Jerry Pournelle Refutes Elizabeth Warren
20th March 2013
(Yeah, you have to wade through some non-political stuff; suck it up.)
The notion of a “fair” wage is central to many socialist views of proper government. They are usually coupled with schemes to rationalize the economy: why should there be twenty brands of tooth paste? It is a wasteful practice. A rationally planned economy would prevent a great deal of effort wasted in competitive practices, thus leaving more to be paid to the workers. After all, the workers produce the goods: they have a right to a fair share, which should at least include a living wage.
The problem is that often a job cannot possibly produce enough return to warrant a “fair” wage. When the production doesn’t at least equal the cost, there isn’t a job to be had. Many ‘jobs’ are discretionary. You will pay someone to do something so that you don’t have to do it yourself, but if the cost is too high, you will just do it yourself, or go without that service entirely. Clearly there are things I would like to have done for me that I don’t think I can afford. Raising the minimum wage simply moves more jobs from the “I can afford that” to the “Can’t afford it” column. That is, it does in the real world. In Senator Warren’s world, her intentions are what matter: she means well. If her proposal ends up costing a number of people their jobs, that wasn’t her intent, so it doesn’t matter: we’ll just give them more benefits to make up for their loss.
I wish that were a parody, but it is not.