Work for the State 5 Years, Pay in Zero, Get $130,000 Pension...
Work for Yourself 45 Years, Pay In $260,000 Get $28,000 Social Security
Anybody see a problem here?
This is what happens when you live in a state with no accountability, no transparency and massive political malfeasance. You and I are in effect tax slaves whose purpose in life is to work and pay exorbitant taxes so the elitist politically connected public employees can live in luxury when they retire - on our dime of course.
The person from the first line of the title is Dr. Renee Hartz, a thoracic surgeon hired by the University of Illinois to teach surgery. I am only guessing about what she actually did because records of her activity are very limited. In a Freedom of Information Act request I asked for her contract or offer letter outlining her job responsibilities plus pay and benefits included in her job offer. Despite pay totaling $567,479.10 per annum from 1991 to 1995 there were no records related to her hiring.
Of course, this delightful stewardship of the taxpayers' hard-earned dollars probably has nothing to do with this:
Meredith Whitney: 50 to 100 counties and cities could default in 2011
Financial analyst Meredith Whitney recently warned that a muni bond crisis "is the largest threat to the U.S. economy." She is noted for predicting the 2008 Wall Street meltdown months in advance....state and local tax revenues remain well below pre-recession levels, with some cities and counties flirting with bankruptcy. Emergency federal aid to the states runs out this spring. Public employee retiree costs are a fast-growing problem. And the federally subsidized Build America Bonds program expired Dec. 31, making munis a less attractive investment...
I will make one prediction: if 'Helicopter' Ben Bernanke tries to monetize municipal debt, all hell is going to break loose.
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