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Can you live on Minimum Wage

Can you live on Minimum Wage

  • Total voters
    63
longview said:
I disagree, I think anyone who completes high school is capable of college level work.
Community college classes are affordable to just about anyone.
Even just putting some college on your resume can improve your chances.
Taking a few specialize classes related to your area may even get you a career.
If nothing else, anyone can wait tables, it teaches good people skills.
In 1979 when the minimum wage was $2.65/hr, I waited tables at a pizza place
for $1.90/hr, but would make about $25/6 hour shift in tips(and free Pizza).
The real problems come when you have a family that is counting on you to provide.
I have worked some UGLY jobs over the years, to make sure my kids were provided for.
The good news is, the USA is truly the land of opportunity, hard work and a good attitude do pay off.
It is the reason so many people still want to come here.
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Your saying that everyone graduates HS...listen there are high school graduates in McDonalds and they had to put pictures of hamburgers and soda and coffee because they couldnt negotiate the number keys to ring up the register. Nope nada not...many schools give the answers to the test to the students and many just give them diplomas and they cant write a coherent paragraph.
Dear Lord so many of you live in this utopia where everything and everyone is just how you imagine they should be...there are no cookie cutter people...there are people that cant make it no matter how they tried...
 
specklebang said:
The women are mostly vat-grown clones.

Actually, I lived with a high-priced call girl during my time in SF. $600 for 90 minutes incall. I got sick and tired of not being able to go 50 feet without some homeless person asking me for money. I got tired of paying a fortune for a basic meal. I got tired of searching for a parking space. I hope I never set foot in SF again.

And no, Miss Ho and I are no longer "special friends" which probably is the root of my bitterness.:roll:
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What neighborhood were you living in? I'm asking because the homeless thing is really only an issue in certain parts of the city.
 
lpast said:
Existing is not living...and I stand by in most of the country you cannot live meaning able to pay for all basic necessities...and try being a single mother on minimum wage...
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You're moving the goal posts again. And a single mother on minimum wage would qualify for a "free" cell phone, rent assistance, food stamps, child care assistance, and possibly TANF.
 
specklebang said:
I should also add that Vegas has NO shortage of restaurants, night-life, sexy girls (not necessarily smart though) and enough cultural venues. Plus, it's the easiest place to start a business and the cost of living is negligible compared to most other places.

I moved here specifically for opportunity after visiting many other major cities (in 1973).
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Your also living in the middle of a desert. Here if it gets above 26C(79F) everything shuts down. One of the reasons I could never live in the U.S. let alone a desert, it's too damn hot.
 
earthworm said:
Being poor and living in an apartment - unthinkable.
Buy an old run down house and fix her up, have but ONE minimum pay job.
Plan ahead..
Do not work at Walmart.
Grow with a half decent company.
Be greedy not.
I have made these mistakes and I have done things correctly.
When things go wrong, accept the responsibility - blame no-one.
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Not everyone can do what you can do...and there are people that cant buy breakfast how are they supposed to buy a house.
 
lpast said:
Existing is not living...and I stand by in most of the country you cannot live meaning able to pay for all basic necessities...and try being a single mother on minimum wage...
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Whose fault is that she is a single mother? Where is the father? If she couldn't afford a child, why did she let herself get pregnant in the first place? It's easily prevented you know. And what is stopping her from going out, taking opportunities and make more of herself?

All I am seeing is tons of excuses and not a single legitimate reason amongst them.
 
TheLastIndependent said:
My mom and I live on minimum wage. We also live in a house that has been paid off and with my Grandparents. Either way, it leaves absolutely no free money
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So you are not living on min wage...you live rent free and share the utils with your grandparents...thats totally different than having to fend totally on your own on minimum wage from scratch.
 
specklebang said:
I should also add that Vegas has NO shortage of restaurants, night-life, sexy girls (not necessarily smart though) and enough cultural venues. Plus, it's the easiest place to start a business and the cost of living is negligible compared to most other places.
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This is true, although personally I'm not a big fan of Vegas. It's a little too much on the garish side for my tastes. Also, I like living on the coast. Better weather and fantastic views.
 
Busted. I lived at Oak & Shrader in The Haight of course. I ran into this all over the city though.



Aderleth said:
What neighborhood were you living in? I'm asking because the homeless thing is really only an issue in certain parts of the city.
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Manc Skipper said:
I lived in a hole in the road with twelve brothers and worked 25 hours a day at mill..... Not everyone is as capable as you, has the intellect, or the drive, whatever. Minimum wage might be an aspiration for some. A civilised society cares for those at the bottom.
In the present economic climate, there will be many unemployed who are overqualified for minimum wage jobs, but have no option since that is the only work that's hiring.
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bolded: ain't that the truth ;)
 
July and August are hellish at about 110 F but we have plenty of air conditioning. Winters are mild. Except for L.A. its some of the nicest weather in America.


0bserver92 said:
Your also living in the middle of a desert. Here if it gets above 26C(79F) everything shuts down. One of the reasons I could never live in the U.S. let alone a desert, it's too damn hot.
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lpast said:
So you are not living on min wage...you live rent free and share the utils with your grandparents...thats totally different than having to fend totally on your own on minimum wage from scratch.
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my oldest son lived on minimum wage for several years before he finally pulled his head out of his ass and pulled his **** together.
 
Your point is valid. I understand why you like SF. I'm in Vegas 38 years now so I'm a "native". I never go to the Strip.



Aderleth said:
This is true, although personally I'm not a big fan of Vegas. It's a little too much on the garish side for my tastes. Also, I like living on the coast. Better weather and fantastic views.
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specklebang said:
Busted. I lived at Oak & Shrader in The Haight of course. I ran into this all over the city though.
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Ah. And of course this was the early 70's, I think you said? I'm guessing it's a little different now. There are definitely parts of the city that have enormous homeless problems, but large chunks of the city are mostly homeless-free. I live in the Richmond and I hardly ever see any there. Also Pac Heights and other affluent neighborhoods. The Mission on the other hand - holy ****, you can't go two feet without stepping over some crackhead. It's a problem. That neighborhood's the only place in the world - except for Amsterdam's red light district - where I've been offered heroin and propositioned by a prostitute during the same four block walk.
 
You're a kind employer, just as I was. We're not that common though, many business owners are selfish as hell.





CalGun said:
In some places minimum wage comes with health insurance, and in some places not. That
would be a significant factor. In my former business I paid a woman $11.75 an hour with
a stipulation that if she took less than 3 weeks off a year she got a $2k IRA contribution from
me on July 1; I paid that each of the three years she worked for me. She did this well into
2010 beyond my ownership of the business and late in 2010 on income of $12 an hour,
with two kids, no dad, and helpful parents she put her life savings into a $99,000 home in
central CA. She put $24k down, paid about $2k more in other costs, and has mortgage of
$400 a month. Taxes, insurance, local utilities (not electric) put her cost of housing at
less than $700 - far below the $925 rent she was paying for an apartment. She's always
had fellow co workers living with her on room rentals - and I think she still does.
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specklebang said:
July and August are hellish at about 110 F but we have plenty of air conditioning. Winters are mild. Except for L.A. its some of the nicest weather in America.
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I'd rather freeze to death then be forced to move in 30C+ weather.
 
tessaesque said:
You're moving the goal posts again. And a single mother on minimum wage would qualify for a "free" cell phone, rent assistance, food stamps, child care assistance, and possibly TANF.
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Tess im not moving the goal posts...I started waaay back with most people do not work full time on minimum wage and walmart is chock full of single mothers and so is McDonalds and every other outlet that pays min wage...and they are not all women that are promiscuous or any of the other labels people like to put on them...they were married got divorced and now have to go it on thier own many of them...
Look to be honest...I got pretty sick and tired of reading some really cold opinions on here about everyone that doesnt have huge bank acct or has or is on food stamps and/or some kind of public assistance being lazy this and that...and that just is not true..sure there are skids and bums there always was each generation has a different name for them...hobo, bums whores skids whatever...but there are more people today that genuinely need than there was 25 yrs ago..sincerely need that cant find a way to do for themselves even though they want to....since so many decent jobs were sent elsewhere out of greed and whats left are trash jobs.
 
0bserver92 said:
I'd rather freeze to death then be forced to move in 30C+ weather.
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You've lost me there. Of course I grew up in St. Paul, Mn. If I never see snow again, I'd be just fine with that.
 
DVSentinel said:
Whose fault is that she is a single mother? Where is the father? If she couldn't afford a child, why did she let herself get pregnant in the first place? It's easily prevented you know. And what is stopping her from going out, taking opportunities and make more of herself?

All I am seeing is tons of excuses and not a single legitimate reason amongst them.
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Jesus christ dude...have you ever heard of divorce man...have you ever known decent people that got divorced...have you ever known a guy that left his wife and kid or two for another woman ...or just took off...your not seeing any legitimate reasons because you just want to be right and label everyone that doesnt have as much as you no good..
 
OscarB63 said:
my oldest son lived on minimum wage for several years before he finally pulled his head out of his ass and pulled his **** together.
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Did he live with you...or did he live in the bayou on a canoe :p lol
 
Aderleth said:
You've lost me there. Of course I grew up in St. Paul, Mn. If I never see snow again, I'd be just fine with that.
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As of recelty (last two years) I would love some snow but we don't have that, it's 10C right now during the day.
 
In USA

Minimum Wage= Teenagers or a secondary job

Mid or High Wage= Where you wanna be trust me
 
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0bserver92 said:
As of recelty (last two years) I would love some snow but we don't have that, it's 10C right now during the day.
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Ha. That's about what the weather's like here at the moment. Mn is a whole different world. I got really tired of the -15f daytime temps for weeks on end.
 
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