The bare minimum

Here's a must-read article: McDonalds and Visa have put together a report telling poor people how to manage their money. Turns out a minimum wage worker can get along just fine -- as long as he works two full-time jobs (80 hours a week), pays a mere $600 a month in rent, and spends only $20 a month on health insurance.

See the chart for yourself. I can think of no better argument against libertarianism -- especially when we recall that the Koch brothers want to reduce or eliminate the minimum wage.

The minimum wage in America is an abomination. It is not a living wage by any means and it’s impossible to get by with such a low salary. If the minimum wage had kept up with inflation, it would now be over $10 an hour. If it had kept up with skyrocketing productivity as it lined employers pockets’ the minimum wage would be $21.72

The corporate media (which includes fake "alternative" media like right-wing radio and Fox) tries to brainwash American workers into believing that they are less productive than they used to be. In truth, low-wage labor is working harder and getting less: