BILL MOYERS JOURNAL | Holly Sklar on Wages and Work | PBS

http://www.pbs.org/billmoyers Holly Sklar, co-author of RAISE THE FLOOR: WAGES AND POLICIES THAT WORK FOR ALL OF US, discusses what current economic conditions say about the state of the American dream. Airs Friday, June 13, at 9p.m. on PBS (check local listings). For more: http://www.pbs.org/billmoyers

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• inequality
• wages
• minimum
• wage
• living
• holly
• sklar
• poverty
• American
• dream
• bill
• moyers
• journal

[jocamiah]

The reason there is not more indignation is because we are conveniently distracted enough to not care. Buy more, watch more TV, look out for yourself, drive more, and drink more. We are distracted. Of course a problem of this magnitude has more than just one reason why there is not more anger, but this one seems to be the most obvious. Wake up people!

[anmoose]

Brilliant discussion. I think I'd vote for Holly Sklar for president.

[FireweedFarm]

Related to this, here's an amazing fact: from 1942-1952 America had living wage farm commodity prices! That was with no subsidies. It came from Henry Wallace and the New Deal. Price floors for corn, etc. were set at 90% of "parity," and we balanced supply and demand to support it, plus we had a price ceiling up somewhere about 110% of parity (and reserve supplies to protect that). Starting in1953, price floors were lowered (ie. to eliminate 1/3 of farmers in 5 years). It went to zero in 1996

[chellebell07]

This was a wake-up call, America failed to listen...now take a look at where this country is at today!!! WAKE-UP PEOPLE!!!!

[Sicknose]

What you're saying only appeals to the people who already agree with you.

Its like trying to explain the difference between a hunting rifle and an assault rifle to a man who's child was shot. He doesn't care about the details. He feels pain.

People are suffering. That's what they feel. They don't trust the market to determine anything with any amount of ethics.

There must be a balance. Right now, the market's fair wage is starvation for most, luxury for a few. Dark ages.

[ismite123]

as long as those outside the country believe we are crumbling...i say great job, keep it up and more power to you

[EvanChaim]

Microeconomics 101: Price ceilings (price cannot exceed a certain amount) create shortages

Price floors create shortages (price cannot go below a certain amount) create surpluses

-In this case raising the minimum wage would create unemployment (ceteris parabis) and really hurt the most vulnerable low income workers..

Please. If you really care about the poor, then let the market determine what is a fair wage!!!

[RojoPirata]

Brief answer to 'CrowdP'..."manufacturing decline important since union power traditionally strong in large industrial companies,like steel & auto. Globalization has increased the competition outside control of unions in any country, including production by employees abroad of same company. Government provisions of unemployment, retirement, health benefits, & various regulatory controls have substituted services of unions...laws & attitudes toward unions less favorable in US than other nations."

[4ourthofjuly]

I think theyre stable at 9% of non governmental employees, and have been for a while. Unions were repeatedly broken by government and private power for a hundred years, what do you expect?

I would say workers reject unions because theyre imperfect. But you probably wouldnt get rid of all government because it's flawed, would you?

[oslinde]

I would like to see something about wage inequality, if you have please post. I really need it

[mediacritic]

That was a wonderful, illuminating discussion. If only America was watching THIS instead of American Idol. Americans are the hardest working imbeciles on Earth. We'll buy anything.

[randoozer351]

Yep. That won't happen though so we ought to do the next best thing, vote for a president who is smart enough (or humble enough) to surround themselves with a cabinet full of people like her. I think that maybe the worst part about bush was the cronyism that let his stupidity leak much farther through the fabric of our government. Such a thing deserves a name... my vote is "super-stupidity."