Friday, October 3, 2014

Things I Don't Understand.

I've seen this floating around the internet and to be honest I really don't understand it.


First of all, this just makes me mad. As an individual who was severely dyslexic (and who still struggles with it now and then) I cannot spell. And I absolutely hate people that try to put me in a box or label me based on one social skill. No, I can't spell. But that does not mean I don't "deserve" 15 dollars an hour.

You know, I'm really not for raising the minimum wage. (I am for lowering the cost of food and the cost of living and making what we already earn worth more, because I think that is what we need. If we just raise min wage inflation will occur because most owners of businesses and big wigs are greedy and they will raise prices if they have to pay more just to keep making the same amount of money) We need to fix the problem of inflation. My mother in law paid for her husband to attend Penn State by working at Kroger's in the 1960s. His school bill was roughly $300 a semester. You can't do that anymore--and that is what needs to change. But that's besides the point.

Maybe instead of telling this person who can't spell what they "deserve" to make hourly, you should instead hire some more teachers, create smaller classrooms so students get more one on one time and help teachers have more time to individually learn what each child needs. This would better prepare kids for college.

Or maybe the person who wrote that sign is a non-native English speaker. Ever think of that? Our country is diverse and English is a hard language. Making fun of how someone spells or writes when they are already trying to navigate a whole other country isn't nice. That's the first thing I thought when I saw this sign--I wonder if this employee is a native English speaker? I would suspect not, but of course I can't say for sure.

No matter what we need to realize that even people who can't spell are amazing. I mean, I graduated from college. And I still have a hard time understanding the difference between sell and sale and then and than. Suffering from a disability or poverty or anything for that matter does not mean I can only make a certain amount of money an hour.

But thanks for telling me where you think I belong.

3 comments:

Robin said...

Part of the problem, in my opinion, is the idea that restaurant/retail/manual jobs are lower-class and designed for uneducated persons. The idea that these people only "deserve" $6 - $7 after taxes is ridiculous. I think a person who is trusted with a drawer full of cash and has to deal with the general public should be paid more than somebody who sits at a cozy desk, occasionally answers the phone, and browses the Internet for six hours.

Cliff Coates said...

I respectfully dissent: If you are someone with dyslexia or are a non-native English speaker, then making this mistake is perfectly understandable. However, what's not acceptable is either not finding a dictionary or asking another person to proof-read your sign. This is a sign that is presented to the general public, and is, therefore, representing a business that this person presumably did not own. Everyone can make spelling mistakes. My brother and Dad are notoriously bad spellers. What's unacceptable is not getting someone or something (i.e. dictionary) to check your spelling when you are doing work that will reflect on someone else, as is the case with this sign.


Please note that my comments should not be construed to be a criticism of an individual's personal work (as in your blog) and the occasional spelling errors on it. :)

Rachel G said...

I'm pretty much not a fan of all of this type of photos on the internet with words on them (would this be considered a "meme"?) just on principle. Mostly because they aren't even based on reality. I don't support raising minimum wage because I don't think it will help anything--I think it will cause inflation, like you said. Costs of living are crazy high--it's still possible to raise families in working class jobs, I have family members doing it, but these days it's becoming more and more impossible to earn a good wage without a 2 or 4 year degree, which is why my parents have been systematically forcing all of us to go to college and to choose "practical" degrees.
p.s. some of my favorite people in the whole wide world can't spell, and you know I hate it when others are mean to people because they can't spell or speak with perfect grammar.
And a new restaurant just opened in my neighborhood with the sign "clod drinks" out front and I really wish they would have consulted me before designing this elaborate, expensive sign...but that's okay, probably almost no one who walks by will even know the difference.