Happiness is [not so] minimum wage
It’s an interesting question posited by a recent article in Psychology Today, that being “Which political party policies promote more happiness?” We can easily turn this around and figure that party members in each respective party are happier or sadder compared to the other political party’s policies they so detest. And they’d be even happier if the other party would be sucked into a vacuous black hole and never heard from again.
The American Dream
But that approach is way too easy. The more complex approach is to spend our tax dollars examining how the Republican and Democratic approaches to public policy affect the quality of human life. If it’s true that the American Dream allows each and every one of us the right to “the pursuit of happiness,” It’s no wonder that the root of American politics is how best to help people find that same happiness that so elude us all (based on the agenda of each respective party).
And what better way to create the pursuit of happiness than to put more money in pockets of the lower and middle class than by raising the minimum wage.
The world happiness report
And don’t think the US is the only country thinking about minimum wage. The United Nations also feels that, contrary to popular opinion, money is the root of all happiness not the root of all evil. Such are the findings of the U.N.’s “World Happiness Report.” I can think of a handful of things that the U.N. should be more concerned with these days other than world happiness but it’s all relative I guess.
Income and health are top factors in happiness
The U.N. asks, among other things, how people rate their lives on a scale from the “best possible” to “worst possible.” Their report concludes that the most important factors for happiness are social support, income security, and health. No one thought to include sex or Monday Night Football but that withstanding, income and health care can be most directly influenced by governmental policy. And the UN’s report does show that satisfaction increases as the minimum wage increases.
Those factors also make the most sense (or “cents” as it were). Travel the world over and people tend to stress a lot less when they’re not sweating over their next meal. Or worrying about paying for health care. Not that an increase in minimum wage will resolve both those questions but again, more money in your pocket allows one the facility to come up with a solution.
Happiness and equal opportunity
Regardless of your political affiliation, the great thing about happiness is that it is truly has no borders. Happiness applies to everyone in society: tall and short, rich and the poor, men and women, liberals and conservatives. And again I present to you that nothing makes us happier than [more] money.
Especially when someone is paying for it.
