How much is your local "Trump at the Pump Tax?"

That sounds like more trouble than it's worth to DIY. How much more are these things than normal machines? And I assume they are fully computerized and thus planned obsolescence. I have the old mechanical switch type which last forever.

 

Maga town say it is $1.59 because they believe it. They think he is doing great with gas, it always has to be great even if he is killing people on fifth avenue. Which he has but on different avenues. $5.45 at Costco for one gallon.

 

You are a funny bugga, was this quoted straight from the DJT pray book?
The state I live in, South Australia, is actually 100% renewable energy, wind, solar and battery storage, and the state sells electricity to the adjoining states via a DC interconnector, because there are less losses over distance transmitting power as DC rather than AC .... if only Nicola Tesla had figured out how to do that, he could have been rich beyond anyone's dreams ..... Instead, he tried to bounce electricity off the ionosphere and through the ground, a great idea but reality got in the way

......

Over here, they are shutting down coal fired power stations because they are not economical to run without massive govt subsidies. Gas is supposed to fill in short term peak loads, but stored energy in batteries and pumped hydro are faster to provide the power required, cheaper, and in the case of the battery tech, they can absorb and power spikes and provide a stable voltage and frequency, instantly, the spinning mass of a turbine can't achieve that near as well ..... 21st century technology has made the 19th century tech redundant ..... maybe the US will catch up once the fossil in the oval office is gone and the handbrake can be finally released

T1 Terry

 

If that was how the world of finance really worked, Australia should be bankrupt and no one employed because it costs too much ... in reality, we can't find enough people to fill the job vacancies, our gross debt to GDP is 32.7%, the US gross debt to GDP is 124.5%, to me,that says your system doesn't work, but ours does, even with a living basic wage .....

T1 Terry

 

I'm not going to dispute the fact that AU has better debt management than the US but to say that our system "doesn't work" is somewhat 'simplified.'
Our POTUS does that a lot.
I'm not sure why you do not have enough workers, but it might perhaps be your immigration policy.

Our systems are different but like our languages - not vastly so.
Yours 'operates' as a Federal Representative Democracy, while ours is a Constitutional Federal Republic.
These are not worlds apart - monarchies notwithstanding.

 

It’s funny when shop owners say we can’t pay higher wages when they can, and dispute employees who actually can’t live on low wages in a 47 skewed to the rich, world.

 

..... and you know that because of WHAT line of business is YOUR shop?
Oh I forgot - every person slinging french fries ought to be able to afford a car, a spouse, couple kids, Plus two bedroom apartment rent with a nice Medical & retirement POLICY. Never mind ~90% of businesses that start up fail. Let's further make the remaining 10% more likely to join the 90%.

 

It’s funny how tall tales get believed by maga. Let’s see the numbers of the complainers about wages. Does it lower their profit a smidgen? Musk and Bezos will suffer? How easy it is to con a maga. “90% of startup businesses fail” does not translate into only wages, if at all, are the cause. Fortunately most people know better about wages to not listen to business owners with their profits being nicked a little.

$25 per hour is about $48,000 per year, minus deductions.

 

SEIU Researchers Admit $20 Wage Law Caused Fast Food Job Losses – California Globe
"California’s fast-food restaurants lost 10,700 jobs making it the worst performing year outside of a recession"

"Last week the Globe reported on a new study by the Berkeley Research Group admitting that California’s $20 minimum wage for fast food workers has led to job losses, higher food prices, and increased automation in the industry.

The BRG study found, “California’s fast-food restaurants lost 10,700 jobs between June 2023 and June 2024, making it the worst performing year outside of a recession, and the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, food prices at local restaurants have increased by 14.5% since the legislation was signed, nearly double the national average."

Opinion | Minimum wage hikes offset CA living costs but with downsides
"This may be a circular economic firing squad. Higher wages can lead to higher consumer costs, which increases pressure for higher wages and pushes those caught in the middle, trying to survive, to lower-cost states."

"While exact numbers vary by state and industry, California’s $20 fast‑food wage hike alone has been tied to tens of thousands of job losses and dozens of restaurant closures, with some chains relocating out of the state. Nationally, economic research suggests that minimum wage hikes — particularly in high‑cost sectors like fast food — are a major driver of small business closures and relocations."

 

That's just landlords eating everyone else's lunch.

If your town/city can't get cheap housing on the market today, there won't be any cheap labor available tomorrow.

 

Isn't expensive/cheap housing a matter of supply & demand? Over the decades that we've owned rentals we never charge any less or more than what the market would bare. Only a moron is going to put somebody into their property that has already flaked on rent payments in their prior rentals. Similarly, people that brag on Facebook how they screwed over their former landlord will be passed over. It's not just about providing a fair price. You have to keep the pigs out - that may take delight in destroying your investments.

 

Sure is.

Look, I never said the landlords were wrong for taking advantage of market conditions. But I do think it would be better if they stayed quiet about the consequences of their actions.

 

if corporations buy up all the supply, what does that do to demand?

 

Does any of all that say what the owners expenses for increased wages versus their profits? Inflation, oil prices leading to higher costs, and an unwillingness to live with a little less profit to pay people a little more. It seems a lot of nothing.