California’s $20 Minimum Wage Goes into Effect Next Month:

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed two controversial bills last year, which raise the minimum wage for fast food workers to $20 per hour, effective April of this year (up from $16 currently), and which raise the minimum wage for workers in the healthcare industry to $18, $21, or $23 per hour in June (this includes support staff, such as maintenance workers, hospital gift shop employees, etc.).

While these new developments naturally affect Californians first and foremost, there are implications for the rest of the country as well. California is politically and economically influential, and often, the laws that pass in CA are not far behind in other states. Beyond this, California supplies an impressive amount of the food, entertainment, and services of the country at large, and disruptions in the California economy can have larger implications.

Advocates of these bills stress compassion for the common worker, the difficulty of making a living on the current minimum wage considering the high prices in the state, and the profits of major companies employing workers at minimum wage. Opponents of these bills stress that they aim to defy reality – which never ends well – resulting in a loss of jobs and wages for the most vulnerable in society.

The economic impact is likely to be rather devastating.

The situation highlights a common tension Christians in business experience – a balance between interests of compassion and prudent stewardship. To that end, we are going to do a quick dive into the costs of these bills, the reality they brush up against, and the corruption that has members of both parties fuming. Compassion does not have to be at odds with prudence, and even if compassion is indeed the higher good – fantasy is not a virtue. Denying reality always hurts people in both the long and short run.

The Costs of Minimum Wage

At first blush, minimum wage laws seem like a no-brainer to the Christian leader. The Epistle of James is full of condemnations for the wealthy who oppress their workers and hold back payment. The Old Testament has plenty to say about oppressing laborers who are worthy of their wages. Christians throughout history have fought for the dignity and good of the poor and downtrodden. Worker exploitation laws, in general, are, therefore, a worthy cause, and we can get behind the core idea here.

The problem is that the law of unintended consequences rears its ugly head when we act rashly.

Thomas Sowell, the brilliant economist, has this to say about minimum wage laws in his seminal work Basic Economics:

Alef Aeronautics, a “flying car firm,” has taken nearly 3,000 preorders for its 8-rotor Model A, a $300,000 vehicle of the future, targeted for a 2025 release. The Model A, which looks and drives like a regular car, is, in fact, capable of vertical takeoff and flight and seats two people. A 4-seat version (Model Z) is also in the works. Alef is backed by SpaceX and is not, as of yet, publicly traded. A number of other startups are also working on legal, commercially available flying cars for consumers, but many of these do not look like cars, have jet-like wings, or resemble more of a helicopter…

The Dow Jones continues to hover around 39,000, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both saw gains this week. AI continues to drive investment, as evidenced by Nvidia’s impressive rally. The chip maker now commands a $2 trillion market cap and a stock price that has more than tripled since last year, though some fear over-speculation. Bitcoin has risen sharply in the last month, setting a new record valuation at north of $65k each. Ethereum, likewise, is up about 50% since last month…

Calls for accountability and transparent financial reporting are mounting, as key statistics are being highlighted online by accounts such as “religionbusiness.” According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, non-profits (including churches) lose between 5-7% of donations each year to fraud and theft – more than is spent on global missions, and a survey by Lifeway Research suggests that at least 1 in 10 churches experience some sort of embezzlement…

Your weekly chance to test your Bible knowledge! The answer to today’s question may surprise you:

Q: What was Noah’s ark made out of?

Answer at the bottom

TIPS & TRICKS

Justice Wears Suspenders: YouTuber Coffeezilla Exposes Financial Fraud, Crypto Schemes

Investing is hard, particularly for those who are newcomers to the world of ROI, P/E, capital gains, blockchain technology, yield vs. face value, etc. It can be difficult to know if you’re getting into something promising and legitimate or being hoodwinked by a flashy scam.

Enter Stephen Findeisen, AKA Coffeezilla, an independent investigative journalist uncovering the truth behind popular grifts, advocating for restitution to victims, and occasionally even getting a bad guy arrested. According to the bio on Findeisen’s YouTube page, which boasts nearly 3.5 million subscribers, “I uncover scams, fraudsters, and fake gurus that are preying on desperate people with deceptive advertising. If you have to ask… it’s probably too good to be true.” From his “ten million dollar studio” (a tongue-in-cheek appellation for what is obviously a green-screen location, boasting a Blade Runner aesthetic and a hovering Lamborghini), 

Coffeezilla meticulously investigates the claims, financial records, and results of scammers big and small for the purpose of saving people from losing their hard-earned cash.

Best of all, it’s pretty entertaining.

Stephen styles himself “the internet detective,” and he dresses the part, wearing suspenders and adopting the persona of an old-time private investigator in a film noir. An excellent storyteller, he is able to hold the attention of the average viewer even while documenting complicated financial data. The result? He’s been threatened with lawsuits and death threats and has received plenty of slander/libel online. But he is undeterred. Scammers beware – Coffeezilla is out there…

• Walgreens and CVS to begin selling abortion pills, in a move that has drawn sharp criticism and outrage from Christian and conservative voices.

• The Wall Street Journal offers expert tips on how to invest in a bull market.

• The merger between Spirit Airlines and JetBlue is officially off.

• A federal judge has ruled that Christian companies do not have to pay for transgender surgeries.

• Google co-founder admits that the company "messed up" with its rollout of AI product Gemini.

• For the first time since 2016, Target's sales declined.