The staff at the (privatized) US Senate cafeteria do not make a living wage.

They find themselves with no income whenever the Senate is not in session.

It is natural for companies to "trim the fat" in ways that cause great hardship for their employees or those they serve. Democratic government was invented to stop them. Our democratic government is failing to do its job.

There are other lessons to be learned here. For instance, people like the writer's mother should not have children.