If I had more money, I'd spend more money...

[snellbert]

I have no particularly insightful comments on the main subject of this article (maintaining/raising/abolishing minimum wage), but I found myself a little taken aback by the guy they interviewed.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/24/opinion/greene-minimum-wage/index.html?iref=allsearch

For the non-link-clickers:
"... I asked Mike King, a grocery worker in Collier County earning the minimum wage, if the increase to $9 would make an appreciable difference in his life.
"There's no question about it," he said.
What may seem like small change to wealthier people, he said, would allow people in his situation to be at least a little better off: "I'd be able to buy better quality food some of the time. I could pay for gas and car insurance, so I could drive to my job instead of taking public transportation or riding a bicycle. And it would help me be able to pay my electricity and phone bills on time."

...I was with him right up until the car comment. If you had more money, you'd buy gas to drive a car to work, even though you  seem to get by fine without it as per your current arrangements? Seems like with extra money, he'd be right back in the same situation, but driving a car.

[dragoncar]

True, but you don't know his commute.  Maybe he has to transfer three times, and wastes hours on late buses and missed connections.

[randymarsh]

I honestly can't blame him. In many parts of the US, public transportation adds tons of time to a commute.

Private automobile ownership can also be considered a sign that you've "made it" in America, depending on what you came from. It could also open up better opportunities for higher paying work, even after factoring in a commute.

Maybe I'm just an optimist though. ;)

[BlueMR2]

In my area of the country, public transportation is horrible.  If you can find some going the right way, it won't be at a decent time, and it's likely to be loaded with crazy people and gang members.  It's not a great option...

[the fixer]

We can guess at what the situation is like for him.

Collier County, FL, according to Google Maps, consists solely of Naples and some undeveloped everglades (national preserve, state park, etc.). Searching for "grocery stores" returns lots of results, the vast majority of which are in the Naples area, with only a handful outside the city.

Here's a map of the bus system there: http://www.colliergov.net/Index.aspx?page=2523

[sheepstache]

It is nice of people to defend the guy but he also says in the same breath that his commute is bike-able, so surely public transportation is either not that bad or at least avoidable.  Also, he is having a hard time paying his bills on time.  You'd have to think someone that on the edge financially wouldn't be so quick to expand his lifestyle.