"This Is All About the Money": Pension Fund 'Crisis' a Red Herring, Union Chief Says

This is an ad campaign to boost IAFF President Harold Schaitberger's reputation with the 300k firefighters that he represents. This is a union campaign to convince firefighters that their union bosses are giving them value for all the union dues the members pay.

The idea that Gov. Walker and Christie and others are fighting expensive benefit packages in part of a grand Wall St conspiracy is a nice accusation, but is patently absurd. The real reasons behind the pension reform movement for public sector employees is that: 1) states are broke 2) taxpayers who don't have golden benefit packages are now funding public sector employees with silk lined plans and 3) If we don't fix our public employee cost structure, we are going to bankrupt this nation, its states and its cities.

We are out of tax money folks. Come up with a solution. Part of it will entail pension and retirment medical reform.

We are not falling for the "poor union" speech from Haorld Schaiterger. We all love fire fighters, my dad was one (and an AMT) but he volunteered to help others. Government workers have been raping our country for far to long finally someone will stand up to this socialization of our country and stop it.

I've worked both private sector for 35 years, chemical plant,high pay, dangerous work, laid off in '02 @ 52. Unemployed 1 year.Went to work for the State 1 year later for 1/3 the salary, with the hope of retireing with insurance. By the way, my social security benefits already earned, will be reduced by my little State pension, don't get both, even though it was earned. Now..
State & local workers work for far less, eat a lot of beans & rice, 2 jobs( wife =3), no frills, to make ends meet. All in hope of a few good years before they die.Problem...
Benefits awarded to congressmen, senators, governors, judges. Full benefits for 2-5 years in the system @ 4-5 times more salary annually. No talk of cuts for them. Hard to swallow for a 29 yr. civil servant whose about to lose it all. Folks never actually hear from their perspective, their sacrifices, just those in the spotlight.I've lost it all, but I don't believe in making every one go through it like me. That's not God's, or the American way. There are solutions, problem lies in the solution makers.

Of course it is about the money! There isn't any more! Unions have gotten fat off the private sector citizens for so long and they can't stand the idea that they might actually have to fund their retirement just like the rest of us! Unions were originally started to improve working conditions, but now---it's all about the money!

Of course the only thing that will be accomplished by the phony Labor Union demonstrations is a false sense of Democracy and freedom of speech and assembly. And support for the continued illusion that the Democrats care about the bottom 90%. Nudge nudge winky wink, Citizen. ;-)

I have read posts where the retirement trust funds were laundered throught the big banks charging 15% management fees ! Is that true ?

Over 70% of Americans will reach 65 poor and dependent on SS and Medicare or Medicaid per Congressional reports ! A personal finance textbook author put the number nearer 95%. Much of that is caused by rampant age discrimination and efforts to survive until 62 and 65 ! The destruction of jobs under the G20 agreements is the other reason ! Evil has taken over our country and Americans have been and are being deceived ! Divisiveness prevails as can be seen by the posted comments ! The US has been struck by babble ! Truth needs to prevail ! The common good needs to prevail !

16,000,000 people are on jobless benefits. If you ever talked to anyone in the Jobs and Family Benefits Service of your state, you will understand how totally unsympathetic those people really are. Sign up and make one mistake on a form, or call them on the phone to ask a question. Experience the love.

There is a solution. Louis the XVI of France and Charles I of England used it. It really works. Let's bring cheap narcotics to poor neighborhoods. Then we'll get the kids to deal the drugs. Drug addicts will become criminals. This will require us to hire more cops and detectives. Then we can build more prisons. We expand credit to increase home values. Tax the poor. Make sure the poor in cities have no schools, hospitals, or places to work. Then we'll give easier tests in the suburbs-- it worked for the Romans. When these ignoramuses complain, we'll arrest them and send them to prison. I am serious this system will work. Just ask the rich French bankers who sold Louis XVI on the idea. All we need is an endless supply of fuel equivalent to what we used in the last twenty years. This way we can all have $100K pensions and artificial waterfalls in our living rooms. Today, tomorrow and forever.

If the students in the public schools in Wisconsin refused to attend school and shut the schools down for 2 days because they felt their rights were being trampled, would the Wisconsin Teachers, Police, Fire and State workers unions walk out in sympathy?