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-- Posted Thursday, 23 April 2009 | Digg This Article | Source: GoldSeek.com
Rick’s Picks Thursday, April 23, 2009 “Phenomenally accurate forecasts”
We once wrote here that white collar workers would someday be jealous of their mailman. It would appear that that day has finally arrived. Why the envy? For one, the mailman enjoys the kind of job security that most workers in the private sector gave up years ago. For two, the mailman’s healthcare package is comparable to what top executives receive. And for three, there are all those paid holidays, sunshine and fresh air. Will envy of these perks turn to resentment if government employees continue to cruise through economic hard times with relatively few layoffs and pay cuts? It may be happening already. Consider the news from financially strapped California, where State Assembly leaders recently awarded pay raises totaling $551,000 to 136 staff members. This brazen affront to taxpayers follows Gov. Schwarzenegger’s request that the Legislature cut its budget by 10 percent to match savings from other departments. It also gets in voters’ faces a month before they go to the polls to decide six budget-related measures in a special election. Is the Assembly committing suicide?
Our old chum Glenn Klotz, a staunch libertarian and inveterate blogger, notes the bipartisan nature of these insensitive and unseemly policy decisions in a recent commentary, Public vs. Private. Here’s what he had to say about a trend that obviously cannot continue indefinitely: “An editorial in the Atlantic City Press today points to a huge and growing gap in New Jersey between public and private sector employment. It noted that the state’s public employees on average make $11/hour more then their private-sector counterparts in overall compensation. Is this discrepancy sustainable in a supposedly capitalist society? It appears that in New Jersey, the proverbial cart ( the public sector) has somehow gotten in front of the horse ( the private sector.) I recall reading that in the early 20th Century, New Jersey’s entire state workforce was in the low hundreds. Today it is nearing 90,000! Granted, there were far fewer people in 1908, but nevertheless the ratio between public and private workers appears to be growing wildly out of whack. This helps to explain why New Jersey almost hopelessly buried in debt and going bankrupt. Public Contracts “Add to this equation all the other thousands of jobs that depend on public contracts given to private companies. These companies in many cases simply wouldn't exist without public funding and could be classified as quasi-public employment. “Bottom line, New Jersey’s rapidly expanding public sector is being fueled by a quickly contracting private sector in the midst of a deepening Great Recession. Here's another scary fact: Public employees are twice as likely to be represented by a labor union. I'm generally pro-union, but in the public sector, where the system is not tied to profitability, and the politicians manipulate the system to reward their patrons, where is there any incentive to manage the situation?” *** Rick's Picks publishes a daily trading newsletter for gold, stock, commodity, and mini-index traders 240 times per year. Information and commentary contained herein comes from sources believed to be reliable, but this cannot be guaranteed. Past performance should not be construed as an indicator of future results, so let the buyer beware. Rick's Picks does not provide investment advice to individuals, nor act as an investment advisor, nor individually advocate the purchase or sale of any security or investment. From time to time, its editor may hold positions in issues referred to in this service, and he may alter or augment them at any time. Investments recommended herein should be made only after consulting with your investment advisor, and only after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company. Rick's Picks reserves the right to use e-mail endorsements and/or profit claims from its subscribers for marketing purposes. All names will be kept anonymous and only subscribers' initials will be used unless express written permission has been granted to the contrary. All Contents © 2009, Rick Ackerman. All Rights Reserved. www.rickackerman.com
-- Posted Thursday, 23 April 2009 | Digg This Article | Source: GoldSeek.com
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