Increase minimum wages

    I totally agree with the M. Kristina's point over increasing USA minimum wage in the blog Increase USA Minimum Wage. As the federal minimum wage was introduced in 1938 during the Great Depression under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It was initially set as $0.25 per hour and has been increased by Congress 22 times, recently in 2009 when it went from $6.55 to $7.25 an hour. Proponents of a higher minimum wage state that the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour is too low for anyone to live on; that a higher minimum wage will help create jobs and grow the economy; that the declining value of the minimum wage is one of the primary causes of wage inequality between low and middle-income workers; and that a majority of Americans, include a slim of majority of self-described conservatives, support increasing the minimum wage. I agree with the Kristina saying in the blog that every human's philosophical dream of having happy and successful life in U.S. can be achieved by changing our minimum wage.
     By increasing the minimum wage, there will be many benefits to the country and the people living in it. The first would be that millions of Americans would see a pay raise that could go toward meeting their basic needs and living expenses. A recent analysis by CNN was even more aggressive, implying that 5 million Americans would be lifted out of poverty at $10.10 per hour. More workers being able to pay for their basic expenses is a good thing, as it may lead to less reliance on government and state-sponsored financial aid programs. The other benefit would be extra pay in the pockets of some 16.5 million workers could trickle down to retailers and provide a boost to the economy. Since the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 raised the federal minimum wage to $7.25 an hour starting in 2009, there have been numerous unsuccessful attempts by Congress to raise the wage further. The two main efforts are the Harkin-Miller proposal to raise the wage to $10.10 nd the Living Wage Movement to raise the wage to $15. Even though some of the movement failed but, the fact is increasing U.S. minimum wage concept is thought by everyone.
            Thus, increasing the minimum wage of U.S. would help all citizens to achieve the "America Dream" and actually I agree with Kristina's commentary on Increase Minimum Wage Blog.

The Future

In 2014, Dakota Access, LLC, announced plans to build a $3.7 billion pipeline that would stretch from North Dakota to Illinois, about 1,170 miles across four states. The pipeline while being built is to create 8,000 to 12,000 jobs and once completed, predicted to haul approximately 470,000 barrels of crude oil per day. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration advocate pipelines to be the safest option for transporting oil and natural gases because unlike rail cars and trucks, there is not a possibility of wreckage, therefore no chance of large spread fires. 

However this has brought light to another frequent issue, that of leakage and ruptures. For example, in 2013, an Enbridge Energy pipeline broke open and spilled 843,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo river in Michigan, which resulted in a cleanup that cost millions and took years.

Over the past several months, the DAPL has received national attention and attracted thousands of protesters. Worried of the potential health hazards the pipeline could bring to the surrounding inhabitants, environmentalists and tribe members (primarily from Standing Rock Sioux Tribe) from all around have begun peaceful protests. The Sioux object because part of the pipeline is to be built on sacred burial lands, but the overwhelming majority of the pipeline is built on private property. Only a small portion of the pipeline is slated to be built on federal land. Therefore the Federal Government has very limited options on what it can do to help the Sioux Nation oppose the construction of the DAPL. 

I believe fossil fuel is the fuel of the past and the United States government should not support a private industry major investment in the infrastructure of the fossil fuel economy. Furthermore, as a government and a nation, we should not jeopardize the environment or waste money and effort to maintain a diminishing and inefficient fuel source. I believe the U.S. government should respect the wishes of the Sioux Nation and support them in their opposition to the construction of the DAPL. I would rather see private industry, with government support, use the $3.7 billion to build an energy infrastructure that furthered the production, delivery, and use of alternative and sustainable energy sources. The way of the future.