Many survey comments about minimum wage opposing the $15 wage weren’t only egregious, they’re wrong. If you don’t live in poverty, it’s easy to ignore plights people face. No one deserves poverty, or the stigmas and assumptions surrounding it. Arguing that minimum-wage jobs are for people who do not try implies that there are living-wage jobs available that people aren’t taking. This isn’t true, no one wants to live in poverty. Economies grow when people have disposable income. St. Lawrence businesses are crumbling under rampant poverty. Raising wages increases growth, supports small business, and communities as a whole. 600 economists, of which include seven Nobel Prize winners, advocate for raising the minimum wage. I support raising wages based on the information and advice from hundreds of top economists. It is inappropriate however, to spread disinformation to create fear over living wages. When disposable income surges, only poorly run businesses would need to close.