No wonder Illinois has big financisl problemx.

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SPRINGFIELD.....

Reg Weaver receives a state pension of $242,657 a year, not because it's based on his last salary as a teacher, but because he gets to count the $300,000-plus check he made as president of the National Education Association.

It's one of the highest pensions paid by the heavily indebted Illinois Teachers' Retirement System

Weaver, whose last salary as a south suburban teacher was $60,000, is one of 116 active and inactive members of the Teachers' Retirement System who can base their retirement income on their salaries and service in the National Education Association, the Illinois Education Association, the Illinois Federation of Teachers or the Illinois Association of School Boards, another interest group that lobbies in Springfield. It is a tiny subset of the 360,000 participants in the state system.

Previous investigations by the Tribune and WGN-TV have shown how city union leaders are dramatically boosting their retirement benefits by tapping into Chicago's public pensions. But they are not the only ones benefiting from legislative changes.

About the time Weaver headed to Washington for the NEA in the late 1990s, Illinois officials added a provision to pension law that would let him and others base an Illinois public teacher pension on a national union salary.

Weaver, now 72, said that's fair.

"As long as it is not prohibited by law, sure," Weaver said. "If it was prohibited by law, then it would not have been done."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/...1023,0,6864114.story

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$242,657

Rather unimpressive next to what the corporate hacks in the testing/textbook industry suck out public education every year. Millions for the execs and it comes from the ed budget. Any outrage for them?

So you have no problem with him receiving a pension like that?

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So you have no problem with him receiving a pension like that?

If you've got no problem with CEOs of textbook publishers making 10 times that--which comes out of the same taxpayer funds. Want to limit the compensation for both groups, just name your number.

I'll put you down as a no.

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I'll put you down as a no.

Absolutely not, Charlie. I asked you to name a figure that should be the maximum compensation for those who suck at the teat of public education. What's your number?

Simple fact is that these pensions were negotiated long ago by local officials who were eager to save money. Rather than increase salaries, they got the employees to accept future benefits from larger pensions.

And now that the time to pay off on those promises has arrived, they scream about the unfairness of the deals they themselves agreed to.

The boss is entitled to the pension. He earned it. It's in his contract. He has to be paid it.

The lesson here is that local governments have to deal with their expenses directly, not hide them by shoving them off to be paid by some future administration.

But a deal is a deal. You can't renege on a contract. You shouldn't. Even Republicans should understand that and respect the agreements made.

Jeff

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Originally posted by CompGuy:
Simple fact is that these pensions were negotiated long ago by local officials who were eager to save money. Rather than increase salaries, they got the employees to accept future benefits from larger pensions.

And now that the time to pay off on those promises has arrived, they scream about the unfairness of the deals they themselves agreed to.

The boss is entitled to the pension. He earned it. It's in his contract. He has to be paid it.

Exactly.

But Republicans are guilty --again, still-- of forgetting that eventually the piper needs to be paid. And the consequences of NOT paying what they promised could be far more devastating than the payment.

I'd say the worst consequence of reneging on the promises they made would have been the loss of credibility... but that was blown in 2000 and has been going downhill (I KNOW! Just when you think the conservative bottom has been reached, they find whole new lows, right?) rapidly ever since.

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The lesson here is that local governments have to deal with their expenses directly, not hide them by shoving them off to be paid by some future administration.

Like some former Republican Presidents and their Administrations did? Oh perish the thought... their accounting practices just don't deal w/ reality or truth or facts very well at ALL. .

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But a deal is a deal. You can't renege on a contract. You shouldn't. Even Republicans should understand that and respect the agreements made.

And that's the crux of the issue... if honor or integrity meant a whit to the Republicans, their hearts & souls would blacken & shrivel before they'd allow anyone to dismiss the obligations made by those who went before them... but shirking their obligations has become business as usual for the tea bag set... and the loss of the public's trust means nothing to 'em as they've learned too many Americans have too short a memory to make a difference in them gittin' theirs on the backs of the public.

It's disgusting to know this, to see it effect itself time and again, and to watch the American sheep flock to it like flies to an open sewer.

*CJ

Dunno. Seems extreme to me, just like the millions those bank freaks make. OUR local "superintendent of schools," who keeps watch with a cast of hundreds over only 1700 kids gets paid $200,000+ a YEAR! To do what? Get paid more than an inner city superintendent with TEN TIMES the responsibility?

I'd rather the nurses assistants, waitresses, painters, rank and file teachers from private schools (non-union,) and service industry people who get two lousy weeks vacation a year be given better compensation after years of service. They work their asses off.

Screw the damn superintendents. Screw the union bosses. One has been overpaid WITHOUT A UNION for decades, the other as a power perk to some creep who'd rather live off the backs of his teachers than teach himself.

I think it's wonderful that Charlie is suddenly concerned with ferreting out instances of individuals who are compensated way more than they deserve to be. Younare, aren't you, Charlie?

You know Mole, you're right!
There is another Red Stater here who opined in a LT the E about how certain civil servants were making a lot of money, and it was only fair in this austere times for them to sacrifice as well.

I agreed with him, and suggested we remove all health insurance and waiver reimbursement from ALL our Congressman. Fair's fair-- share the sacrifice- after all, the unemployed have to spend down to their last penny to qualify for Medicaid...

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Originally posted by Florida Righty:
So you have no problem with him receiving a pension like that?

No. Libs are fine with Libs ripping off the public.

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individuals who are compensated way more than they deserve to be

Do you agree this person is over compensated?

I read that 2 more union officials were able to get deals like this by working 1 day as substiute teachers.

Where is your link???

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Originally posted by Florida Righty:
I read that 2 more union officials were able to get deals like this by working 1 day as substiute teachers.

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Do you agree this person is over compensated?

I'm good for limiting the compensation of folks whose salary comes out of the public education teat: teachers, union bosses, executives of the big publishers and testing outfits. 200K? 100? Less? What's your number, zorro? Charlie?

It's class warfare. If some hedge fund manager gets a $200 million bonus, Florida Righty doesn't bat an eye. But if someone who represents professional workers gets a $242,000 a year pension, Florida Righty thinks it's grossly inappropriate.

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Originally posted by Gus Rodgers:
It's class warfare. If some hedge fund manager gets a $200 million bonus, Florida Righty doesn't bat an eye. But if someone who represents professional workers gets a $242,000 a year pension, Florida Righty thinks it's grossly inappropriate.

F.Righty's hypocrisy at it's finest, Gus. How about a response, Chucky?

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I'm good for limiting the compensation of folks whose salary comes out of the public education teat: teachers, union bosses, executives of the big publishers and testing outfits.

In that list, only the teachers are paid by "the public education teat"--the publishers and unions are privately funded.

I thought capitalism sets the salaries ultimately. Pay too little and you don't get people choosing teaching as a profession--or you only get lousy teachers who can't make more from a private school. Security and fringe benefits and perks of various kinds give a better overall view than salaries alone, of course. I know my father stayed in the public school system in NYC because of the security of his employment and access to good health care benefits for our family. (He started as a teacher and retired as an elementary school principal--most school officials ARE good teachers but were promoted to supervisory roles and taken out of the classroom, by the way.)

Jeff

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if someone who represents professional workers gets a $242,000 a year pension, Florida Righty thinks it's grossly inappropriate.

The difference is that one is a private entity and the other is supported by the taxpaying public.

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a deal is a deal. You can't renege on a contract. You shouldn't. Even Republicans should understand that and respect the agreements made.

BS. A Greasy Liberal Politician made a deal with a Greasy Union thug to rob the taxpayer. The slimey Union Thug then shoveled campaign money to the Greasy Liberal Politician in exchange for the liberal access to our money. And then you would have the gall to bring up the subject of honor?



Good luck with that one.

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BS. A Greasy Liberal Politician made a deal with a Greasy Union thug to rob the taxpayer. The slimey Union Thug then shoveled campaign money to the Greasy Liberal Politician in exchange for the liberal access to our money.

And you have proof, of course, that all administrators of public school systems who sign contracts with public school unions are both liberal AND corrupt and have been bribed to sign the contracts? This is true, then, for ultra-conservative areas too, where liberals can't be found in general? And administrators of public school systems are politicians who accept campaign contributions? Civil servants are always corrupt and liberal?

You have such a sad view of this world and the people in it. I feel sorry for you.

Jeff

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This is true, then, for ultra-conservative areas too

Red States don't have the dismal fiscal problems of the the Blue States that think they can endlessly bleed the taxpayer with no consequences, hell you are defending paying this guy a quarter million a year.

Rhode Island - What happens when Libs control a state for decades, and Rhode Island, the future facing several blue state:

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Years of blue social policy have wrecked local and state government finance in the country's smallest state, and now the bills are coming due. Services are being cut to the bone and elderly retirees are losing money they thought was secure.

and CompGuy will defend the indefensible to his last breath so long as he thinks it advances a lib an inch, the hell with the consequences.

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In Rhode Island, it is Democrats, not nasty union-hating Republicans, who are doing the dirty work. Democratic mayors are telling their unions that there isn't any money - not because they are vicious corporate stooges who hate working people and want to see them suffer, but because There. Isn't. Any. Money.

Still, I blame Bush. Still math is a *****, in fact, Math is a nasty trick invented by the GOP to tell Blue State nutts, NO!

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Because Rhode Island listened to timeserving blue politicians too long, and union leaders and public sector workers lost their grip on any mathematical realities beyond the numbers at the ballot box, the pension system grew more and more out of control. State and local governments lurched into a crisis. Vote yourself a raise, vote yourself a pension: why not?

Sure! Money Grows on Trees! Only the GOP seems to think otherwise, the meanies!

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But there is financial math as well as political math and in any war with financial arithmetic, the money numbers win. If there isn't any money, the checks won't clear.

Have you tried taxing the rich?

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Ultimately, you will have to fire existing workers, stop paying pensions or a mix of both. That is where Rhode Island is now: its economy can't generate the revenue to support its existing governance system and to pay its pension obligations.

The Brick Wall of Reality has no effect on a Lib.

http://blogs.the-american-inte...d-athens-of-america/

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Red States don't have the dismal fiscal problems of the the Blue States

Well, geez, genius...maybe that's because the blue states keep the red states afloat, kind of like the LA Dodgers used to keep the Pittsburg Pirates from folding their tents.

How'd that bought and paid for Republican governor of yours fare here in California, anyway?