US Poverty Level

[Briansol]

The FICO/medicare/medicaid taxes you see on your check are matched by your employer every week. And they also pay an additional unemployment tax line item. This is why self employed people have to pay an additional 15%, to cover the part the employer usually does.

I agree with most of the fundamentals that Silverchild brings up. But there's more to it than that. The entitlement mind-set needs to be changed. The idea that things things last for ever needs to be changed. Michigan has just passed a 2 year limit on welfare. So, what you are going to see is a massive exile from Michigan to other states. Great for Michigan, but it doesn't solve the problem at a federal level.
With dirt cheap housing (no jobs, no one lives there, and 100,000s of empty properties) and no more welfare people, Mi may just be the next economic boom due to lowered taxes and little fiscal burned being put on it any more. I'd put them in my 10 year watch.
Meanwhile, the 5 states that butt up to them are going to be in utter dire straits. ohion and Illinois especially as they will be receiving most of the influx of the entitlement population from the exodus.

 

[UNDR8D]

Don't believe me? We had a full on economy recovery until a few months ago when the record run of foreclosures and debt worries caught up with us. The dow was flirting with 13K, it was amazing. But we still had massive unemployment and it is because companys simply no longer need as many employees to do business. Technology has eliminated the need for many store fronts. In a new and different economy, trying the same old solutions will not lead to the sale old results...

That is a fantastic point. Our entire economic structure has changed dramatically over the last 10-20 years and is changing rapidly...exponentially. However, public expectations that date back to our producer driven economic model are still lingering.

 

[BigJ]

nobody wants your $0.02, we're too pissed that your 2 cents are now worth about the same as our 2 cents.


but, on the lighter side, you still have to pay more for stuff than we do.
$6.99/US
$8.99/CANADA

Or better than our rate.

Exchange Rates Graph (American Dollar, Canadian Dollar) - 120 days - x-rates

 

[Cashizslick]

But we still had massive unemployment and it is because companys simply no longer need as many employees to do business.

Obama recently blamed ATM machines for lack of job creation.

A technological innovation creates and opportunity to move resources from one sector of the economy to another.

 

[Jeef]

yet an atm machine also allows people to get money whenever not just during banking hours allowing people to spend more of their money, especially when drunk at night. This is a little more the pre debit card days.

 

[newb]

And if it wasnt ATM's and debit cards, banks wouldnt be able to collect over draft and service charges. Free money for them.

 

[UNDR8D]

Can I just clear something up:

ATM = Automatic Teller Machine

Therefore

ATM Machine = Automatic Teller Machine Machine

Redundancy

 

[E_SolSi]

so its not an Ass To Mouth Machine

 

[Briansol]

Tech has put everyone out of work in every industry. Technology has made the human obsolete

self-checkout - Cashiers
welding robots - auto/factory workers
computers - office workers
pbx switches - phone operators

and on and on.


In order for there to be jobs created here, there needs to be an industry that requires the need for actual man power.

The pyramids probably had 100,000 people working on them.
The freedom tower? 500? maybe 1000 if you include the subcontractors.

In order to put people back to work, there needs to exist an industry that requires man power directly. Infrastructure is really the only industry that still uses pure man power to run machines/etc.

 

[E_SolSi]

In order to put people back to work, there needs to exist an industry that requires man power directly. Infrastructure is really the only industry that still uses pure man power to run machines/etc.

Infrastructure - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary
in·fra·struc·ture

noun \ˈin-frə-ˌstrək-chər, -(ˌ)frä-\


Definition of INFRASTRUCTURE

1
: the underlying foundation or basic framework (as of a system or organization)

2
: the permanent installations required for military purposes

3
: the system of public works of a country, state, or region; also : the resources (as personnel, buildings, or equipment) required for an activity

 

[Briansol]

is " Infrastructure projects" better for your condescending ass?

 

[Jeef]

Tech has put everyone out of work in every industry. Technology has made the human obsolete

self-checkout - Cashiers

Some stores such as Big Y are pulling them out, saying that they still need people to babysit the lanes and the amount of theft, intentional or not costs more than a human.

 

[reckedracing]

I believe unemployment varies by state, but I know in NY the employee does NOT pay in enough money, or use their collected funds. The employee/employer pays into an unemployment insurance fund. The amount of money you receive is based on your salary for a combined number of quarters, not sure the exact amount. the max you can receive is $405 a week, and I know damn well that people don't pay in enough to get that much back for a year, or 2 years now. I think the feds ended up picking up the tab for all the extensions that they granted.

1. You can still be above the poverty line and still be impoverished. Ever tried living on 12G's/year after taxes anywhere other than a rural place with low cost of living? You would be poor, really poor.
2. Your implied thesis is that, so long as we have enough minimum wage jobs to go around everything should be fine, assuming you don't mind the work... I'm just going to let that speak for itself.
3. What this country needs is not minimum wage jobs, but family wage jobs. We have a credit based economy, 12K/yr will not leave room for buying a house, a car, taking a vacation, or all of those many things that make our economy go round.

#1 I'm not saying they won't still be poor, just above the "poverty line".
#2 I never implied everything would be fine, I just said people should be responsible for themselves and work
#3 I agree Min wage will not make the economy prosperous, its just a mathematical observation that an individual who was responsible for their future (aka not more mouths than they can feed, and no criminal record) would be able to live above the "poverty level".

As far as job relocation... if you can walk you can relocate. I know if shit hit the fan and I was completely out of money/car/house and I needed to find work I would walk to a warm climate, and then go about securing a job. I will do whatever it takes to survive.

 

[E_SolSi]

yeah.... in CT your unemp ins that is payed by your employer covers you for 26 weeks of unemployment
after that you are living on obama-bucks

 

[Briansol]

I would walk to a warm climate

ahhh, the great sheeple migration