MINIMUM WAGE: DON'T INCREASE IT; ELIMINATE IT

There is much talk about raising the minimum wage, currently at $4.25 an hour, but there isn't much agreement so far on how much or when. One trial balloon would jump the minimum wage to $5.25 an hour. President Clinton sent up another balloon last week suggesting the minimum wage should float upward with the cost-of-living index.

The real sham, of course, is that some politicians, including those in the White House, will try to make political hay from the minimum-wage issue. These politicians will claim to be doing the American workforce and the economy a big favor.

Don't be fooled. Monkey around with the minimum wage all you want. In the end you will still have most wage earners making well above even the targeted in rease. So much for saving the economy with nickels and dimes.