Not that I have enough faculty to teach them all, but at least we could stop the student paper from making no sense on the minimum wage.

The last minimum wage increase was in 1997. Since then, inflation has caused increases in housing, food, transportation and the cost of living across the board.

To afford many of these necessities, some minimum wage workers have been forced to look for secondary sources of money, often times including government subsidies or multiple jobs.

While the proposed increase doesn't seem like much, the boosted minimum wages could help some people become more self-sufficient or allow college students to concentrate more on their studies.

OK, let's think for a minute. Costs have risen across the board for everyone, not just those on the minimum wage. Nobody is arguing for an increase in everybody's wages, so why just the minimum wage people? Second, saying you don't want to look for secondary sources of money like government subsides means that you'd rather make McDonalds give you more in return for nothing extra, rather than taxpayers. That is not self-sufficiency -- that's deciding to rob those private businesses that hire unskilled labor rather than the public.

Because of high costs of living, some college students are forced to work up to 40-hours a week to make ends meet in minimum wage positions, taking away valuable time that could be better spent studying or furthering an education.

By increasing the current minimum wage to $5.90, a student who normally would work 40-hours a week could cut back to 35-hours a week. The fewer hours could allow time to keep up on class assignments, take another class or catch a breath.

And given more time, how much more studying do you think students do, rather than using the extra time for recreational pursuits? That must be what "catching a breath" means.

Low wages also put students in a position where they need to rely on financial aid and student loans to not only pay their tuition bill, but pay for housing, insurance and other non-school related expenses.

Low wages also put you in a position to economize on your living choices. Perhaps if you didn't have access to these loans you and your parents might have saved more when you were still a child.

To lessen the burden the state government pays out in higher education and income-based subsidies, the Minnesota House would be wise to consider approving the minimum wage increase.

"To increase the burden retail outlets and restaurants pay out to teenagers, the Minnesota House would act like Leviathan if they consider approving the minimum wage increase." TANSTAAFL.