"New Direction for America"

From Newsmax.com:

If they retake control of Congress, Democrats will act quickly to increase the minimum wage, lower prescription drug costs and slash interest rates on student loans, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Saturday. The ideas are part of the Democrats' new domestic agenda, named "New Direction for America," which the party rolled out during the past week. Pelosi, D-Calif., used the party's Saturday radio address to promote the plan. "A new direction means expanding access to affordable health care for Americans. We will begin by lowering the cost of prescription drugs by putting seniors ahead of pharmaceutical companies and HMOs," Pelosi said.

Ok, here's a question for Pelosi, who is going to pay for these increases? One thing that all the proponents for minimum wage increases don't seem to realize, when you raise the minimum wage, prices go up! A working mother paying for daycare will have to pay more for that daycare. If you are running a small daycare center, say with 4 or 5 caregivers, you may have to layoff at least one of these people to make up for the cost of the increase. You also have to raise your rates. Now you have a person out of work. Because of that increase, you might have mothers having to go on welfare because they can't afford the increase. More unemployment. You raise minimum wage and number of the entry level positions will decrease. More unemployment. Stores will be raising their prices to make up for the difference in their expenses caused by the wage raise. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm all for people making a "living wage". My first job paid $1.60 an hour. I was 18, and I repeat, it was my first job. I eventually got a raise, to a whopping $1.65 an hour. I wasn't getting rich on that, let me tell ya! I "moved up" to another job (Krispy Kreme)with the outstanding hourly wage of $1.75. I was able to pay rent on the apartment I shared with my sister ($95 a month), plus whatever other tiny bills I had, plus at least a couple of nights out a month with friends. My point in bringing up my sordid past, you do not stay at entry level! You aren't suppose to live on minimum wage, you're suppose to improve, move up the ladder, get educated in your choice of jobs. Affordable healthcare? Maybe if they could get serious tort reform inacted, we'd have affordable healthcare. Get the lawyers and insurance companies out of the healthcare business, and leave it to the professionals. Some high school grad making decisions about what procedures I need, or don't need, and what they will or will not pay for, is not my idea of good healthcare. When OB/GYN's are getting out of the business of delivering babies because of lawsuits like John Edward's "channeling" case based on junk science, it's time for a revolution! Personal opinion: The worst thing that ever happened to healthcare is HMO's. Thank you Teddy Kennedy!