Thanks Rendell, Now My Coffee Costs More!

Last week, I was saddened by the news that Starbucks would be raising the prices of their coffee due to international coffee markets and production costs. Apparently, coffee, the second largest traded commodity next to oil, can rise and fall in price much like the gas we use in our cars. It's understandable for a large corporation like Starbucks to have to adjust according to the international markets, and there is a chance of that price falling eventually.

I was floored, however, when I walked in to my favorite coffee shop on the planet (whose name I won't mention in this article) and saw a sign that they would be raising the prices of their coffee. Could this small, independently owned business be effected by international coffee trade? I thought it was in its own economic bubble-- what happened to the bubble? Well, their bubble was burst by a big, fat, Tammany-Hall-politician from Philadelphia: Governor Ed Rendell.

The cafe was raising their prices because they have to in order to keep up with the increase in the minimum wage!

I've harped on this before, but you don't really see the negative effects of raising the wage until its too late. The price of a small cup of coffee was going up almost twenty cents, and it wasn't because the cafe wanted to raise the price or take advantage of the supply & demand setup that our economy is based on. They don't want to raise the price, but they are being forced to because people think raising the minimum wage will solve everyone's problems. I don't blame the cafe one bit, they are just doing what they have to in order to continue making a profit. I am blaming, however, our state politicians, specifically Ed Rendell, for raising the minimum wage over the summer.

When I first saw the sign next to the cash register, and then looked up at the prices (effective Oct. 2), my blood began to boil. This is exactly what I knew was going to happen and I was pissed. Sure the minor side-effects popped into my head first: I would no longer be able to get coffee for $1.05 (the same price as freedom, by the way); I would have to start carrying more change with me.

Then I thought about the negative effects that something like this has on a small business. Their image gets soiled for a period of time, as long-time customers realize that the prices have gone up. Americans hate when the prices go up on anything (we judge economic success, incorrectly, on the price of gas for Pete's sake!), and we have a tendency to not understand why prices are going up. Then again, business owners are forced to make that tough decision: do they cut back their workforce because they have to pay more, or do they raise prices and chance unpopularity. Then, if they raise prices, they might not get the same amount of business and still continue to lose money. It's not fair! And the fact that I now have to pay twenty cents more for my coffee isn't fair either.

But doesn't that mean that if the minimum wage goes up all the wages should also increase? No way, Manuel! Maybe if you're a member of the AFL-CIO, who constantly fights for hirer minimum wages so that they themselves can charge more. But if you're like me, who works on a scale disconnected from standard wage prices, you're helpless. You just have to pay more for goods and services. Great. Thanks, Rendell.

Liberals, and fighters of the higher wage, that are reading this are probably saying to themselves: this isn't a black and white issue, there are many facets to consider, blah, blah, yatta, yatta. It's easy for me to see issues from a 'one or the other' standpoint--especially when the issue involves my infinite love for that hot (and sometimes cold) lifeforce: coffee. This time, I see the issue of minimum wage as black as my coffee and as white as my cream.