Tough decisions do not have to be polarizing. Michigan is not Wisconsin. We have a heritage of working together, in good faith …
Good faith? I’m not too sure about that. Sounds kind of like Pollyanna playing the glad game. Contracts have been broken in the past, why would I, or any other unionized worker, trust another politician? Why would anybody?
In his email he justifies his comments about public employees making too much:
I presented data on total compensation (salary, wages, pension benefits and health insurance benefits) because my point was not to make an apples-to-apples jobs comparison but instead take a look at how total public compensation compares to the total compensation of the working public that supports government.
The college kid who takes my order at Subway, he’s part of that “working public.” I’m sure he disapproves of my salary because he's making less and besides he's more concerned with trying to improve his future job prospects. Also, I’m willing to bet he doesn’t “support government” the way Snyder might think he does. Not that the Subway kid is on my side either; he would probably enjoy telling me, “Mr. Convict Teacher, do you know how much college tuition has increased? Do you?” No sympathy there. I guess I should be perfectly content to get my Italian Sub minus the spittle.
Near the end of Snyder’s email he says:
The state cannot afford to pay such a high percentage of health care premiums, nor absorb all of the escalating costs from outmoded defined benefit pension plans.
Now I’m concerned. I have a defined benefit pension. What is the governor saying? They’re going to make me a deal I can’t refuse? (Which word or words do I place the emphasis on in that last question?) As for kicking thee old proverbial can down the road, once pensions go the way of the dinosaur, the politicians will need to find something else to tax.
