Minimum Wage $25 Per Hour Soon

[Big Fitz]

And El Salvadore's minimum wage is US $192 per month. which probably has more relevance in the USA than does Switzerlands.

Which has no relevance without understanding the cost of living in that nation. If it took 3000 bucks a month to live, yeah, that's bad. But if you can survive on 50 bucks, dayum... that's good.

 

[Inthemiddle]

I didn't say it was 'remarkably high'. Read, comprehend, comment.

I guess it all depends on what your definitions if "is" is.

I said it was remarkably high considering they 'live better'. If they live better, one would expect them to have a lower suicide rate than us.

One would only expect that if one were ignorant of the matter. Suicide rates do not imply a people live "well" or not. You clearly don't understand suicide or mental health.

Logic. They don't. They have a higher rate.

Logic demands that we explore all influences that can contribute to the suicide rate before we make any conclusions, and incorporate those into the conclusions. I've explained several factors that influence the rate, and how the rate in comparison to the US rate is not noteworthy in any way, and if anything we should expect a typical Swiss to be less likely than a typical American to commit suicide. However, you prefer to linger on a superficial analysis.

Superficial analysis makes for superficial positions. Got that? Good.

 

[Big Fitz]

Trade unions in Switzerland claim they have collected enough signatures to force a referendum on a proposal to introduce a minimum wage of 22 Swiss francs ($25) an hour.

That is about twice the minimum wage of 9 euros ($12.40) in neighboring France.

A spokesman for the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions, or SGB, says more than 121,000 people have so far signed the request for a vote.

Link: finance.yahoo.com/news/Swiss-unions-push-referendum-apf-2709741278.html?x=0&.v=1

Cost of Living
The cost of living in Switzerland is among the highest in the world, with the cities of Zurich and Geneva ranked second and third most expensive, respectively.

Swiss bank UBS releases a Prices and Earnings study every three years with some updates in between. Oslo, Norway, currently tops the list of the most expensive place to live.

The 2009 report found that a worker in Zurich would have to log nine hours on the job to afford an iPod Nano, the same as a worker in New York. The study also found that residents in Geneva and Zurich pay around 20 per cent more on average for products, services and accommodations than people in other Western European cities. Food is particularly expensive, with prices in Switzerland around 45 per cent more than the western European average.

The Economist uses a “gratifyingly simple” way of calculating purchasing-power parity by using the price of a Big Mac. According to the 2010 Big Mac Index, the Swiss must pay $6.78 for the same burger that would cost $3.71 in the United States.

The Federal Statistics Office produces a “Panorama” report that tracks the consumer price index. It shows that food, housing and utilities are all well above the European Union average. Telecommunications, personal transport and alcohol cost less than the EU average.

The cost of living in Switzerland is among the highest in the world, with Geneva and Zurich near the top of the list. - swissinfo

We love the Big Mac Index.

It usually shuts poverty pimps up quick when the are forced to acknowledge the truth of it.

 

[Noponzi]

A fucking Big Mac in Zurich is like $19.00

Mark Faber is an investment guru who once said the only way to keep money in the US is to spend money on prostitutes and beer. (Wikipedia)

Read this:

One client "dropped a stunning $170,000 for its steamy services," the New York Post reported.

Wall Street Prostitution Ring

17 people have been indicted "on charges of running a high-end prostitution ring that catered to Wall Street clients who often spent more than $10,000 in a night," according to Reuters, via Zerohedge.

The illegal ring, which is called High Class NY, earned its overseers more than $7 million over a three year period.

High Class operated 24 hours a day from Brooklyn, and catered strictly to "high-end customers coming from the financial markets," many of whom were hedge funders.

Services cost clients anywhere between $400 to $3,600 an hour, Reuters reported, and clients were reportedly even provided with cocaine.

Source: businessinsider.com/17-busted-in-high-end-wall-street-prostitution-ring-high-class-ny-2011-7

Under President Barack Obama, the Justice Department has not filed a single new obscenity case anywhere in the country.

Source: politico.com/blogs/joshgerstein/0411/Senators_ask_Holder_for_more_pornography_prosecutions.html?showall

Farmers and fishermen earn small money for their crops so that world people get cheap food but many prostitutes earn $50,000 per night and many call girls, prostitutes, porn stars and porn actors earn $10,000 per session/ night.

World pornography is $200 Billion every year. Some porn stars and prostitutes have highly expensive cars. But 3 billion people walk 10 miles or 20 miles everyday.

3 Billion people survive on $2 every day. Excellent economics.

If Farmers and fishermen revolt then people will starve because they will not be able to buy unimaginable expensive food.

My friend said to me that billionaire businessmen reserve entire 5 star hotels for sex parties and they enjoy and people think they are having business meetings.

Where is the world society heading?

Why should farmers grow crops on 10,000 acres of land so that people pay for $50,000 per night to prostitutes and $200 billion for porn whereas farmers earn small money for their crops?

A farmer can feed his family by growing food on 30 acres of land and culitvating 30 acres does not need massive machines.

 

[uscitizen]

It won't effect Americans at all.
Sweden has high pay and 50% income taxes. They live better and are more secure than Americans.

True. But unlike Americans, Swedes mindset is towards work, not handouts.

I dunno, cheap booze and internet

 

[Political Junky]

It won't effect Americans at all.
Sweden has high pay and 50% income taxes. They live better and are more secure than Americans.

True. But unlike Americans, Swedes mindset is towards work, not handouts.

Actually, their social programs surpass the US. Vacation time, medical coverage, new mothers and fathers take time off for infant care, etc.

 

[Big Fitz]

A fucking Big Mac in Zurich is like $19.00

Soooo the cost of living there is 6 times that of Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Yayyy... my paycheck may be huge, but I still live like ghetto trash.

 

[Big Fitz]

It won't effect Americans at all.
Sweden has high pay and 50% income taxes. They live better and are more secure than Americans.

True. But unlike Americans, Swedes mindset is towards work, not handouts.

I dunno, cheap booze and internet

Soooooo... The same culture as West Virginia, but with yodelling, alpenhorns and better chocolate?

 

[daveman]

Horse patoot! Pub crappe!! LOL

Really?

Listen up, everybody. Franco is going to explain how a rise in the cost of labor does not cause a corresponding rise in the cost of goods and services.

This should be good.

I'm sure it will be vastly amusing.

 

[daveman]

Trade unions in Switzerland claim they have collected enough signatures to force a referendum on a proposal to introduce a minimum wage of 22 Swiss francs ($25) an hour.

That is about twice the minimum wage of 9 euros ($12.40) in neighboring France.

A spokesman for the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions, or SGB, says more than 121,000 people have so far signed the request for a vote.

Link: finance.yahoo.com/news/Swiss-unions-push-referendum-apf-2709741278.html?x=0&.v=1

Cost of Living
The cost of living in Switzerland is among the highest in the world, with the cities of Zurich and Geneva ranked second and third most expensive, respectively.

Swiss bank UBS releases a Prices and Earnings study every three years with some updates in between. Oslo, Norway, currently tops the list of the most expensive place to live.

The 2009 report found that a worker in Zurich would have to log nine hours on the job to afford an iPod Nano, the same as a worker in New York. The study also found that residents in Geneva and Zurich pay around 20 per cent more on average for products, services and accommodations than people in other Western European cities. Food is particularly expensive, with prices in Switzerland around 45 per cent more than the western European average.

The Economist uses a “gratifyingly simple” way of calculating purchasing-power parity by using the price of a Big Mac. According to the 2010 Big Mac Index, the Swiss must pay $6.78 for the same burger that would cost $3.71 in the United States.

The Federal Statistics Office produces a “Panorama” report that tracks the consumer price index. It shows that food, housing and utilities are all well above the European Union average. Telecommunications, personal transport and alcohol cost less than the EU average.

The cost of living in Switzerland is among the highest in the world, with Geneva and Zurich near the top of the list. - swissinfo

Hey! No fair using facts! It hurts the lefties' feelings!

 

[daveman]

They have a remarkably high suicide rate considering they 'live better' than us.

I love the argument that surrendering 50%of your pay is a good thing... especially when the 47 per centers make that argument.

I think it's sad that Americans constantly compare us to other countries. We were not founded to be like other countries. The glory of American is its uniqueness. I am always saddened when some Americans look enviously at other countries. Interestingly, those countries look enviously at us. Why? Because we are free and they are not. They appreciate our freedom and we, apparently, would like to give it up in order to be 'taken care of.

Clue for ya, my lefty friends.... more people apply to come into American than any other nation on earth. Why is that? Not for the free ride.

It's because...uhhh...because...errr...because they want to see for themselves how TRULY AWFUL America is! Yeah, that's it!

/leftist

 

[daveman]

Listen up, everybody. Franco is going to explain how a rise in the cost of labor does not cause a corresponding rise in the cost of goods and services.

Wouldn't trust Franco to do it coherently, so I will.

The idea that a rise in the cost of labor causes a "corresponding" (i.e., equal in value) rise in the cost of goods and services is based on the fallacy that businesses charge customers what they MUST. This is the flip side of the idea that businesses pay workers what they CAN.

In fact, it's the other way around; businesses pay workers (and suppliers) what they must, and charge customers what they can, i.e. what customers will pay. Pricing is not done on a cost-plus basis, or not in very many businesses. Generally, it's done by crossing two graph lines, one that shows rising revenue per sale with rising prices, and the other that shows declining sales volume with rising prices. Where these two lines cross is the optimum price point. Only if cost of production (including labor) is high enough that the optimum price point is actually unprofitable, i.e. results in a loss per sale, will increased labor costs force a price increase.

There is a way that increased pay can cause price increases, but it has nothing to do with the cost of production; rather, increased wages = increased consumer demand, which can, at least temporarily, result in higher prices as a simple supply-demand function. Generally, though, production is expanded to meet the increased demand, so that the price increase is only temporary.

If we look at the sharp increases in pay in the late 1940s and 1950s after World War II ended, we do not see corresponding increases in prices to match that. Nor is there any reason to expect a corresponding price hike from the Swiss minimum wage law.

Yup. That was amusing. Franco would have used more incoherent obscenity, but that's okay.

 

[tinydancer]

I hope I am putting this thread in the right forum.

So Sarkozy calls Netanyahu a liar and Obama seems to sympathize. Are most world leaders on some weird kind of high these days?

Talk about making a colossal political blunder. Like this is going to do great things for foreign relations.

The conversation then drifted to Netanyahu, at which time Sarkozy declared: "I cannot stand him. He is a liar." According to the report, Obama replied: "You're fed up with him, but I have to deal with him every day!"


The remark was naturally meant to be said in confidence, but the two leaders' microphones were accidently left on, making the would-be private comment embarrassingly public

But what I'm startled by is the fact that the journalists came to the conclusion that they should not report this incident.

I have no doubt if the media had caught Bibi in a similar embarrasing moment it would have been plastered all over the news.

The surprising lack of coverage may be explained by a report alleging that reporters present at the event were requested to sign an agreement to keep mum on the subject of the embarrassing comments.

A member of the media confirmed Monday that "there were discussions between journalists and they agreed not to publish the comments due to the sensitivity of the issue."

Report: Sarkozy calls Netanyahu 'liar' - Israel News, Ynetnews

 

[Political Junky]

Yes, Switzerland is expensive for visitors. The Swiss make more money so it works for them.

 

[auditor0007]

They have a remarkably high suicide rate considering they 'live better' than us.

I love the argument that surrendering 50%of your pay is a good thing... especially when the 47 per centers make that argument.

I think it's sad that Americans constantly compare us to other countries. We were not founded to be like other countries. The glory of American is its uniqueness. I am always saddened when some Americans look enviously at other countries. Interestingly, those countries look enviously at us. Why? Because we are free and they are not. They appreciate our freedom and we, apparently, would like to give it up in order to be 'taken care of.

Clue for ya, my lefty friends.... more people apply to come into American than any other nation on earth. Why is that? Not for the free ride.

I'm not certain where you get the idea that so many of these countries are not free.

 

[Political Junky]

Clue for ya, my lefty friends.... more people apply to come into American than any other nation on earth. Why is that? Not for the free ride.

Not from Western Europe. They like where they live.

 

[eots]

The Swiss have one the the highest rates of herpes in Europe...just sayin

 

[editec]

The Swiss control their economy and immigration policies in such a way as to protect their people from the vicissitudes of economic uncertainty.

I can certainly understand why many of you don't understand those kinds of national policies.

After all, our nation is doing exactly the opposite.

To our masters the entire point of the American people is thier exploitation.

 

[Big Fitz]

The Swiss have one the the highest rates of herpes in Europe...just sayin

Correlation or causation is the REAL question!

 

[Middleoftheroad]

They have a remarkably high suicide rate considering they 'live better' than us.

1) No, it's not remarkably high. The suicide rate in Switzerland is about 15 out of every 100,000 people. By contrast, the rate in the US is about 11.5 out of every 100,000 people. So the Swiss have a slightly higher rate than us. That's not remarkably high. The Swiss do have a high rate of suicide by gun in comparison to the rest of Europe. But, all of this is attributable to several additional factors. The Swiss have some of the easiest access to guns in all of Europe. So it's only natural that they'll have higher rates of suicide by gun, while other European countries have higher rates of other means. Also, Switzerland has legal assisted suicide for a variety of things. So every cancer patient who decides to end their life for medical reasons becomes a part of the official suicide rate. There is also the "suicide tourism" that has emerged from Switzerland's right-to-die-friendly laws, which artificially contribute to their suicide rate. And finally, the overall population in Switzerland is much less than the US population, which tends to artificially create an slightly higher rates. All these things taken into consideration, it's probably safe to expect a REAL reflection of suicide in Switzerland would show they are less likely to commit suicide than we are.

2) Suicide is almost always a matter of mental health. It has nothing to do with "living well." People who have "great" lives can suffer from clinical depression or other major mental illnesses, which can drive them to attempt suicide. Even if we were simply take Switzerland's suicide rate on face value, and ignore the full consideration of all the circumstances, a higher suicide rate in Switzerland would be entirely useless in determining how "well" the Swiss live. It would, at best, imply their mental health services are less effective than our own.

I didn't say it was 'remarkably high'. Read, comprehend, comment.

I said it was remarkably high considering they 'live better'. If they live better, one would expect them to have a lower suicide rate than us. Logic. They don't. They have a higher rate. Got that? Good.

So your suggesting there is a direct correlation between living better and suicide rate?
United states 11 (per 100,000)
Mexico 4.0
translation - California Girl thinks mexico has a higher standard of living then the US does.