Awesome Protest Signs

[pyro]

Walmart might, but other businesses don't necessarily, which would drive consumers away from Walmart and toward other businesses, thus forcing Walmart to lower its prices to recapture those customers.

That's the theory. The practice is that everybody raises their prices, because everybody is already operating at a satisfactory profit margin, and they don't want it to drop.

[RavynousHunter]

Ya know, there ought to be a body of people...something capable of passing laws that could prevent that.  Something that governs people and corporations alike.  Damned if I know what that'd be, though.

[dpareja]

Walmart might, but other businesses don't necessarily, which would drive consumers away from Walmart and toward other businesses, thus forcing Walmart to lower its prices to recapture those customers.

That's the theory. The practice is that everybody raises their prices, because everybody is already operating at a satisfactory profit margin, and they don't want it to drop.

Except that a unilateral decrease in prices by one retailer will lead consumers to shop there in preference to other stores, so that its volume of sales makes up for any decrease in profit on any individual sale, forcing all other retailers to drop prices to compete and recover lost customers and profits.

[pyro]

Except that a unilateral decrease in prices by one retailer will lead consumers to shop there in preference to other stores, so that its volume of sales makes up for any decrease in profit on any individual sale,

In the short term.

forcing all other retailers to drop prices to compete and recover lost customers and profits.

In the long term, once all the other retailers drop the prices to match yours, the result is that everyone's getting the same volume of sales at lower profit margins. Business people aren't stupid; they're already running at the profit margins they want to run at before the minimum wage hike. If they were willing to go at a lower profit margin, they would have already done so before.

[Art Vandelay]

In the long term, once all the other retailers drop the prices to match yours, the result is that everyone's getting the same volume of sales at lower profit margins. Business people aren't stupid; they're already running at the profit margins they want to run at before the minimum wage hike. If they were willing to go at a lower profit margin, they would have already done so before.

Prices do indeed rise with minimum wage increases, but not quite at the 1:1 ratio you seem to think it does. Overall, it does result in a higher share of wealth for the lower classes. History has shown that time and time again, not to mention it's why businesses fight tooth and nail against minimum wage increases. If minimum wage hikes did indeed make no difference to their profit margins, then you could raise it to six figures for all they care.

[pyro]

then you could raise it to six figures for all they care.

Heeelllloooo Weimar-style inflation!

[dpareja]

then you could raise it to six figures for all they care.

Heeelllloooo Weimar-style inflation!

...which is why nobody is suggesting six-figure minimum wages?

The proposal is that if you work a full-time job, you should earn enough not to require any government assistance. Not that you should be able to have four cars, three mansions and your very own movie theatre.

[davedan]

On punching Nazis: http://thoughtsonthedead.com/on-the-propriety-of-punching-nazis-an-faq/

[dpareja]

[Askold]

[Skybison]

On punching Nazis: http://thoughtsonthedead.com/on-the-propriety-of-punching-nazis-an-faq/

I know we've moved on from this but I can't help but note that guy made some historical errors

1) The Nazi's didn't burn the Reichstag down.  The consensus among historians is that Marinus van der Lubbe burned the Reichstag on his own, the Nazi's just seized on his actions after the fact as a pretext to shut down democracy.  The idea that large scale Antifa violence could be used by Trump in a similar way is a perfectly valid concern.

2) "We" didn't stop killing Germans after world war two ended (at least depending on the definition of we).  Mass Expulsions of German Civilians from Poland. Czechoslovakia and other parts of Eastern Europe saw the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.  Plus you've got all the unjustifiable stuff that happened during the war (bombings, Japanese internment etc).  That a mindset of "our enemies are just evil so any violence on our part is justified" can led you to do horrible things is very well supported by history.

[Sigmaleph]

What if you think you’re punching a Nazi, but you just hit a white guy with a shitty haircut?

Run.

delightful

[pyro]

2) "We" didn't stop killing Germans after world war two ended (at least depending on the definition of we).  Mass Expulsions of German Civilians from Poland. Czechoslovakia and other parts of Eastern Europe saw the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.  Plus you've got all the unjustifiable stuff that happened during the war (bombings, Japanese internment etc).  That a mindset of "our enemies are just evil so any violence on our part is justified" can led you to do horrible things is very well supported by history.

And then there's the bad blood between the US and Japan following the war. Propaganda programs steer societies the same way you steer cargo ships: directional changes are difficult, slow, and hard to undo. You can't turn on a dime.

[dpareja]

http://www.cracked.com/blog/time-out-you-know-nazis-want-you-to-punch-them-right/

Don't punch modern-day Nazis. THAT'S WHAT THEY WANT.

[Skybison]

Personally I'd change it to daughterfucker, but otherwise great.