[quote=pri_dk][quote=CA renter]Once again, taxpayers DO NOT make benefit payments to retirees. Get your facts straight before you make yourself look like an even bigger idiot.[/quote]
Read my words. The ones you highlighted in bold.
I said pension payments are payments from the government to the individuals. I did not say they were payments from taxpayers to individuals.
I did say that taxpayers are on the hook to make up the (massive) shortfalls.
(Or are you trying to claim that a check that comes from CalPERS is not coming from the government? So I guess grandma’s Social Security check doesn’t come from the government either…)
The issue here is the shortfall and who is going to pay for it.
I’m still waiting on the details of your proposed “take it from Wall Street” solution…[/quote]
You are trying to imply that *taxpayers* are paying direct benefits to public retirees, and nothing could be further from the truth. The money in the pension plans is set aside specifically for retirement benefits. It is not part of the General Fund or any other funding source used by the govt. It does not belong to “taxpayers,” as it is already allocated for a specific purpose.
If there are shortfalls, public employers **and employees** will have to make larger contributions to their retirement plans.
If public employers have to make greater contributions, that will be used in negotiations to take more from the employees. There is no reason to think that taxpayers will be 100% responsible for the shortfalls.
Again, are you (and everyone else) willing to give up Social Security in exchange for a 100% self-directed retirement plan with NO social safety net in the event of huge losses or other unforeseen circumstances? Public sector workers don’t want to bail out your retirement system any more than you want to bail theirs out.
