Baronvonrort wrote:
The minimum wage is for unskilled labor so those with skills do earn a lot more, if you have a job you're covered for health insurance.
I have only been to the doctors twice in the last 20 years, I don't eat junk and lead a healthy lifestyle so not worried about healthcare. I am concerned about government increasing taxes on things like smokes and considering a sugar tax which means socialised healthcare does result in governments giving us sin taxes.The Alcopos tax was supposed to reduce binge drinking it did nothing for that yet raised several billion in taxes. A 1.7 L bottle of Jim Beam Black label was $24.99 in the bottle shop we frequented.
I just came back from the USA, Massachusetts has a mandatory 18 month jail term for illegal possession of a firearm, much tougher on people who shouldn't have guns than us considering Mick Gatto was fined $2500 for a loaded sawn off shotgun.
Everything is much cheaper it makes me realise how much our thieving politicians are taxing us on everything.A new Honda Accord is $23K.
Massachusetts has legalised pot the young students smoke it in the street in Harvard square, they are taxing it at 20% they expect to raise $200 million in the second year making it a billion dollar a year industry from just under 7 million people.
1/ Of course skilled labour gets paid more, hence they are not on
minimum wage. Unskilled work needs to be carried out as well, so do you think someone who washes dishes or waits tables or mixes mud for a bricky should work for $7.25, which is $290 for a 40hr working week? No one can afford to live on that and you'd struggle to make ends meet on this pay rate even if you worked 80hr week. Hell, $290/w is considered cheap rent these days; imagine being a single parent of 2-3 kids, trying to pay rent & feed your kids with no time or money to undertake training to be able to find a better paying job.
2/ You have health care while in a job but how long can you hold a job and i think you will find this does not apply in most minimum wage scenarios. So, you have a job and cancer develops despite your healthy life style. Your 2 in 20year visits to the doctor become 20 in 1year, compounded by treatments that are charged at the premium market rate because health is a business... You are now too sick to work and lose your job and health care.....
We can see where this is going and it is extremely common in the US.
3/ Yes, i also disagree with what you refer to as "sin" tax but moreover i disagree with how our taxes are spent rather than paying them.
4/ Everything is cheaper because low prices are underwritten by people living in poverty despite working a full time job (or two).
5/ Not sure of your point about the legalised pot...
Finally, if we were to "be made the newest State in the US" there is no guarantee our gun laws would significantly change because the US Federal system has not much control over it's member states beyond ensuring the constitution is enacted. So, there would likely be a theoretical "right to bear arms" but the same laws would stay in place with added barriers to licencing and acquisition to deter people from employing their "right".
In stead of wanting to become American, we should be looking at how we can improve our own political system and remain Australia.
Just my take on it, obviously YMMV.