Q2 - Immigrants: Do you think employers should face criminal charges for knowingly hiring illegal immigrants? Yes, I believe it is the employer’s responsibility to verify the legality of their intended employee.
Q3 - Wages: As of today, the federal minimum wage here in the U.S. stands at $5.15 per hour. In your opinion, should the minimum wage be raised, and if so, to how much; and if not, why not? Raising the minimum wage has an effect on so many other aspects of our economy. It has been studied time and time again and comes to the same conclusion: raising the minimum wage hurts the poor and encourages high-school students to drop out. Raising the minimum wage causes some individuals to enter the labor market who would not otherwise do so. With a larger pool to choose from, employers naturally choose the higher-skilled applicant. Therefore, raising the minimum wage hurts the low-skilled individual in two ways: by having fewer jobs available to them and by raising the pool of applicants for a given job and thereby making the competition stiffer. Finally, raising the minimum wage has very little positive impact on the lives of the poor. Rather, it is a political ploy that plays to the misunderstanding of the impact of raising it. America needs to have a better understanding of the true causes of poverty. We need a system that focuses more on raising the education levels of our people.
Q4 - Shopping: I'm headed to the grocery store. Is there anything I can get for you? No thanks, I’m good. I am a grocery shopping freak! I grew up in a household that shopped for food each day. It’s funny how European’s are shocked to see our huge refrigerators we have here in the U.S. We just love big everything here in this country, big cars, big houses and big debt. Conspicuous consumption is the name of the game!
