It started when I read Nickel and Dimed, in which Atlantic contributor Barbara Ehrenreich denounces the exploitation of minimum-wage workers in America. Somehow her book didn’t ring true to me, and I wondered to what extent a preconceived agenda might have biased her reporting. Hence my application for a job at the nearest Wal-Mart.
OMG what nonsense!!!! Charles Platt completely misses the point when he gets a job working at a Walmart. Comment #9 however is spot on:
So, I assume you tried to rent a place to live? Use only your wages to get a sec deposit/rent, or buy a car, or instead commute by public transit in the suburbs? I assume you ate only what you could afford after deducting rent, transportation and sundry expenses like medications not covered by insurance, or pay the large deductible required by the HMO?
Ehrenreich did most of those things, which were the point of her book, Nicked and Dimed. She did not represent that rampant evil personified by Wal-Mart and other employers.
Try reading the book. And Bushism is over.