954. The City Council is proud of its never‐ending demands to empower the poor. It demanded NYC ID cards to provide impoverished immigrants free membership in museums and discounted tickets to Broadway shows. It demanded better working conditions for street vendors. It demanded less mold, better stairwell lighting, more security guards, and fewer rats in city housing. It demanded less police harassment of the 54,000 homeless who occasionally spit, pee, poo, and sleep on city sidewalks. The council speaker said, "They're homeless. Where else are they going to do all that?" It demanded that the Wall Street one‐percenters quit accepting their annual fat bonuses. On Friday, the council unapologetically gave itself a 32‐percent raise. The 50 members now make $148,500 annually, and the speaker makes $164,500. The minimum wage in NYC is $9. Full‐time minimum wage workers make $18,720 a year. Said one burger flipper, "Compared to me, they're the one‐percenters!" 10.5