I predict a bunch more ordering kiosks going up in McDonalds and other fast food restaurants across the land. But hey! Look at the positive side:
Riverton resident Sherry Morris, a member of Service Employees International Union, said getting $15 an hour would be a lifesaver for her and her son, who has special needs.So let's look at Ms. Morris, first. She makes $11.38 an hour as a "home health aide". Is she one of those people who gets money for taking care of a family member, such as her son, who has "special needs"? $11.38 an hour is $23,670 per year; $15 an hour is actually an extra $7,530 per year. Is she a CNA? Does she have any skills?
Morris makes $11.38 an hour as a home health aide at Help at Home in Springfield.
It can be hard for her to know which bills she will be able to pay.
"What bill do I pay this month? Which one do I let go?" she said, noting a raise to $15 would be an extra $4,000 to $5,000 a year for her.
Chicago resident Iashea Cross, a personal assistant with the Department of Rehabilitation Services, makes $13 an hour.
"Fifteen dollars an hour (would) give us all a leg up," she said at the Capitol. "Some of us won't have to work two or three jobs just to put food on the table."
Like Morris, Cross also has a hard time paying bills.
"Sometimes bills don't get paid," she said. "I'm behind on my student loans. I struggle every six months to make sure they don't go in default."
Comcast is paying people $19 an hour to take billing calls. If she needs money that badly--if an extra $3.62 an hour would be a "lifesaver"--why doesn't she change jobs?
And look at Ms. Cross. Currently earning $13 an hour ($27,040 per year) she claims that "some of us" won't have to work "two or three jobs". At $15 an hour she's earning an additional $4k per year; what second job does she have that only pays $87 a week?
And she has to "struggle" every six months to make sure her loans don't go into default? You do that by filling out a frigging form and mailing it. When you're behind on your student loans, the Department of Education mails the form to you without your asking for it. All you need to do is fill in a few blanks, put it in the provided envelope, stick a stamp on it, and drop it in a mailbox. That's hardly a "struggle".
...so let's go back to Comcast. With the minimum wage at $15 an hour, do you think Comcast is going to continue to offer $19 an hour? Or will call centers across the state all drop to $15 an hour?
Of course, the true minimum wage is ZERO, and this bill will lead to higher unemployment for unskilled workers.
The big winners in this will be unions, of course, because the higher minimum wage means they'll have a basis for demanding higher wages for their members. And since their members pay dues out of their wages--well, you do the math.
The $15 minimum wage has done terrible things for the labor markets everywhere it's been tried. It will not do Illinois any good, either.
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Well, what do you know? Police arrested two men in that second-rate actor assault thing. Nigerians. So, not white. In their apartment, police found a red hat and bleach.
Not exactly a smoking gun, you know? I mean, you'll find bleach in my house, and there's a red hat sitting on my desk. Oh, dick! I'm a person of interest!
(It's my dad's US Marine Corps ball cap. Not exactly MAGA, but close, I suppose.)
BUT! All of this is looking more and more like HOAX and not a real hate crime. As expected.
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Hearing tell that President Trump has indeed declared a state of emergency with regards to our southern border. Now let's get that damned wall built!
