Parasite Economy Companies

[spanky4ever]

I am totally in agreement with @iNcog

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on this issue. When you are talking about minimum wages in USA - you are talking about starvinG wages. NOBODY can feed a family when earning 7 dollar an hour. Wallmarts is a good example of a parasite company. Most ppl working there, are dependent on additional support from government (welfare or foodstamps).
I would argue if a company cant pay workers a decent wage, they dont have the right to exist. BTW I dont buy argument that Walmart cant pay a decent wage. Ok - maybe you as a consumer would have to pay 5,5 dollars instead of 5 dollars for that shirt, or maybe the CEO and the stockholders would get less pay. I would say that is only fair.
If you constantly are lowering wages, taxes to the government goes down, at the same time as government expenses rice cos workers cant live on the pay they get. That is how you shrink an economy and are left with stagnation and recession. Hence the term - parasite economy a very good description. A Parasite prosper and thrive very good for a time, UNTIL the host dies. Then the parasite die as well. In the long term - everybody suffer - and everybody DIE. THIS CONSTITUTES A VISCOUS CYCLE


Raising the minimum wages to 15 dollars, would get a lot of ppl away from food stamps and welfare - AND increase tax income - increase the ability to buy stuff - and the result would be
higher demands for gods and services - more jobs
better government eco
better gov eco will increase the ability to repair crumbling infrastructure -- gives more jobs etc etc THIS CONSTITUTES A GOOD CYCLE

[spanky4ever]

Here's an idea, equality and perfection are not actually attainable

We are not talking about equality. This topic is more about desency and fairness.

If Wallmart cant pay a 15 dollar wage, they should go bankrupt - and the workers should try to run it as a cooprative. I bet it would be the best deal for everybody - exept the CEO and stockholders.

Over the past decade Wal-Mart has spent an average of $6.5 billion a year on stock buybacks, an amount roughly equivalent to the estimated $6.2 billion the company's 1.4 million employees cost U.S. taxpayers every year in food stamps, Medicaid, subsidized housing and other public assistance. As a Wal-Mart worker wrote recently, "Despite working hard to make Wal-Mart a successful company, I come home to an empty kitchen most nights. Though investors may feel like they lost a lot, I can barely afford groceries."

An economy where giant profitable companies pay their workers poverty wages and taxpayers make up the difference isn't capitalism. It's socialism – for the rich.

It doesn't have to be this way. Last year, Wal-Mart earned more than $25 billion in pretax profit. If it had paid each of its 1 million lowest-paid workers an extra $10,000 a year, it would have been enough to raise them all out of poverty, enabling them to, of all things, afford to shop at Wal-Mart. And the company still could have earned more than $15 billion pretax, without raising prices a penny.

Your can read the rest of this article here: https://www.google.no/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... xzCWE02fWw

[evilcheadar]

Here's an idea, equality and perfection are not actually attainable

We are not talking about equality. This topic is more about desency and fairness.

If Wallmart cant pay a 15 dollar wage, they should go bankrupt - and the workers should try to run it as a cooprative. I bet it would be the best deal for everybody - exept the CEO and stockholders.

walmart going bankrupt sounds like a great idea

[momuuu]

If it would be good for the economy, why arent all countries raising the minimum wage?

You sound like you're 8.

You think that politicians know what's actually good for the economy? This explains the full employment we're all enjoying, as well as the lack of recessions and equality across the world.

Yes, yes I do, although I'm not completely sure.

There is one thing I know for sure though. A random guy reading a random article somewhere on the internet which presents some very basic concepts with no true argumentation in the form of numbers, statistics or quotes from actual authorities, certainly does not know it better, not even a little bit better, than politicians adviced by the top economists of their country.

Sorry but calling me an eight year old while you are the one failing to think even slightly critically is just ridiculous and disrespectful.

[spanky4ever]

@evil

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cheese : walmart is far from bancrupt though.

[evilcheadar]

Well yesh Jerom, I've said the argument in this article are pretty common knowledge lest you've been living under a rock.

[evilcheadar]

@evil

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cheese : walmart is far from bancrupt though.

yes, but increasing the min wage by even a little costs so much when you employ hundreds of thousands not even considering benefits. The quick imposing of a $15 min wage would have drastic consequences likely resulting in lost jobs and such.

[spanky4ever]

@jerom

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we are talking about USA and how the middle class has been shrinking since the 1970s. This is why so many USA citizens has had enought of this shenanigans - and are screaming for a real change (Sanders or Trump)

[spanky4ever]

@evel

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chease just scroll up a little and read my post on Walmart profits
take a look please: https://www.google.no/url?sa=t&rct=j&q= ... xzCWE02fWw

there are many big corporations that you could call parasites. Apple is also one of them - hardly paying any taxes and skimming the profits of Chinese and american workers. While they are maybe the most profitable company in the world.

[momuuu]

Well the specific "optimal" height of the minimum wage is something that can be discussed. It's just ridiculous to think there are no downsides to increasing a minimum wage. Just a simple visit to google tells you otherwise almost directly.

[spanky4ever]

Well the specific "optimal" height of the minimum wage is something that can be discussed. It's just ridiculous to think there are no downsides to increasing a minimum wage. Just a simple visit to google tells you otherwise almost directly.

THere can be to high or to low minimum wages - I agree with you. But in this case - the minimum wages are far to low (USA) and it constitute what iNcog has called a parasite economy
If you had workers unions that could negotiate with the employers - you would not need a minimum wage.
In scandinavian countries we dont have minimum wages - but a 17 year old newbe at McDonald earn about 17 dollars per hour (ps I dont think a bigmac in Norway or Denmark cost much more than in USA)

[iNcog]

-- deleted post --

[_H2O]

So yeah the most interesting part which I take away from this article is that not only is driving up the minimum wage a good idea in terms of social equity (which is positive, not negative), but it's also better for the actual god damn economy. It makes sense too.

Really, the more I think about it, the more I would like to argue for a higher minimum wage. That said, products need to be sold and consumed domestically.

Higher minimum wage means less skilled workers simply won't get hired as much. They will need to bring more value as they are being compensated more.

The other angle to this is that if the new 1$ is 2$ things will simply cost more as companies attempt to close the gap on increased expenses.

I think the answer lies in people providing more value and this gaining higher compensation.

[Papist]

Wouldnt driving up the minimal wage increase unemployment?

Because thats what I see as the only reasonable reason for unemployment.

The right wing in the U.S. Has been claiming that for DECADES, but it never happens. This is because when people have more money, they spend more, offsetting any financial hit employers take.

[iNcog]

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[evilcheadar]

Wouldnt driving up the minimal wage increase unemployment?

Because thats what I see as the only reasonable reason for unemployment.

The right wing in the U.S. Has been claiming that for DECADES, but it never happens. This is because when people have more money, they spend more, offsetting any financial hit employers take.

It's incorrect to think that the hit would be offset so well. The financial hit to businesses is mandatory, the cure (people spending their money at businesses) however is not.

[spanky4ever]

So yeah the most interesting part which I take away from this article is that not only is driving up the minimum wage a good idea in terms of social equity (which is positive, not negative), but it's also better for the actual god damn economy. It makes sense too.

Really, the more I think about it, the more I would like to argue for a higher minimum wage. That said, products need to be sold and consumed domestically.

Higher minimum wage means less skilled workers simply won't get hired as much. They will need to bring more value as they are being compensated more.

The other angle to this is that if the new 1$ is 2$ things will simply cost more as companies attempt to close the gap on increased expenses.

I think the answer lies in people providing more value and this gaining higher compensation.

On this topic you are just wrong H2O:
[video]https://youtu.be/JTj9AcwkaKM[/video]

This unfair distibution of wealt is NOT SUSTAINABLE - you are going down if you dont change this

[Laurence Drake]

Good read, I liked it. Nice and ranty too, just my style.

There are two types of businesses in America today: those that pay their workers a living wage—the real economy—and those that don’t—the parasite economy. And all of us who live and work in the real economy should be royally pissed at the way the parasite economy is sucking us dry.

Here in the real economy, we solve the problems, build the things, and pay the wages that make America great. When politicians of both parties promise to attract “good jobs” to their districts or states, they’re talking about the kind of real-economy jobs that pay a decent middle-class wage—jobs that provide the income, benefits, and security necessary to participate robustly in the economy as a consumer and taxpayer. It is the real economy that drives both production and demand, and that fills our tax coffers with the money needed to educate our children, maintain our infrastructure, invest in research and development, fund our social safety net, and provide for the national defense.

But in the parasite economy—where companies large and small cling to low-wage business models out of ignorance or habit or simple greed—“good jobs,” and the economic dynamism they produce, are in short supply. This is the economy in which tens of millions of Americans work for poverty wages with few if any benefits, often in the face of abusive scheduling practices that make it impossible to plan their life from day to day, let alone month to month.

The difference between these two economies is stark. The real economy pays the wages that drive consumer demand, while the parasite economy erodes it. The real economy generates about $5 trillion a year in local, state, and federal tax revenue, while the parasite economy is subsidized by taxes. The real economy provides our children the education and opportunity necessary to grow into the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, and civic leaders, while the parasite economy traps them in a cycle of intergenerational poverty.

The real economy delivers on the promise of capitalism.

The parasite economy relentlessly undermines it.

Source: http://prospect.org/article/confronting ... te-economy

Walmart is not too much of a parasite, they provide all those very affordable items

shut the fuck up

This is the type of thinking that got France into the mess it's in now.

[Laurence Drake]

So yeah the most interesting part which I take away from this article is that not only is driving up the minimum wage a good idea in terms of social equity (which is positive, not negative), but it's also better for the actual god damn economy. It makes sense too.

Really, the more I think about it, the more I would like to argue for a higher minimum wage. That said, products need to be sold and consumed domestically.

Higher minimum wage means less skilled workers simply won't get hired as much. They will need to bring more value as they are being compensated more.

The other angle to this is that if the new 1$ is 2$ things will simply cost more as companies attempt to close the gap on increased expenses.

I think the answer lies in people providing more value and this gaining higher compensation.

On this topic you are just wrong H2O:
[video]https://youtu.be/JTj9AcwkaKM[/video]

This unfair distibution of wealt is NOT SUSTAINABLE - you are going down if you dont change this

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQj1qlsjVoM[/video]

[spanky4ever]

@mister

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Laurence I would argue that France is far better of that USA at this point. Your parasite eco are strangling your middle class - and you are heading for a ruff ride very soon - if this does not change. Detroit all over the place - can you imagine that - try for a minute

BTW your video makes perfecty sense in a marked where there is more demand for labourforce and where there are unions negotiating with empleyer - than workers. Not the case in USA - You lack both

[Laurence Drake]

@mister

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Laurence I would argue that France is far better of that USA at this point. Your parasite eco are strangling your middle class - and you are heading for a ruff ride very soon - if this does not change. Detroit all over the place - can you imagine that - try for a minute

The middle class in America is shrinking because the upper class is growing.



France is the one that will become a country-sized Detroit if it doesn't fix its unemployment problem.

[spanky4ever]

@mister

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drake Unemployment are high in USA as well. Some would argue its far higher than Obama are telling you. In fact - Trump say its VERY HIGH - go listen to your favorite guy

[spanky4ever]

@mister

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Drake Why dont you compare your graph to USA. Though Frensh is not a good one - USA is far worse - FAR WORSE. I will make it easy for you - just scroll up to my post with the video on USA inequality

[spanky4ever]

@evil

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cheese : walmart is far from bancrupt though.

yes, but increasing the min wage by even a little costs so much when you employ hundreds of thousands not even considering benefits. The quick imposing of a $15 min wage would have drastic consequences likely resulting in lost jobs and such.

I would say more like giving less to stocholders and less to CEO. Why should a CEO earn 3000 times more than the average workers anyway. psssshhh (I might have missed a 0 there 30.000 more)

[Jaeger]

So yeah the most interesting part which I take away from this article is that not only is driving up the minimum wage a good idea in terms of social equity (which is positive, not negative), but it's also better for the actual god damn economy. It makes sense too.

Really, the more I think about it, the more I would like to argue for a higher minimum wage. That said, products need to be sold and consumed domestically.

The other angle to this is that if the new 1$ is 2$ things will simply cost more as companies attempt to close the gap on increased expenses.

Sure, but because our economy is so complicated the prices wouldn't correlate so linearly with the wages, they'll go up a little (or it could backfire and costs could increase even faster) but it's about making sure they don't go up too much and maximizing the difference I think.