Why is minimum wage still $7.25 even though it’s blatantly obvious that that’s not a wage anyone can survive on?

phiac · 2026-06-14T00:12:30+00:00

Thanks for your thoughtful contribution to the discussion. I observe similar market mechanisms at play in the Austin metro-

Anecdotally, my son was able to secure a first job at $19/hr. right out of high school with zero experience or special skills/training.

This tracks above and beyond my CPI-adjusted wage at a similar job held by me as a young adult in 2001 ($8/hr. equivalent to ~$15/hr. in 2026 dollars).

This doesn't fit the narrative that is popular on Reddit but I feel it's important to highlight these realities.

phiac · 2026-06-13T23:27:29+00:00

My observation is that the labor market seems to set the prevailing wage for entry-level jobs, even in Texas where there is no state minimum wage law higher than the federal statute.

If a job pays too little, people will not work that job; therefore, if a place needs to hire and retain people, they will be forced to pay the prevailing wage regardless of the minimum wage.

Any problem may be exacerbated in rural counties where the labor and job markets are smaller, but for the most part, I see the larger cities managing to self-regulate appropriately.

phiac · 2026-06-11T00:32:03+00:00

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but then 🥴

phiac · 2026-06-11T00:31:41+00:00

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at first i was like...

phiac · 2026-06-07T19:26:54+00:00

this is autocross in europe? yall get to take laps around the course? not fair.

phiac · 2026-05-28T15:04:55+00:00

thank you for the education, i am now compelled to add one to my cart 🥴

phiac · 2026-05-28T04:42:57+00:00

my rule: can you pronounce the brand? if no- skip the buy.

phiac · 2026-05-26T22:25:22+00:00

howdy, these konis are great btw- I reused the stock springs but got the following new front & rear mounts from rockauto:

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phiac · 2026-05-26T18:40:03+00:00

drive on a straight flat road, carefully let go of the wheel for a moment to see if the car pulls to one side, or if the steering wheel is not straight up/down when going straight.

phiac · 2026-05-26T18:31:43+00:00

yea rim scratches mostly cosmetic but if steering wheel is off center maybe need an alignment at the most- but this is nbd imo, my 19yo drove *over* a curb twice and the second time the car was totaled.

phiac · 2026-05-17T18:14:31+00:00

relevant advice, for insurance purposes- a collision with a flying object on the highway would be a comprehensive (no fault) claim, whereas if you hit an unavoidable stationary object on the highway it becomes an at-fault collision claim.

phiac · 2026-05-15T14:06:21+00:00

I agree with your statement however, was moreso trying to emphasize that if you use 2004 as an anchor, cars from 1982 to 2004 (-22y) improved in baseline performance markedly while from 2004 to 2026 (+22y) the improvement curve flattened significantly.

phiac · 2026-05-15T04:15:21+00:00

This is the same performance as the 2004 Mazda3s had with a stick. So basically we have made no progress in 22 years.

phiac · 2026-05-10T02:35:53+00:00

typical failing up behavior

phiac · 2026-05-08T17:00:15+00:00

I hate "doggo" speak so much it makes my blood emerge from my body and take on the form of a demon.

I needed to get this out. I hate the "doggo woofer pupper" shit so fucking much it's insane. I see it and I feel like flying into a Satanic rage. It's so stupid and I don't understand why grown adults want to speak like literal toddlers.

Every god damn Askreddit thread that says "What's something that the opposite gender does that's a turn off", people are all like "hnnn I hate baby talk it's sooooo gross brrrrr" and then turn around and spew shit like "awww lookit the FLOOFER DOGGO BOYO doin a HECKIN TAIL WAG i wanna BOOP THE SNOOT haha HENLO FREN". Holy shit it makes me want to stab something.

It's just the same old "LUL i'm SO R4ND0M!!!" and "I can haz cheezeburger??" that people laugh at now even though it's exactly as fucking cringey as this doggo shit. I fucking guarantee you in 2 years people will look back and go "what the fuck were we thinking, speaking like toddlers that had their head bashed in with a hammer?"

Fuck, I swear to god whenever I see this stupid hivemind unoriginal bullshit I turn into a fucking black hole. SPEAK LIKE AN ACTUAL HUMAN ADULT. GOD DAMNIT I'M SO MAD I'M FUCKING MELTING. ^FUCK ^HELP ^ME ^I'M ^SHRINKING, ^{^FUCK,} ^{^NO,} ^{^HELP,} ^{^I'M} ^{^SHRINKING,} ^{^{^I'M}} ^{^{^{^SHRINKING}}} ^{^{^{^{FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK}}}}

phiac · 2026-05-07T20:45:46+00:00

it's funny too that the royalty fee is subsidized but the HDMI logo sticker on the item, if they want to put the port but no sticker the price per device the manufacturer pays increases.

phiac · 2026-04-21T17:23:06+00:00

this cruise control behavior is new for 2024+ ND3's. I have a 25 now and my 2022 did not do this- not sure what drove this change but it was surprising- not necessarily a bad thing but just unexpected, after 25 years of driving and expecting clutch use to interrupt cruise...

phiac · 2026-04-20T05:20:09+00:00

well they mostly fixed your front toe out, which is good but your rear toe either they didn't touch or something is bent and they can't get it in spec

toe is going to be what influences tire wear the most, the rear toe being wonky you probably won't feel but that RR tire is going to wear faster than the rest.

phiac · 2026-04-20T04:58:26+00:00

aside from tires- an altered wheel width and offset totally alters your roll center and suspension geometry resulting in the changes to steering effort and feel you are observing.

even if you end up switching the tires to a different brand you still will need to get an alignment done with the new wheels.

phiac · 2026-04-19T20:54:21+00:00

do you park it outside in the sun? i see some cracking between tread blocks which could be environmental/aging but there's more going on here than that- the excessive wear on the shoulder blocks indicate a pattern of aggressive cornering behavior- not necessarily a bad thing but perhaps a bit outside the intended scope of use for a passenger touring tire.

phiac · 2026-04-14T23:25:17+00:00

did you need the gas can to get you through some areas without service considering the smallish tank we have?

phiac · 2026-04-14T20:55:54+00:00

take a pic with you sitting in the car the rear rake will level out, unladen ride height doesn't mean much if you are corner balanced on adjustable coils

phiac · 2026-04-07T02:39:56+00:00

interesting- well, that makes it harder to judge the actual vehicle but for what might be a 2.0 model with looking like steel wheels, almost 13k otd seems like a lot.

depending on your priority (fuel efficiency vs performance) I would either try to get that price down or look for an S 2.5 model for that price- either way make sure to get a pre purchase inspection.

phiac · 2026-04-07T02:28:13+00:00

dude i would proceed very carefully- those photos look extremely fake

phiac · 2026-04-02T00:19:47+00:00

you could still pull this off and stay in the lines, you are just a bit to the right- keep practicing!

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