The "minimum wage" was never meant to be a living wage, because the originators of the concept never expected people to make a career out of flipping burgers at McDonalds.
And if you live in a community where there are no jobs better than Walmart or McDonalds offer, people should do what?
The democrats have turned that minimum wage into a life style. If someone is making minimum wage and they are over the age of 25, then I would say they have a serious LIFETIME problem unless they get their butts in gear.
It is your responsibility to learn a skill, get an education, job training, etc. to make yourself more marketable and thus earn a better living. If you and your "wife/live in girl friend" are trying to "raise" a family of two or three kids, while you both are "earning" minimum wage, then I would suggest birth control of some type. You should not be bringing more children into the world if minimum wage is the best you are going to accomplish.
On the ferry I ride to work each morning, just a few weeks ago, this leftist was whining about making $8 an hour, the cost of gas, etc. I asked him, "if you don't mind, how old are you?" He said he was 42 years old. I asked him what he did. He was a "gofer" in an office. I asked him what college he went too? He did not go to college. I asked if he had been to some type of special training, like an electrician, plumber, carpenter, auto mechanic, etc. He said, NO! I said, then what have you done to prepare yourself for that $50,000 a year job that keeps escaping you while you are working as a gofer at an office. He got really mad. Staring at me like he could kill me. I then simply said to him, "Your inability to prepare yourself for life, learn a marketable skill, get job training, etc. is not my fault and you should not be expecting me or anyone else WHO DID to carry your ass through life." A lot of people were laughing and this guy was having a cow.
It was, of course, our fault that his life sucked. We prepared. He didn't. He "didn't get a chance" in life. I told him not everyone was a rocket scientist, not everyone was college material, etc., however, you could at least LEARN a skill that can get you through life. Heck, I didn't complete college either. I have about 2 years of college, however, I have plenty of training that I learned in the military. That is THE ONE good thing about the military, there are plenty of good training opportunities in the military. Mechanic, combat engineers learn many types of earth moving, building type skills, medical skills, clerical, military police, computers, etc. There is more than just the infantry type jobs there. Lots of jobs you get on the job training at. Like military police. At age 18, you can go through MP school, and learn for three years about being a law enforcement person. Then, get out at age 21 and become a civilian cop. MOST ALL civilian police forces will not hire you till you are 21. You'd already have 3 years experience on those people, from the military.
Local owned businesses are more likely to care whether their employees can live off what they're paid. Corporatists flatly don't care. Their interest is bottom line and only the bottom line. Whether you can eat or pay your bills is of no interest to them - even if you are living in the cheapest houseing and barest of minimums.