Are the millions of underpaid illegals holding up our floundering economy?

[Philosoraptor]

And what would happen if we suddenly removed the 12 to 20 underpaid illegals?

[xchrom]

1. lol -- no -- they're underpaid.

[Philosoraptor]

3. Just like the south flourished under slavery.

Slaves did all the work, the plantation owners got all the money.

[xchrom]

5. i suppose -- except the notion that south ''flourished'' is inaccurate.

moneys were never widely distributed among all classes of people.

poverty{in the non-slave class} was endemic then -- just like it was in the fifties with underpaid black workers.

it's in the north where you see a greater economic expansion -- but --

that's just my view.

[Matsubara]

2. You make a good point...

But rather than "propping up" the economy, they mostly serve to help keep wages low.

Even the most optimistic of us don't think it would be possible to deport that many "suddenly".

[havocmom]

4. Well, they are holding up the top layer of it.

It's a pyramid scheme and it is about to collapse under the weight of all the money the top 1% are pulling out of circulation and hoarding while we all prop them up.

Eat the ultra rich. They will stew up pretty easy soon enough.

[Norquist Nemesis]

6. Well...holding up or holding back. n/t

[SoCalDem]

7. They are masking the real problem.

as long as the "masses" can get their 99-cent burgers & rent their $1 videos, and can get a guy from in front of HomeDepot to pour their concrete patio for the house they rarely get to spend any time in, things stay "safe"..

The "bosses" of all these corporations are quietly raiding profits from companies they own, by giving little or no benefits to underpaid and overworked people who are too desperate to change jobs.

Millions of people are living hand-to-mouth. paycheck-to-paycheck and wondering how on earth they can afford gas to get to work, AND pay the other bills.. But wait!!! Visa & MasterCard are there to give them a helping hand :eyes:

Cheap labor masks the true cost of food, because mega-corporate farms have mostly removed "close- in" food sources for most communities.. Farmer's Markets are great, but when you hit the freeway at 4 AM and get home at 7PM, there's not a lot of free time to browse the farmer's markets, so the corporate grocery stores are where most drones have to shop.. Cheap labor holds down prices just enough, so most people can still afford to load up on empty carbs

Of course after a few decades of eating like that, drug costs for the diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol often become an additional burden..

It's all "pay me now..or pay me later"...

In the meantime, it just means that people who cannot afford to retire, and who got downsized/outsourced are now competing for the same subsistence jobs as teens who need gas money/college money, Moms who need a little extra money, and the rest of the people who are looking for that 3rd job so they can pay the rent..

All work and no play..makes you dead tired and not looking forward to living a long life :(