UNITED STATES—The battle is back yet again in Congress as the House of Representatives have passed a bill to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $15.00 per hour. Do I think it will make any waves in the Senate? Not a chance, but hearing that the minimum wage has not risen in over 10 years is quite disappointing. Why? We know the cost of living has gone up. We know housing has gone up. The price of food is on the rise. The list goes on and on.

Yes, it is no secret that certain parts of the country costs significantly more to survive compared to other cities. I’m looking at you New York and Los Angeles. Why? The cost of housing or rent is ridiculous and to see how some of these apartments or homes look like s**holes is even worse. I mean these cities and states allow landlords to get away with high robbery and don’t even attempt to do anything to correct the issue; that is beyond disgusting.

I want all these members of Congress that we voted into office to ask themselves is could they survive on $7.25 an hour in the city that they were elected into office? I want them to do the actual math and tell me can they survive on that. This includes housing, transportation, food, utilities, insurance and so much more. Let’s be honest, it’s not feasible for most Americans, unless they’re working 2-3 jobs. However, is that still acceptable?

We don’t want to raise the minimum wage because we don’t want business owners to take the bullet. That’s a valid excuse, but at the end of the day, people don’t work because they want make the bare minimum when it comes to work. You want to have a little bit left over after paying off all your bills. That is virtually impossible with the situation presented to most Americans nowadays. People are deciding between paying bills or placing food on the table!

I remember when I first started working I was making $5.95 per hour as a teenager. As an adult I was at $7.55 an hour that eventually rose to $8 per hour. Look people, I had to work 3 different jobs to put myself thru college and they were all slightly near or above the minimum wage. That’s not fun; I missed out on social activities and enjoying the college experience to its fullest potential because I had to work to pay for tuition. If I hear one more got damn person say go to school and you’ll make more money I’m going to blow a casket. It’s a load of crap.

You have NO IDEA, and I mean NO IDEA, how many people I know who are college graduates and working at jobs where they only make $10 an hour or less. A college degree means almost nothing nowadays; it’s all about the people you know. So all that gibberish about having a education guarantees a better paying job is baloney. A college degree is just like a high school degree today unfortunately.

Without a doubt, the minimum wage should be increased by at least $2-$3 in my opinion. Any other argument you sell to me, I just cannot fathom the logic. We’re not even talking about waiters and waitresses who make even less money than most Americans. Why? They rely on tips to survive and you have some cheap, pathetic people who don’t even believe in tipping or leaving pocket change. That is like a direct slap to the face to the waiter or waitress who on most occasions bust their bums to deliver top-notch service. I know for a fact I couldn’t be a waiter; it’s just a job that requires a certain level of patience that I know I cannot deliver consistently.

So this is my direct plea to Congress: get in a room and discuss the issue pertaining to minimum wage. You CANNOT sit there and say the minimum wage does not deserve an increase. To $15 per hour, that is absolutely debatable if you ask me. Something needs to change, and those who don’t think so need to ask themselves the question: why not?