The great pension ripoff and the politics of resentment

PEORIA -- As the Democratic Party-controlled Illinois state government is poised to gut pensions and benefits for state workers, the politicians should read this: How Business Elites Looted Private-Sector Pensions.

The author writes that corporate elites discovered they could loot private sector pensions without penalties, and that fact is being used now to gut public sector pensions. 

So now we have the politics of resentment: " I lost mine so you should lose yours. I can't afford to pay taxes for you."

That's shortsighted, since government pay and benefits can set a standard that corporations must reach to attract qualified employees. But that requires connecting the dots a bit -- a challenge for many people.

How sad, and how stupid the Democrats have become, to fall into the Republican austerity trap. They will be blamed for gutting public pensions, alienating their base of support! 

 -- Elaine Hopkins