Rant #1,397: Minimum Rage

I do not support any legislation that pushes the minimum wage beyond reasonable limits.

What that means is that while I do support the minimum wage going to $10 an hour, I cannot see it going much past that, and certainly not to $15 an hour, as many of those supporting fast food workers would like.

It simply isn't feasible, ethical or the right thing to do to push the wage beyond a reasonable figure.

Yes, I do know what President Roosevelt said all those years ago when he established the wage, that it was supposed to be a livable wage. But that was 70 years ago, when you could get a cup of coffee for five cents and if you made $50 a week you were making a lot of money.

Today, things are certainly much different, and I don't think the minimum wage should necessarily be a living wage, but a wage that pushes those that are getting it to want something more.

Case in point was yesterday, when I went out to get my family dinner.

My son wanted Burger King, so I went there to get dinner for myself and him. (My wife hates Burger King, so for her, I went elsewhere.)

I walked into our local Burger King, and placed my order. I did not go through the drive through, because they have one of those soda machines where you can pick what you want, and I like to go through it and see what is available.

Anyway, I go to the associate there behind the counter, the only person who was behind the counter at the time.

I tell her exactly what I want: I wanted two of the meals that they have there--I forget the numbers--one with chicken nuggets and the other with their "Ultimate Bacon" burger.

I tell the cashier that rather than fries on the second meal, I would like onion rings.

She verbally says to me what she is inputting into the cash register: "A No. xx and a No. xx, no onions on the sandwich."

I tell her no, she got it wrong. I want onions on the sandwich, but I want it with onion rings.

She does not understand me, giving me that look that you just know means she doesn't understand what I am saying.

I know I raised my voice a little, but I said it again, "Look, I am trying to explain to you. I want onions on the sandwich, but I want onion rings instead of fries for the second meal."

I think she gets it this time. She give me the cups for the soda, I go over to the machine to get my drink choices, and I come back to the counter.

She comes over to me and says, "No onions on the sandwich, right?"

I say to her, "Please listen to me. I want onions on the sandwich, but I want onion rings rather than fries."

What's more, I see that my order hasn't even been made yet, simply because the cashier was unsure about what I wanted because she could not understand me.

But finally, I see some light at the end of the tunnel. After I told her again what I wanted, lo and behold, I see it being made.

She must have gotten it this time, because after trying for the past five minutes to get her to understand what I was saying, I got what I wanted.

But I also know I grumbled, "Only in America" under my breath.

This defeats the entire purpose of "Fast Food," which is supposed to be fast.

No, I cannot support fast food workers making $15 and hour. Many do not understand English--this woman spoke broken English, very heavily accented, and obviously, she did not have full command of the language--refuse to learn the language, and because of their own stubbornness, will never move out of the minimum wage category.

I have had this problem at many such restaurants--from Burger King to Taco Bell to Boston Market and a whole lot of other fast food places--and sure, it is a stereotype, but when many people come to these shores--either legally or illegally, many of the least educated ones end up working for the fast food places.

And they do not have a command of our language here.

I have never been one to push for a national language, but as the problem gets even worse, at least in my neck of the woods, I think it is something that should be studied.

I have had other people who have come here from distant shores tell me themselves that it is embarrassing that so many of their brethren do not have command of the language, and what is even worse, they pass this down to their American-born children, who thus, have little command of their "native" tongue.

No, I cannot support giving minimum wage workers ridiculous-for-what-they-do salaries as much as I don't like the fact that many upper executives pilch their own companies for ridiculous bonuses.

But at least those executives generally know their native tongue.

Look what happened in the Bible, with the Tower of Babel story, where people could not communicate with each other.

We are becoming that Tower of Babel--what's worse, a Country of Babel, if you will--and it is separating us, not bringing us together.

No, working under a minimum wage is not supposed to make you content; it is supposed to force you to push for more, but when everything is given to you on a plate, why should you?

But when I can't get what I ordered on my plate until I basically have to spell it out to the server, what am I to think?