Michigan's Minimum Wage Chickens Come Home to Roost

Well, maybe this will once and for all prove to nannystate economy-meddlers that when the government sets arbitrary costs for goods and services it has very little impact on what something is actually worth. The true value or worth of something can only be defined by unmeddled transactions between consumers and producers in the marketplace.

The unintended consequences of government puppeteers trying to manipulate consumers into desired behaviors never has a good long-term impact on the economy.

One such manipulation that governments embrace is the minimum wage. The minimum wage is an arbitrary level of compensation determined by government for workers regardless of what a job is truly worth to the employer. This, despite the fact that a senator or representative or governor has no special ability through which to determine the value of a worker to a particular business. The true value of any work performed can only be assessed by what a person or business is willing to pay for the work performed and, in turn, whether workers are willing to perform the job for the price offered.

For a look at what occurs when governments place an arbitrary cost on labor through minimum wage laws, look at Jack McHugh's analysis of Michigan's worst-in-the-nation unemployment rate, and then bathe in the glow of government intervention.

It isn't like this stuff is hard to predict.