Who Knew the Terminator Lacked Backbone?

Steve Frank skewers the Governor's planned hike in California's minimum wage, providing a summary of the arguments against minimum wage laws, which Larry Elder likes to point out "hurt most those they purport to help."

Apparently the plan is to increase the minimum wage in two increments, ultimately by a full dollar an hour, landing us at $7.75 an hour. As usual, this will make it harder for unskilled people—and those who are the victims of prejudice—to find work.

We know about the failure of the California education system. Over 100,000 12th graders are in jeopardy due to their inability to pass a test, at the 10th grade level in order to graduate. These will be the first victims on the altar of the raise in minimum wage.

The lessons learned from the 40's, 50's, '60's, through the '90's was still true in 2005. If you want to harm those most in need, raise the minimum wage. Of course this helps the Democrats. They believe in government control over the individual. They want poor people, that is why their policy is to keep people poor, not allow them to become self sufficient. That is why this is not a compassionate act, the raising of minimum wage, it is a crass political act of power--power over people, their money, their jobs, their families their future under freedom.

This is what we know:

1. Those on welfare are 44% less able to get off welfare
2. teenage blacks lose even more opportunity for jobs
3. The poor have fewer chances for a job
4. Studies show that only 6% of those receiving minimum wage are actually the single financial support for a family.
5. Minimum wage folks also receive free health care, can receive vouchers for food and housing, and have other support systems.

But, there is an answer. I, too, want to raise the take home pay and spendable income of the poor and least among us. You don't mandate policies that cause them to lose jobs, instead you create incentives for business to grow and therefore create competition for jobs--which causes higher wages.

Cut taxes, on sales, on income, on corporations. If the private sector is more vibrant, more jobs will occur—that is the Milton Friedman answer. Kennedy, Reagan, Bush all saw this, now Arnold needs to go back and re-read "Capitalism and Freedom."

Frank backs his assertions up not just with Milton Friedman's work, but study results, and quotations from the likes of Alan Greenspan. So be sure to read the whole thing.