Among the issues most commonly discussed are individuality, the rights of the individual, the limits of legitimate government, morality, history, economics, government policy, science, business, education, health care, energy, and man-made global warming evaluations. My posts are aimed at intelligent and rational individuals, whose comments are very welcome.

"No matter how vast your knowledge or how modest, it is your own mind that has to acquire it." Ayn Rand

"Observe that the 'haves' are those who have freedom, and that it is freedom that the 'have-nots' have not." Ayn Rand

"The virtue involved in helping those one loves is not 'selflessness' or 'sacrifice', but integrity." Ayn Rand

For "a human being, the question 'to be or not to be,' is the question 'to think or not to think.'" Ayn Rand

16 September 2008

Obama Calls for Equal Pay for Women

Senator Barack Obama and his running mate Senator Joe Biden are calling upon the Republicans to back legislation requiring equal pay for equal work, which is supposedly to result in women making as much money as men do on average.

Interestingly, since Obama has a huge Senate office staff and both Sens. Biden and McCain have large Senate office staffs, we can check up on what each of these Senators is providing on average in pay to the men and the women working for them. This has been done at L'Ombre de l'Olivier.

Senator Obama has 27 male and 30 female staff employees and he pays the women an average of 80.0% what he pays the men. This is very close to the percent discrepancy commonly claimed to exist in the general workforce by many of the studies most often cited in the MSM. More careful studies with appropriate corrections for education, time in position, shifts worked, hours worked, etc. show that the differences are actually much smaller. But let us judge these socialists by their own criteria.

Senator Biden pays his 15 male employees very well, but also pays his 25 female employees more than does Obama. However, he pays his female employees only 65.7% what he pays his male employees.

Senator McCain has 17 male and 25 female employees. He pays his female employees 105.1% of what he pays his male employees. Apparently, an Equal Pay for Equal Work Law would require him to reduce the pay of his female employees.

Admittedly, in the above analysis, it is implicitly assumed that with such substantial numbers of employees, these politicians have been as likely to hire women as men for the more responsible and skilled positions on their staffs. Perhaps McCain pays his female employees slightly more on average because more of them are in the more responsible and skilled positions. Perhaps Obama and, even more so, Biden are reluctant to hire women for these higher level positions. But, whichever version is the case, these two Democrat Senators are not living in a manner consistent with their talk. One way or the other, or both, they are discriminating against women. There is clearly a great deal of hypocrisy being exercised by these two Democrat candidates.

Sometimes those who most think a particular piece of legislation is needed are those who examine their own actions and thoughts and find that they will not do the right thing unless they are forced to do so. This results in a love for using force with government as the agent and a considerable victimization of many good people who do not need to be forced to do the right thing.

Thanks to Robert Bidinotto for pointing out the above link.

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