Editor, Index-Tribune:
Your latest (Sept. 16) Op-Ed page reeks of envy – as though economics were a zero-sum game.
One letter writer begrudges the compensation of hospital CEO Kelly Mather, a rare talent who has managed Sonoma Valley Hospital superbly, benefiting both employees and patients and providing citizens of the Valley local access to high-quality healthcare.
Another urges that government officials determine how much labor is worth and compel employers to pay that price. Economists overwhelmingly conclude such a law would have the usual unintended consequences and hurt the very people it’s presumably designed to help.
During World War II, while in high school, I worked 23 hours a week in a meat market for $.30 an hour. That paid for my meals, clothes, etc. and was crucial for our impoverished family. If we adjust roughly for inflation by a factor of 10, a $15 minimum wage today would’ve been $1.50 then. My employer would have laid me off rather than pay five times my value in the market. Not only would my family have suffered, but I would’ve missed the experience of working alongside adults and the lifelong confidence that I could sustain myself in adversity.
A columnist attacks Elon Musk for the remarkable success of Tesla. True, Musk accepted government subsidies, but unlike many, he’s providing compound returns in jobs and innovative products that enrich our lives. (Reminds me of the Parable of the Talents.)
Subsidies are just one of the many forms of rent-seeking (see Wikipedia), which is endemic in our society. And it always will be, as long as humans are driven by self-interest and seek more. We can’t eliminate rent-seeking, but we can reduce it by limiting the size and scope of government. The Founders bequeathed to us the concept of limited government; let’s stop squandering that bequest.
Alden Brosseau
Sonoma Valley
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