phaster, EconProf has a habit of spreading lies and propaganda, just like you do (one might wonder who’s paying you, since this is all you’re focused on, too). Every single time he’s been asked for any data or proof, he disappears. He’s not a credible poster, and neither are you.
You might try including my responses to those posts, BTW, to be sure you get the context of those discussions. Neither of EconProf nor Joe know me, nor do they know anything about me that I haven’t shared on this site. I have NEVER done anything just because it’s in my best interest, and have often advocated for things that go directly against my own interests. How about you?
That trillion dollar figure DOES include municipal pensions, BTW. Even if you’re talking about the large state funds, most municipal governments contract with these funds for their employees’ retirement benefits. Having said that, I believe these numbers include both the state and municipal funds.
And Controller Chiang’s “bombshell” isn’t a bombshell; the numbers have been known for years in the pension community. This is why the pension funds have been addressing the issues and enacting plans to pay off these liabilities.
While you’re fighting for what’s right (in your mind), you might want to focus on the far greater unfunded liabilities in the Social Security or Medicare system. Or the bond measures that idiot voters pass when we have no money to pay for them (I’ve heard people claim that bonds don’t cost taxpayers any money because the bond investors are paying for them!!!). Or the private contractors who are well known to rip off the government at every turn (and who have far more politicians in their pockets than unions ever will).
BTW, who do you think is behind the attacks on public sector workers? There is a reason that this relatively unremarkable debt is being targeted over other types of debt and obligations. Could these people be your employers?
FYI, since you don’t read much here and only vomit the right-wing propaganda regarding the pension issue (useful idiot?) and your totally unsubstantiated claims regarding corruption in the planning department, I’ve long made it clear that I’ve always been opposed to the pension changes enacted during the stock market bubble, and have always opposed “pension holidays” where NO contributions were made to the pension plans — in some cases, it was years of this (funny how we never hear about this tax savings in the MSM, isn’t it?). And I have always been opposed to extreme risk-taking in the pension funds, which goes hand-in-hand with my opposition to the Fed’s manipulations which force pension funds (and others) into ever-riskier investments.
