Just heard a commercial for a “rent to own” place. One where the payments on a laptop computer totaled two and a half grand for a 450 dollar machine.
A 700 dollar (at the high end price) refrigerator, 159 bux a month for two years, 3816 dollars.
That’s a 400% markup.
So, what’s the Big Deal about Minimum Wage? Why shouldn’t those of us who rent out our labor have to do it not at a profit, not even at a “break-even” rate, but below the actual cost for us to produce our labor? If I were to walk into the Rent-to-own place and demand to only pay $700 for the $700 refrigerator, would I be legitimately allowed to walk out the door, (with a rented dolly and rented pickup of course) with the refrigerator? How about if I only offered $500? Surely he could survive on $20 a month for 2 years.
No? What if I got some Publicly Paid Goons to force him to negotiate on my terms, the way Capital always does when they’re confronted with the silly-ass demands of Labor that the Workers actually be paid an adequate wage?
See, every time this question gets put to the Capitalists, they come off with a duplicate of Squealers Speech from Animal Farm about how the duties of Leadership are so much more strenuous than the duties of Followers that the Pig Leaders deserve, nay, NEED, to have the windfall apples, the milk and to sleep in the farmhouse.
I “trot” that one out a lot because Capitalists seem to believe they own the story. Also the Corporate Welfare aspect of them using the publicly funded police and army to negotiate their coercive labor deals for them.
And to coerce suppliers of the raw materials, like foreign nations who produce Oil, minerals and even produce the Produce (like vegetables, coffee, bananas…)
And then have the balls to say that they worked for their money, and don’t owe the workers anything.
Why, we should be so proud to work for them that we’ll pay them for the privilege.. oh, wait, we already do.
