Normally I don't pay much attention to op-ed pieces; I have my own opinions. However, a piece by Kevin Hassett of the conservative American Enterprise Institute caught my eye. His view and the op-ed title, "Americans Make Too Much," gives two specific examples of wages that should be cut:
Third, the natural reluctance of workers to accept lower pay is amplified by how their wages help define their identity. A $60,000 a year worker might have a very hard time coming to terms with becoming a $40,000 a year worker.
Yeah, that's all about identity, and nothing to do with not being able to feed your family if your pay is cut by a third.
The other example:
Democrats chose to lift the minimum wage at the worst possible time, just as wage should have been reduced.
So, apparently, the only wages Mr. Hassett thinks should be cut are those earned by the lower wage groups. There is nary a peep about over-sized executive compensation or golden parachutes.
This I found just mind-boggling:
Finally, workers and jobs might be mismatched, either geographically or occupationally. Workers might be needed in places they don't want to move to or can't afford to live in.
There are many signs that these obstacles to lower wages are helping drive high unemployment today.
Seriously, does anyone actually read these things for sense before they are published?
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