No One Asked Me But… (July 6, 2022)

By DR. LARRY MOSES

No one asked me but… I have been checking the U.S. Constitution and have failed to find where it is that the government can set the wages for the workers on a State or Federal level.
I have no objection to labor unions forcing companies to pay $15.00 an hour, which would mean the entry level worker would bring home $31,200 dollars a year. This is surely not a princely sum but it might cover the basics.

Of course, one must keep in mind that, as wages go up, so do prices. If an employer is forced to pay higher wages, they will have two choices; either raise the price of their product or hire less people. Neither of these options are ideal. I guess a business owner has another option, they could go John Galt: take their money and run away.

One must also keep in mind that minimum wage is associated with entry-level positions. This is the wage for people just starting out with the prospect of moving up in position, responsibility and wages. If one looks at the ads for workers in America today, there is seldom a position offered under $17-20 dollars an hour. This is $35,460 – $40,600 per year! This is a great example of supply and demand at work.

Here is an idea, whatever the merit. Let’s determine a minimum income necessary for an individual to support themselves and their family. Whatever that may be. Since this will vary from state to state, each state will then set up a program to subsidize those families to that level.

Those who cannot work will be subsidized to that level. Those who could work but refuse to work would receive nothing.

All public employees would be paid the average income for those who hold similar position in private industry. All elected officials would live on the income of the average individual within their communities.

I understand that there are all kinds of problems inherent in these thoughts. They are merely thoughts, after all. However, I would ask how well is what we are doing presently working? It is time for people smarter than I to begin to address these issues outside the box they are presently working in.

No one asked me but… Since gas prices have become a major issue I thought this excerpt from a column I wrote in 2008 might be of interest. The following paragraph is for those who are interested in gas prices.
“…in Kingman, Arizona, the price of gas was similar to Las Vegas. In Quartzite, Arizona, just east of the California border gas was $4.07 a gallon. Gas in Blythe, the first town in California, was $4.78 a gallon. By the time we filled up in the L.A. area, gas was $4.59 a gallon.

“On a second trip we made, our usual stop at R-Place just north of Alamo where we usually top off the tank and use the “Gary Bachelor” restrooms.
“Our family has named these restrooms after the Moapa Valley High School Athletic Director who scheduled a stop there for all traveling teams headed north. I remember when they had only one small restroom that also served as a mop closet.
“The price of gas there was about what we were paying in the Moapa Valley.

“Tonopah is traditionally our next gas stop, which is made at the ever-popular Giggle Springs station. The sign said Regular gas was $4.22 for cash; however, they failed to mention they did not recognize a debit card purchase as cash and I paid $4.33.

“The real bonanza was in Fernley where the gas price was $4.03. While in California, gas prices dropped about five cents a gallon. On the way home we paid $3.99 at the Fernley station.
“One benefit of the higher gas prices is that there was a whole lot less traffic on the road. (This is not the case today in 2022. Traveling the I-15 one realizes that high gas price have not slowed down the American traveler.)

“While it was hardly noticeable on the Southern California trip, it was highly evident when we traveled north. To go to central California, we traveled US 95, the main north-south route in Nevada. Traffic on this road was noticeably lighter. The number of semis and motor homes passed was down. Has anyone else wondered why that road has remained two lanes? It is the main connection between the State Capitol in Carson City and the major population center in Las Vegas.

“It is hard to tell if traffic was down on the highway past Rachel, Nevada. We usually encounter four or five cars on this 111-mile stretch but we were only passed twice, by the same California car. The driver apparently found some reason to stop in Rachel.

“We met only one vehicle coming from the opposite direction. We did see many wild horses and they looked well fed and healthy as were the open range cattle that fortunately weren’t walking on the highway.”

No one asked me but… A reporter asked President Biden how long the gas prices would remain high. His reply was ‘that is up to the Russians.’ He repeated the word Russians three times.
One must wonder when America allowed other countries especially Russia to determine the policies of America. I do not remember voting for Vladimir Putin for President.

We live in a country with the resources to supply Americans with fuel for over 300 years. We do not need to depend on Russia or the Middle-east for our fuel supply.
In those 300 years, I am sure that some American inventor will come up with a feasible plan to power automobiles without fossil fuels.

We have a present administration who is in the blame game. It is always someone else’s fault.
The shortages in America are not the fault of foreign governments nor of a past president. It is time for the Democrats to get over Trump. It is time for the Republicans to move beyond Trump.

A real leader works to fix problems rather than fix blame. I don’t care who caused high gas prices and other inflationary acts. But I am interested in a leader who can cure the problems. Unfortunately I don’t believe either of the major parties is going to offer us that individual. And if that is the case, the status of the country will continue to decline.

Thought of the week…I know you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.