,000 left to raise before midnight tonight — will you join us right away? Your gift will be matched!
April 25th, 2014 at 6:35 pm
If he’s trying to win votes, he seems to be failing.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:35 pm
They should’ve threw a shoe at him.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:36 pm
LOL!
April 25th, 2014 at 6:37 pm
This congressman is more dangerous than Al Qaeda
And will cause more human suffering, more death, than Al Qaeda could ever hope to achieve with his disgusting attitude.
We must not take this anymore folks, that piece of PUKE congressman hates that Black man, you can see it in the way he walked toward him and raised his voice.
He HATES that Black man and he HATES working people and he HATES you and me.
i AM SICK OF THIS, ARE YOU YET?
April 25th, 2014 at 6:38 pm
Hello Congressman….
let’s see…
I am starting a business and selling goods to the “market”.
I have costs which include product, overhead, marketing, labor, etc. That determines the price at which I sell certain goods and services. So if the minimum wage goes up I have to take a decision to reduce my take, etc. I can always pass along all those costs to the consumer.
But that is the race to the bottom. Why don’t we want to raise the living standards of all Americans. Quite honestly if Beastie Boy who weighs 350 pounds pulls in and wants to order a KillME burger and the price has gone up by 40 cents I applaud that.
First of all BB is paying to ensure the people preparing and serving him can put a roof over their heads and maybe he can afford less of these.
Studies have shown that these programs work and have negligible effects on employment. This is a right-wing scare tactic promoted by the K(roach) brothers and others.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:38 pm
Glad to see the attendees were not falling for the Congressman’s lies and bullshit excuses.
He mentioned “God”.
I don’t think “God” would fall for his bullshit either.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:38 pm
These assholes think it’s their job to sell Right Wing Ideology.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:39 pm
Its an opportunity to have an unlivable wage?
I cant believe he just said that. He thinks the minimum wage is there to prevent employers from taking advantage of employees? Eh, I’ll give him partial credit there.
The minimum wage was intended to meet the needs of a person to be able to pay rent, heating costs and food costs… basic necessities. These days, there is nearly no one who can do those things with a minimum wage income.
Dennis Ross is clearly not an economic powerhouse of knowledge.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:40 pm
Psychopaths and bullies are in charge, and they got theirs.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:40 pm
And neither is Congressman Ross re-election.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:41 pm
Loved it when he went into Bullshit speech
Greatest country-God-I worked in min. wage-flag-government off our back-blah,blah,blah. He was in a hostile room so he just thought, “better use those catch-all phrases”. What a prick.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:41 pm
This is in Tampa
I wish I knew about it – surely wouldn’t have been able to keep my mouth shut.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:41 pm
Corporate profits are at record highs. The idea that min. wage increases cause price increases is nothing but a fantasy.
He claims “markets work”, but ignores all the research into what actually happens in the real world.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:42 pm
We need more of this…
More often when the teabaggers showed up the Dems didn’t do a damn thing.
The Dems let the media tell everyone that this group of nuts were the majority of the country,especially during 2010 primaries we can’t let them do this again.
Show up and show out at the townhalls!
April 25th, 2014 at 6:43 pm
Clift#12, Oh, but it IS their job to sell it…
… That’s their only career path, because if any one of their constituents had a fair chance to vote (while they’re working their ass off), they’d be fish wrap.
This disgusting display of Corporate mentality just didn’t convince the room, though, so there just may be hope.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:45 pm
When people complain about who is going to pay for increases in minimum wage they really mean “we don’t want to lose any corporate profits paying people, we’d rather let the tax payers pick up all the slack with food stamps, welfare…”
April 25th, 2014 at 6:46 pm
Sounds like a guy who never had to work a minimum wage job in his life.
April 25th, 2014 at 6:47 pm
Come on, Renae. He said he mowed lawns when he was twelve. He knows your struggles.
April 25th, 2014 at 7:37 pm
Bigdawg#23, I can only imagine what that cemented in his brain. “If i could go and mow my neighbor’s lawn for $5 when I was 12 and go back and live in my parent’s pretty suburban home and save enough to buy that $40 bicycle I wanted, there is no reason that people can’t afford the things they want now”
April 25th, 2014 at 7:47 pm
Greg#24, unfortunately that mentality is also indicative of a lot of conservatives here on Michelle’s blog.
“i do it so therefore there is absolutely no reason on earth why every other human being in this country cannot go back in time and do exactly the same things i did 40 years ago exactly the same way.”
April 25th, 2014 at 7:53 pm
Katt#25, Ha! So true. Just a few minutes ago, on another blog, somebody wrote a comment about how they worked at a pizza place to pay their way through college.
Give me a fucking break. At $7 dollars an hour, he’ll be working 100 years before he can afford that education. How out of touch can people be with reality?
April 25th, 2014 at 7:55 pm
Katt#25, It is because conservatives frame political decisions almost exclusively about themselves, their family, and their tribe.
They are not extrospective enough to concern themselves with those who they deem other.
It is the same the world over.
April 25th, 2014 at 7:56 pm
Katt#25, are you telling me that you don’t have the personal responsibility to go back in time right now and do just that?
Why do you hate America?
April 25th, 2014 at 7:58 pm
Katt#25, Sad but true. My grandparents always say shit like “I did…. back in my day. If I could do it, other people can too”.
My response is always something like “Bill Gates made billions, why can’t you?”. That usually shuts them up.
April 25th, 2014 at 8:00 pm
Katt#25, I admit I am guilty of that. I make 25K a year, and have three children. I have a nice-ish two bedroom home near work, and I finally got off food stamps. I still manage to buy nice things for the kids, save money, and have a 401k.
It isn’t that I think “Anyone can do this” so much as “anyone with a full time, half decent job can live within their means.”
Because I do, and I know how to do it. But I guess, in a way, it’s the same thing that you just said: “I can do it so you can to.”
April 25th, 2014 at 8:01 pm
Tom#28, if i’m going to go back in time, i’m going to pick a much better point at which to fix shit :).
April 25th, 2014 at 8:04 pm
John, I had nothing. I got a Pell Grant, and took out student loans. Got my associate’s degree as a Paramedic. Spent some time in the Army, used GI Bill and got my RN/BSN.
I actively looked for ways to pull myself up to a point that I could have a home, cars, and nice things. What I had going for me was motivation and a small amount of intelligence.
Can anyone do it? I don’t think so, I think some people have been beat down so long that they just can’t rise above wherever they are, but it hurts society at large not to help them.
To me, it’s hard to justify spending billions on war and then fighting over millions in social spending.
April 26th, 2014 at 5:36 am
Thomas #25, with so many people in so many countries just trying to survive… war makes no sense at all. I would think a majority of the worlds population would agree with that. It’s certain factions, and certain political powers and lobbiests that keep it going.
Why fight? Money, religion, territory? Why the hell is Russia trying to take the Ukraine when so many people there don’t want them to? And yet it is.
If everyone in the world stopped focusing on this stupid bolder flying through space and started looking toward the sky again maybe we could accomplish something great.
April 28th, 2014 at 8:19 am
Vitamin E Levels Related to Cognitive Impairment
Researchers reported in a study published in October 2013 that higher serum levels of vitamin E were associated with lower risk of cognitive impairment in older adults. Vitamin E includes eight natural compounds, including four tocopherols and four tocotrienols. Approximately five to 20 percent of older individuals have mild cognitive impairment. Of these individuals, 10-15 percent progress to dementia each year.
The subjects included 140 non-cognitively impaired elderly adults. At the beginning of the study, the researchers measured levels of tocopherols and tocotrienols, as well as alpha-tocopherylquinone and 5-nitro-gamma-tocopherol—markers of vitamin E oxidative/nitrosative damage. The investigators followed the subjects for eight years to assess for the development of mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s dementia.
The investigators found that the subjects with middle-levels of the gamma-tocopherol/cholesterol ratio had a 73 percent lower risk of developing cognitive impairment than the subjects with the lowest levels. The researchers also determined that the subjects with middle or high levels of 5-nitro-gamma-tocopherol/gamma-tocopherol ratio had approximately three times the risk of developing cognitive impairment. Additionally, the researchers showed that subjects with higher levels of gamma-tocopherol, beta-tocotrienol and total tocotrienols had a lower risk of cognitive impairment.
The study authors concluded, “Elevated levels of tocopherol and tocotrienol forms are associated with reduced risk of cognitive impairment in older adults. The association is modulated by concurrent cholesterol concentration. Various vitamin E forms might play a role in cognitive impairment, and their evaluation can provide a more accurate measure of vitamin E status in humans.”
Reference: Mangialasche F, et al. Exp Gerontol. 2013;12:1428-35.