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For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

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Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#162

The minimum wage should be 0 - sincerely any good economist

The minimum wage should be livable - sincerely any good person

Well, people _should_ never get cancer or any other debilitating disease, but just because we want something to be real doesn't mean it is.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There’s something obviously wrong with the U.S. because suicide is now the second leading cause of death among young people and has jumped 50+ percent since the Great Recession: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/06/opinion/suicide-young-peo...

What would you prefer the second-leading cause of death be for young people? I am being serious. Some things have to be the top causes of death for young people and the list definitionally can’t include the aspirational “old age.”

Natural causes would be a good one.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#164

I wonder what would happen to the suicide rate with medicare for all, and creating a max-wage that is (avg of contractors + employees * 150), or something similar, w/ additional 'bonus' multipliers for increasing # of U.S. hired. UBI would also probably help. As a freelancer I've had some really slim months and depression hits hard when money is tight. There's a very direct correlation between income security, insecu…

(a) Maximum Wage and/or wealth tax is the best way to fight inequality.

Raising the floor without modifying how much or how quickly those at the top earn only makes those barely above the bottom relatively poorer.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Wages are inversely correlated with how hard you actually have to work, perversely You are right. Why are cooks + janitors paid so little? Because that's their worth to the economy. A ton of people are willing to do that job because it is an "easy skill" with a low barrier of entry. How do we get unskilled labor on STEM paths? I totally understand unequal opportunity not allowing everybody the same options, but at…

This is a completely separate discussion. I originally refuted your (completely asinine) quip about people who "do the minimum and be rewarded". The rest of your comment is social-darwinistic horseshit based on nothing but prejudice and ignorance. Good day.

I was poking at the fact that a lot of people want to give $8/hr workers $15/hr minimum wage.

What does that mean for all of the $12/hr workers now? What about the $16-$17/hr workers? Do they get raises too?

Do we just flat out raise all wages 50% overnight?

Society values X jobs at $8/hr. Bleeding hearts value them at $15/hr. Where's the middle ground?

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#166

I wonder what would happen to the suicide rate with medicare for all, and creating a max-wage that is (avg of contractors + employees * 150), or something similar, w/ additional 'bonus' multipliers for increasing # of U.S. hired. UBI would also probably help. As a freelancer I've had some really slim months and depression hits hard when money is tight. There's a very direct correlation between income security, insecu…

There is no statistical support of these ideas, though. Suicide rates in countries with Socialist economies are higher than in the U.S. [1] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_suicide_r...

This is disingenuous. It doesn't classify by Socialist, but by country. Russia is #3 on global suicides, and when I think of socialist healthcare, my first thought isn't Russia.

Many of the countries I think of as socialist healthcare (UK, Denmark, Canada, to name a few), they all come up below the US in suicides.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#167

I see income inequality as a key issue here. I recently read the "Triumph of injustice" and came away with a changed view in our tax system. After reading the book, I now believe that any household with a net worth over $100 million should be subject to both an income and capital gains tax of 99%. In short folks with income come and or net worth at levels that surpass their ability to buy a life of finical security f…

I think 99% is an overkill. If you assume 7% ROI and 2% inflation then a 70% top marginal bracket (combined with unifying capital gains and income) would make it very hard to maintain wealth. To get rid of these high levels of inequality we don't need to make it impossible to be rich, just make it very hard to be rich and let nature take its course. Note that in my lifetime the top marginal tax bracket has been over…

What about those who are already rich? Wouldn't this simply impair income mobility?

You would have to strip income inequality, then reduce income mobility - but inevitably someone would become wealthy, further cementing their lead.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#168

I see income inequality as a key issue here. I recently read the "Triumph of injustice" and came away with a changed view in our tax system. After reading the book, I now believe that any household with a net worth over $100 million should be subject to both an income and capital gains tax of 99%. In short folks with income come and or net worth at levels that surpass their ability to buy a life of finical security f…

That's interesting because... right now we have a system that examines income and taxes income. The "wealth tax" is a system that examines wealth and taxes wealth (not income). It's theorized that it's unconstitutional, and even if it isn't, the conservative US court might cause it problems anyway. But if instead you examine wealth and tax income , maybe that gets around the issue. Higher income tax brackets for thos…

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Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#169

I wonder what would happen to the suicide rate with medicare for all, and creating a max-wage that is (avg of contractors + employees * 150), or something similar, w/ additional 'bonus' multipliers for increasing # of U.S. hired. UBI would also probably help. As a freelancer I've had some really slim months and depression hits hard when money is tight. There's a very direct correlation between income security, insecu…

Re/ medicare for all ... Canada has universal health care yet a very similar suicide rate to the USA.[1] Canada doesn't have a livable minimum wage either. Each province sets its own. There is talk of UBI experiments. [1] https://politicalcalculations.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-vs-can...

I really hope we do not get a UBI in any current forms. I know the second the stores realize that every person now has 'x' amount of dollars to spend, they will raise the prices to match the most they can extract. What I wish Canada would do instead is establish some sort of Universal Basic Rights like every man woman and child is entitled to 5lbs of potatoes a week, 1 gallon of milk, 1 pound of carrots, ect. I as a Canadian do not want a check every week, the next day I can be told my cost of living has gone up. I want to know I can eat and shelter myself at the end of the day. How we can do that I do not know and am thankful I am in a good financial position to not have to worry about it.

Re: For suicide prevention, try raising the minimum wage, research suggests

#170

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Re/ medicare for all ... Canada has universal health care yet a very similar suicide rate to the USA.[1] Canada doesn't have a livable minimum wage either. Each province sets its own. There is talk of UBI experiments. [1] https://politicalcalculations.blogspot.com/2011/02/us-vs-can...

But by contrast, the UK and it’s NHS has almost half the rate of the US.

Also UK minimum wage is £8.21 for folks 25 and older
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