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This Person Tries To Fact Check Bernie Sanders For Saying No One Can Afford An Apartment On Minimum Wage, Gets Shut Down
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This Person Tries To Fact Check Bernie Sanders For Saying No One Can Afford An Apartment On Minimum Wage, Gets Shut Down

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Bernie Sanders first made major waves with his 2016 presidential campaign. His message was clear and at that time seemed quite extreme – Sanders declared that it’s unfair how much power billionaires have and rallied behind the idea of taxing them to create a society that’s fairer than it currently is, advocating for free education, and raising minimum wages. Sanders gained traction and his campaign was noted for the supporters’ enthusiasm as well as Sanders rejecting donations from corporations. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough and the DNC passed on Sanders for Clinton in her unsuccessful general election campaign against Trump.

As the 2020 presidential election is quickly approaching, Sanders is giving it another shot with his 2020 presidential campaign. For Democrats, it’s an obvious race against Trump who’s the obvious Republican candidate. Despite Sanders having a ferocious support group, as of the end of 2019, he seems to be behind Joe Biden in the majority of the polls.

One person criticized a tweet made by Senator Bernie Sanders back in 2017

Image credits: Gage Skidmore

One exchange between Sanders’ supporters and his critic in 2017 recently gained traction as it naturally became relevant again. One person was against a tweet Sanders made where the Senator declared that minimum wage is not enough to rent even a one-bedroom apartment. They quickly threw together some calculation to disprove Sanders’ point and called it a day.

Image credits: sensanders

They presented an argument trying to disprove Sanders’ argument about minimum wage

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And while there were some who approved of the criticism

However, another person, who claimed to respond not out of political motivation but rather being irritated by the critic’s argument, went on to post an in-depth calculation of potential expenses that a minimum wage worker might have and how limited the finances of such a person are.

Another person quickly interfered, offering a more in-depth explanation on why they disagree

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According to US labor law, the current minimum wage in the United States is $7.25 per hour. Some states, however, have a different rate than the federal one, with such states like California, New York, and Arizona paying their residents a higher wage. That is, of course, understandable, since the rent in major cities like Los Angeles and New York can be as high as $2,650 for a one-bedroom suite. Even so, it’s definitely apparent why the minimum wage seems like a big problem.

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The discussion took place back in 2017 and things seem to be getting slightly better 3 years later. According to Apartament List, “rent growth lags even further behind the growth in average hourly earnings, which have increased by 3.1 percent over the past twelve months”. Despite the positive tendencies, it still poses challenges for those with minimum wage jobs in states that haven’t changed the minimum wage since July 24, 2009.

Image credits: Rental Realities

Here’s how people reacted to the “clap-back”

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Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

Author, Community member

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As a writer and image editor for Bored Panda, Giedrė crafts posts on many different topics to push them to their potential. She's also glad that her Bachelor’s degree in English Philology didn’t go to waste (although collecting dust in the attic could also be considered an achievement of aesthetic value!) Giedrė is an avid fan of cats, photography, and mysteries, and a keen observer of the Internet culture which is what she is most excited to write about. Since she's embarked on her journalistic endeavor, Giedrė has over 600 articles under her belt and hopes for twice as much (fingers crossed - half of them are about cats).

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Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

Giedrė Vaičiulaitytė

Author, Community member

As a writer and image editor for Bored Panda, Giedrė crafts posts on many different topics to push them to their potential. She's also glad that her Bachelor’s degree in English Philology didn’t go to waste (although collecting dust in the attic could also be considered an achievement of aesthetic value!) Giedrė is an avid fan of cats, photography, and mysteries, and a keen observer of the Internet culture which is what she is most excited to write about. Since she's embarked on her journalistic endeavor, Giedrė has over 600 articles under her belt and hopes for twice as much (fingers crossed - half of them are about cats).

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DE Ray
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a landlord in the South - if you find an apartment for less than $500/month, it's not worth living in. Most Southern states have very few requirements for landlords in terms of health and safety of tenants (Arkansas, where I live and own rental property literally has NO law regarding residential rental property), so for that price you are just about guaranteed to be in a place which is infested, unsafe or otherwise unhealthy. Average rent for a two bedroom apartment in my area is $650. One bedroom apartments aren't really a thing - I don't have any, and of the landlords I know in this area only two have them, and they both operate as residential hotels (includes a weekly cleaning service, front desk, etc. - not the same as most residential rental).

DE Ray
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I should also say, as a landlord, I'm not actually making that much off of what even I think is exorbitant rent rates - only the big companies that are able to self-insure can do that. Property insurance on rentals is extremely expensive. For the units I own, I worked out that my annual insurance bill comes out to $390 per month per unit. It's a bit like the screwed up US healthcare industry - insurance is where all the money is going.

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DC
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is so damned wrong. I mean, Mr. Sanders is right, with every single word. It is wrong that these conditions are forced on people - and, to add a little more shittyness, in one of the richest countries of this world. I don't even dare to imagine what it would be like without minimum wage legislation ... all this blabla about free entrepeneurship and the like is just dumb and ignorant b******t if you, first of all, have to provide stuff to maintain yourself alive - and I'm not even talking about children or other relatives depending on one person's income.

Elizabeth
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Only truly rich people have the audacity to believe that anyone can live off minimum wage. Fortunately most people make more than minimum wage, but sometimes that more is just barely more. I wish we could force anyone who believes this BS to live that way for 3 months... oh buddy would they change their minds FAST!

Load More Comments
DE Ray
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a landlord in the South - if you find an apartment for less than $500/month, it's not worth living in. Most Southern states have very few requirements for landlords in terms of health and safety of tenants (Arkansas, where I live and own rental property literally has NO law regarding residential rental property), so for that price you are just about guaranteed to be in a place which is infested, unsafe or otherwise unhealthy. Average rent for a two bedroom apartment in my area is $650. One bedroom apartments aren't really a thing - I don't have any, and of the landlords I know in this area only two have them, and they both operate as residential hotels (includes a weekly cleaning service, front desk, etc. - not the same as most residential rental).

DE Ray
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I should also say, as a landlord, I'm not actually making that much off of what even I think is exorbitant rent rates - only the big companies that are able to self-insure can do that. Property insurance on rentals is extremely expensive. For the units I own, I worked out that my annual insurance bill comes out to $390 per month per unit. It's a bit like the screwed up US healthcare industry - insurance is where all the money is going.

Load More Replies...
DC
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is so damned wrong. I mean, Mr. Sanders is right, with every single word. It is wrong that these conditions are forced on people - and, to add a little more shittyness, in one of the richest countries of this world. I don't even dare to imagine what it would be like without minimum wage legislation ... all this blabla about free entrepeneurship and the like is just dumb and ignorant b******t if you, first of all, have to provide stuff to maintain yourself alive - and I'm not even talking about children or other relatives depending on one person's income.

Elizabeth
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Only truly rich people have the audacity to believe that anyone can live off minimum wage. Fortunately most people make more than minimum wage, but sometimes that more is just barely more. I wish we could force anyone who believes this BS to live that way for 3 months... oh buddy would they change their minds FAST!

Load More Comments
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