To wheelchair pushers at the Freeborn County Fair.

An occasional sight at the fair is seeing someone in a wheelchair enjoying the activities and crowds, but some wheelchair-bound people would not get to enjoy the fun and frivolity if it weren’t for the people willing to push them. Many pushers indeed find it rewarding, but it can be hard work, too. The best pushers keep a eye out for bumpy spots and another eye on the walking traffic ahead. The worst that can happen is ending up with an overturned wheelchair. It’s the kind of task that is more challenging than it looks.

 

To politicians failing to grasp copyright.

It’s getting to be where people think that if they were in a picture that they own the picture. The truth is that the photographer, or the company for which he or she works, owns it. And original works such as stories, photos, videos, audio recordings and such do not get copyrighted through a copyright process. Every kind of media is automatically copyrighted once it is created to protect authorship.

We understand when an everyday citizen doesn’t grasp copyright law in this age of social media, which complicates all the rules. But when campaign workers for politicians running for office steal content from news media sources — such as lifting a photo from the Tribune’s website and putting it on their campaign website — it makes us concerned that the candidate should not be elected to go make laws if they fail to understand existing laws, let alone the ethical notions of right and wrong.

This is happening too often in the political fights these days, and we hope candidates can get campaign managers who have some semblance of media law knowledge.

 

To the increase in minimum wage.

On Friday, many minimum wage earners in Minnesota got a 75-cent raise. Yes, some employers could struggle for a spell to pay higher wages and few people might loses their jobs, but most workplaces can afford the increase. The benefit to the local economy will be people with more cash in their pocket to spend, which in turn creates jobs. Businesses don’t create jobs when they receive tax breaks. They create jobs when they have more customers. Research time and again has shown increases in minimum wage benefit the economy, creating rises in household income, rises in spending, increases in morale, increases in applicants and decreases in job turnover.

For some teens, it means more disposable income, a plus for the retail sector. For families, it could be mean better planning, such as buying more diapers in advance, repairing an automobile and making healthier meals. For others, the increased wage could assist with saving money. Of course, some people will squander the raise, but squandering happens among the rich or poor and among individuals as well as companies. The fact is that there will be more dollars trading hands as a result of the increase. A rising tide lifts all boats.