So what's wrong with raising the "minimum wage"?

I don't think there's anyone who honestly believes that our present economy is in good shape.  All the talking points reminiscent of Stalinist era propaganda aren't going to persuade most people that things are getting better when they are losing their jobs, losing their health coverage, and experiencing higher taxes, fees and regulation.  There's a lot of pain out there, and it's only getting worse.  So in the midst of our economic "malaise" as Jimmy Carter was fond of saying, why are we even talking about raising the minimum wage?  I can remember a time, not that long ago, when the minimum wage was much lower than today, and the economy was booming.  Jobs were plentiful, and employee retention was an issue because people were leaving their jobs to take a new one right around the corner.  The thought of raising the minimum wage at that time never came up for discussion. (I won't mention the name of the President at that time, but his name rhymed with Charles Dickens' teacher of pickpockets in Oliver Twist).  So apparently, talk of raising the minimum wage comes up only during hard times.  But isn't this really getting it all wrong?  Part of the problem is that the minimum wage, like any other Big Government program, never goes away, and it continues to grow.  If the whole concept of the minimum wage is to assist people in tough times, shouldn't we be able to reduce the minimum wage in good times?  It ain't gonna happen folks.  And that is the fundamental flaw with minimum wage laws.  Not only do they kill jobs, they act as a permanent drag on the economy because they increase the cost of labor without any commensurate increase in productivity.  Instead of  employing large scale government programs to "fix" the problem, it would be better to adopt specific, targeted, and temporary assistance.