Comments on: As cities go broke, pensions are slashed
Add a Comment
- To the "poor" guy in the fire dept who is whining...
Let me ask you a simple question: How much did you put away into
savings over the years you worked?
NONE? Well, there is the problem: you thought that your job
would pay you a pension. You let SOMEBODY ELSE take care of your
retirement savings and plan. You didn't create your own savings plan
so in case things went wrong, you would still have something as a backup.
Did you plan for a disaster such as you are facing?
I didn't think so.
And you want somebody else to pick up the slack for you? Yeah right - Reply to this comment
- ENTTIGHTLEMENT
I DIDN'T REALSE WE ARE ENTIGHTLED TO GO BROKE AS WELL
WOW WHO 'D A THUNK THAT - Reply to this comment
- to_john: "Get used to it Boomers: You didn't pay your share, and it's already coming back to haunt you. Social Security, Medicare, private and public pensions - they are all getting sucked dry by the demand for low taxes and trickle-down economics. EVERYONE needs to pay their FAIR share, and yes, that means rich pay more in taxes than the poor and middle class. The rich can only exist when there is a healthy middle class, or as some might say, on the backs of the middle class. The alternative is a tiny minority of mega rich and a huge majority of mega poor, which leads to a collapse of the entire economy, or at best a dual economy - one for the rich, and the other for the poor. WAKE UP AMERICA - LOW TAXES LEADS TO A DESTRUCTION OF THE USA!"
Well said "to_john," since our lowest taxation rate in 60-years has led to our lowest post-WWII federal revenue rate of only 14% of GDP -- which doesn't allow us to pay our bills and fight wars all over the world -- but certainly allows the wealthy to skim the cream off the top! - Reply to this comment
- datagod: "The rich are there to keep the poor and middle classes fighting with each other, so they can keep going to the bank."
"The middle-class is there to do all the work and pay all the taxes."
"The poor are there to scare the sh*t out of the middle class, and keep them showing up at their jobs."
Yes, good points, along with the typical FEARmongering and the use of numerous scapegoats to keep the fighting and disinformation alive.
We have been played for decades now, with the boomers buying into the 'starve the beast' fiscal irresponsibility, and until we can strengthen the middle class that will enrich everyone through higher consumption, we're bound to keep sinking into 3rd world country status of only two classes -- the rich and the poor! - Reply to this comment
- Continuously lowering taxes to 'starve the beast' since 1981, while expanding the military-industrial complex, has lead to the destruction of the USA, and the wealthy keep diverting Americans' attention away from these facts!
Tax Cuts And 'Starving The Beast'
by Bruce Bartlett
The most pernicious fiscal doctrine in history
I believe that to a large extent our current budgetary problems stem from the widespread adoption of an idea by Republicans in the 1970s called "starve the beast."
http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/06/tax-cuts-republicans-starve-the-beast-columnists-bruce-bartlett.html - Reply to this comment
- Pretty big mess. Oh well these things happen. What can you do?
- Reply to this comment
- SELFISHNESS working its little A$$ off
- Reply to this comment
- Thank you, CBS4444 for setting the record striaght. You forgot one fact -- The Community Reinvestment Act was passed during the Clinton Administration and required that banks provide sub prime loans. Since the banks didn't want these dangerous mortgages on their books, they securitized them and sold them.For decades, banks required 20% down, so that homeowners had some skin in the game. Why was this commen sense approach breached by Congress?
When are the Feds going to stop their dangerous social engineering? For instance, why was Obamacare passed during the worst of the financial crisis, when thousands of people were losing their jobs each month? Why create uncertainty for businesses when you want them to hire, not fire? Do the people in Washington, most of whom are career politicans and bureacrats, understand anything about the rest of the country? About business and the cost of regulations and benefits? Do they care? Or, do they see a Greek like crisis as a full employment act for Washington lawyers? Why do you pas a bill that will cost trillions, when trillions are being spent to provide liquitity to the economy?
The bankers must be terrfied of the feds. They never point out that the root of our problems began in Washington. Amazes me. - Reply to this comment
- "To put pensions on the table and go after them as part of a restructuring effort..."
-------
He has a valid point. Pension obligations should be rightsized before they lead a town into bankruptsy. - Reply to this comment
- I can't cry for union members who didn't give a damn about the private sector and non-union entities collapsing around them for decades. They supported the unrealistic demands of their unions on the public and somehow thought they were smarter than everyone else because their goons could intimidate politicians into signing off on sweetheart deals. It went from finding fairness to tasting greed in pension and benefits programs.
Guess what? Your union bosses and pocketed politicians didn't tell you that if they killed the goose that was laying your golden eggs, you might get screwed as much as those who were paying the tab. Guess what else, the entire lot of you are about to realize what a bill of goods you have been sold. - Reply to this comment
