Chris Christie: Not All Pensions Will Be Paid

Chris Christie speaks some truth. USA Today reports:

Pension reform is going to involve breaking some promises, including reducing benefits that public employees were counting on for their retirement, Gov. Chris Christie acknowledgedduring a town hall event in Belmar Wednesday.

It was an exchange with Jean Toher, a technology teacher at at Shark River Hills Elementary in Neptune, that drew the governor into the heart of the pension debate that he has reignited in recent weeks.

“When I started working, I started at a salary of $12,800,” said Toher, who’s been paying into the pension system since 1980. “Part of the reason a lot of us accepted those low salaries all those years is because we had a benefit and we negotiated that benefit all those years.”

Christie, earlier invoked the D-word (“Detroit”) to demonstrate how dire the situation is, saying that he doubted taxes could raise enough revenue to cover the state’s future pension obligations. They must reduce benefits, he said.

“There’s a lot of emotion that goes along with this issue, but the facts are pretty simple,” he said. “The facts are that this pension will go bankrupt if we don’t make significant changes to it.”

Translation: Many state and city governments have lied to their employees---and they are about to get screwed as they reach retirement age.

I don't have much sympathy for government employees (except leakers), but there is a lesson for us all here, Government makes promises it can't always keep. Be very wary of any promises about retirement benefits or bond holding, or healthcare made by the state. Government is very good about making promises, it is terrible about delivering on almost any promises.

-RW