Squeezing middle-class New Yorkers

[dgriffin]

Squeezing middle-class Californians, New Yorkers


By Sam Pizzigati
Other Words
Posted Jan 25, 2011 @ 05:18 AM



Canandaigua, N.Y. — Following World War II, the United States produced something the world had never seen: a mass middle class. For the first time, a majority of a major nation's people had real money left over after paying for basic food and shelter.

New York and California served as geographic bookends to this colossal achievement. They offered ordinary citizens lives unimaginable only a few short years before. Activist government policies made those lives possible. Government-subsidized loans raised new middle-class suburbs from potato fields and sugar beet acres. Tax dollars funded new roads, schools and parks.

"California's children, swarming on all those new playgrounds, seemed healthier, happier, taller," as Atlantic editor Benjamin Schwarz has noted. "A sweet, vivacious time."

That time may be gone for good. The new governors of New York and California, both Democrats, have essentially declared America's mass middle class ancient history.

Andrew Cuomo in New York and Jerry Brown in California are pushing a fundamental "realignment" that goes beyond the budget cutbacks that have become a grim annual routine in state capitals.

Brown and Cuomo are attacking the foundational core of America's middle class: the notion that public policies can improve ordinary people's lives. Instead, they're squeezing public employees and the public goods and services they provide.

Continued at:

www.mpnnow.com/opinions/x1203791874/Online-Only-Squeezing-middle-class-Californians-New-Yorkers


There are two sides to any story, of course.

[dgriffin]

Corner, what do you think of this?


Legal Battle For Public Access Heats Up
Monday, January 31, 2011


The Empire Center for New York State Policy today announced that it is appealing a recent court ruling that would block public release of the names of more than 44,000 retired police officers collecting benefits from the New York City Police Pension Fund.

"The names of public employees and retirees have always been regarded as public information under New York's FOI law," noted Tim Hoefer, director of the Albany-based Empire Center. "Because taxpayers foot the bill for the salaries of government workers and retirees, they have a right to know who they are and how much they are paid, just like any private company's board of directors know who their employees are and how much they are paid. Access to this data also provides a means for scrutinizing spending on a case by case basis, adding a level of accountability previously unknown in government spending."

For the full text of the Press Release, click
www.empirecenter.org/AboutUs/news_releases/2011/01/ppf13111.cfm


Off the top of my head, I think all public employees' salaries and pensions ought to be a matter of public record. Why not? Supposedly we taxpayers are the employers. It's our money.

[Clipper]

Public information should include the pay given to a grade and a step, and the number of people in each grade and step should be public, but there is no reason to put an individual name next to the numbers. If one is in a position in upper management or hold an elected or appointed office in government, then and only then should your name be posted on a list with your salary and pay.

[dgriffin]

I think the intent was to ferret out those at the top with extremely high pensions and salaries. At any rate public information is public, I would think, and I see nothing wrong with a taxpayer knowing how much we are paying Mrs. Smith the music teacher or Mr. Big the police commissioner.