On April 15, 2015, thousands of fast-food employees around the country marched out of their jobs demanding an increase in pay to $15 an hour. They stressed that they could not pay their rent and feed their families on a minimum-wage salary.

In my opinion, McDonald’s, Burger King, and places of this nature offer start-up jobs. Many 18-year olds who want experience and want to make their own money go to work there until they find something else. If you get trapped there because you started a family or never progressed from there, that’s your own responsibility.

This may sound rude and you may feel like you’re entitled to a decent living but you’re really not. If working at McDonald’s isn’t paying your bills or supporting your families then go find a second job or a third one. No one told you to go out and start a family while having a career at McDonald’s.

I understand everyone’s situation is different but you cannot tell me that flipping a burger and pulling fries out of grease trap is harder and deserves to make more money than someone serving their country in the military.

The current yearly salary for an entry level solider in the Army is $18,378. Dividing that by 12 comes out to $1,531.50 a month. Break that down and the soldier makes $765.75 every two weeks. I divided that by 80 accounting for two 40-hour work weeks came out to 9.57 an hour. That’s not including the extra hours working standing duty or on watch at night, protecting you and fighting for this country.

There are people literally getting shot at on their job and who don’t always have the luxury of coming home every night that make less than $10 an hour. That’s not to mention that they also have families and need to feed them, as well.

Currently, the federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. In California, the minimum wage is $10 an hour. Obviously, California is a much more expensive state to live in than others but if you cannot afford to live in California on minimum wage then don’t.

Settling at places like McDonald’s, who will replace you with a computer screen if you keep asking for this increase in pay, should not be your number one option. If you don’t see that then maybe you should start prioritizing your life.

As a military veteran, it is hard to for me to hear that people flipping a burger feel entitled to make $15 an hour because they can’t pay their rent or can’t feed their families. I say too bad, deal with it or move along.

Of course, everyone wants to live a comfortable lifestyle, But if you can’t afford it then you should be finding ways to make it happen — not settling at places like McDonald’s, which will replace you with a computer screen if you keep asking for this increase in pay. Then you will be extremely out of luck.