Congress pretty much literally cuts pay for the military with 2008's shitty pay increase.

this is something my old boss at the pizza place was afraid of happening, but knew would eventually, and it will not help his bottom line at all.....

We won't even go there. I think our military are definitely underpaid!

Every penny spent helps the economy. The worst thing you can do, economy-wise, with money is let it sit somewhere.

Anyway, if you're only going to college so you can lord your bigger paycheck and life over those on the dole then I can't say I think much of that moral stance (not that I think that's your intention of course, but what you've said does sound a little suss).

Oh, going to college to improve your life sucks, cacto? I see, you're only supposed to get an education for a "higher" purpose.

The truth is, the main reason I am going to college IS to make more money. I can do most of the things I NEED to do without a degree; the main reason for that degree is to make more money. You can judge me and call that greedy all you want, cacto, but the plain and simple truth is, you have no idea what I'm going to do with that money, DO YOU?

Huh? I didn't say that. I said that going to college so you can feel superior to those who are on minimum wage is morally dubious, and that seemed to be the line you were (unintentionally I'm sure) pushing.

Has something gone terribly wrong in your life? In the last six months or so you've become incredibly touchy and extremely quick to over-react to practically anything. Are you on 'roids?

That is NOT what you said, cacto. And when did I ever say I was going to college to "lord it over" those on the dole. You made a pretty harsh judgement with your comment.

Actually, no, things have been quite good in my life, cacto. You consider me as being touchy; I consider accusing me of going to college to lord it over those on the dole a particularly nasty allegation, especially considering the fair amount of time and money I've given to those on the dole over the years. I can honestly say I've never turned a family away hungry from my door, cacto.

The problem I have with what you said is that it implies that one should be guilty about attempting to be financially successful. If this were the only place you said it, it would be one thing, but it pretty much pervades your comments, cacto, and honestly because it echoes a lie I was raised with and believed most of my life, it's a pretty sore spot.

The truth is, cacto, in America, the people who work minimum wage fall predominantly into select few classes: the very young, working first jobs, the very old working a few hours a week in retirement, and the lazy and unmotivated. The fact that I haven't made minimum wage on my main job in over fifteen years DESPITE having no college education and in some rather trying economies would bear this fact out, as would statistics from the US Department of Labor. I don't know what poverty's like in Oz, cacto, but the overwhelming majority of America's poorest are where they are because of personal life decisions.

I cannot tell you the number of times I have tried to help people in those circumstances; the truth is, most of them do not WANT help. Exhibit A: a fellow college student whose family has lived on public assistance of one kind or another for about twenty years. We had practice interviews in the class, he blew off not one, not two, but THREE practice interviews, refusing to even BATHE to prepare for them. I tried to gently speak to him about things he could do to improve, his response was to spread the lie (easily disproven) that I was "picking on him" and that's why he was having problems with school. Fortunately I had several witnesses to the entire exchange to corroborate my story.

If his were the only case, I would let it go at that. But I have seen literally hundreds more people like him. And it boggles the mind why we should reward people like that with a 40% raise over two years while the rest of us work our asses off to be successful.

Well you did ask why you should go to college if you're not going to get more money than someone on the dole. There's lots of pretty obvious reasons - self-improvement, education, broadening of academic horizons. Saying the only reason to go is to get more money is an insult to other people who went for other reasons. I would have gone even if it meant I'd make less money than before.

The worst thing you can do, economy-wise, with money is let it sit somewhere.

So you think that money for investment and loans (like for your house or car) is conjured out of the air?

*Poof* Here's another 25 grand for a new car.

Every one of those things I can get from a public library, cacto. Do they not have those in Oz?

I'm not sure I would say that you've gotten a pay cut, but you (and many others in similar circumstances) are going to be looking at a lack of growth in income for a while once the minimum wage hikes hit the economy.

Calling it a cut isn't necessarily true since the real income isn't cut, but the buying power of said income isn't going up that is for sure.

I'm not particularly a fan of raising the minimum wage, at least not without indexing it for inflation so that it isn't the obvious political pandering that we should all be seeing it as it is currently.  The current measures don't really do anything for a good sized portion of the low-income wage earners in the country as most businesses have already had to pay over the 'new' federally mandated minimum wage levels for quite some time.  Why?  Because they couldn't get employees if they didn't.  The free market was working on the issue on it's own, and I was happy with that, even though their were some, not many, but some, individuals that were earning the absolute bare minimum and they probably deserved some minor increase in that income level.

We've talked about it before, and most people that are earning minimum wages should be looking hard at themselves as to why.  Hard working individuals typically find their way into better wages over time, even if the better wages aren't that much more than minimums.

You do understand what money invested in a bank or venture capital company is used for, don't you? It's invested in loans and other companies, and so doesn't just sit there. In fact you actually have to try hard to make your money do nothing.

without this being some kind of "THING"
I must agree with Cacto.. something that rarely ever happens.

MM,

Cacto accused me of wanting to get wealthy to "lord it over the poor". I'm supposed to shrug that off?

Let's see, I'm called a racist by one reg because I don't agree with allowing unfettered immigration across the border, I'm accused of lording it over the poor because I think someone who invests in their future should reap greater rewards than someone who loafs and refuses to improve themselves by another, and I'm accused of being a closeted Fred Phelps by another because I believe in the Bible...and I'm supposed to sit back and SMILE at this shit?

The truth is there is no decorum, no politeness from the opposing side. Why should I grant quarter when it's not granted me?

I respect your opinion, MM, and I respect you, but honestly, I'm tired of the targetted name calling. I may not say anything on a lot of this, but I cannot help but be affected by it. Cacto's accusation was particularly virulent and nasty, and anyone who knows anything about who I am would understand why. I could offer countless examples to show why, but those examples would be nothing but a brag book and I'm not about that. I'm uncomfortable, frankly, with the few examples of my personal charitable actions that I HAVE listed.

Of course not. But you never used to use caps at all, let alone several times in every post, and now you do it as much as drmiler. It's a definite style/personality shift and I found it concerning, which is why I mentioned it.

But let's look at what I said:



Note I said I didn't think that was your intention, but that was what you sounded like. I didn't jump to any conclusions about what you meant, I only questioned your wording. In response you eventually say:



I can't say this without being offensive, so I'll be short instead - you never used to have this problem with reading comprehension brought on by what seems to be an extreme case of victim syndrome. It's a considerable change from the reasonable and always fair man I always thought you were.