The problem that is never addressed in these "terrible job" "terrible wage. wages too low" stories is: Making dual income households the norm was the mistake

The problem that is never addressed in these "terrible job" "terrible wage. wages too low" stories is: Making dual income households the norm was the mistake that has led us to this point. The reason that a fast food job is so impossible to survive on is that at one point, a single guy living in a small apartment and driving a modest car could afford that because his purchasing power was essentially DOUBLE what it is now. That isn't an option anymore. If you want to be single, you need to also have a high paying job to do it. The other option is poverty, and maybe social services making up some of the costs that for many households is being made up by their spouse. But it actually is a little worse than that, since it's being burned at both ends. For instance: I'm married. My wife and I are both extremely well paid software developers. This means that we have TWICE the power to buy a house, buy a car, pay for services like cleaners, buy a couch, buy a TV, etc. So now not only is a single person's wage lower due to a flood of the supply side, he's also screwed because the people doubling up on their income have pushed the demand side into the stratosphere. It sucks, and it breaks my heart seeing the world that my single friends have to live in. Not only are they basically living in poverty, but it makes them unattractive to potential partners who they need to get OUT of that poverty. I honestly can't really even imagine what the solution is. We certainly aren't going to put the dual income toothpaste back in the tube. Central economic authority forcing businesses to just increase their wages also doesn't seem to be a solution either, since it obviously doesn't even try to address the underlying problem (labor economics, mostly).