Although I have been trying to avoid these threads, a
few have snuck by the delete key. I will ask 2
somewhat hypothetical questions:
1) Do you actually know your local politicians?
Personally, I would never consider such a job, nor
would I be particularly pleased if my hypothetical
daughter were to marry one, but like any prejudices
and stereotypes, some of them are based in reality,
some are just gross generalizations. When I lived in
NY, one of my HS teachers was a local pol (Brad
Harris), so I got a little interested in what he did.
In FL, I got to know Dave Weldon peripherally, as I
was active in some local environmental issues. Here
in IL, I've met and worked with the offices of Dennis
Hastert (if you don't know who he is, you should),
Dick Durbin, and Don Manzullo. They're not just
money-grubbing sycophants, they actually have some
redeeming qualities.
2) I do think the low end of congressional service has
a disproportionately high pension, but at the other
end, how many of you have worked in the same job for
30 years? In my case, if I (or anyone at my company)
were to stay for 30 years, retirement would be based
on 40% of the average of our highest 3 years of
compensation. After 30 years with a company, it is
not unreasonable to be at $100K to $150K in a "white
collar" occupation, which is a $40K to $60K pension.
Civil servants traditionally have high pensions - I
know several policemen who retired in their 40's and
live well. From a recent NY Post article sent to me
by a friend, the New York Correction Workers union has
a bumper sticker that says it all: "Started work in my
20s, retired in my 40s. Can't beat that!"
So chose your path carefully, do what you can to make
sure it leads to security at the end, and please start
talking about Spridgets again.
Ron
=====
"The Truth? As you want to hear it? I can't do that. You couldn't afford me."
- Keith Moon
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