November 30, 2011

Bullies, Allowed and Not Allowed

It isn't appropriate to handle the groups involved in cultural disputes by the dynamics of individuals.

Posted by Justin Katz at 6:48 AM
Anchor Rising

November 29, 2011

It's Almost Like an Unintentional Social Theme...

Children need fathers, and lesbians need sperm donors. These facts are not unrelated.

Posted by Justin Katz at 7:29 PM
Anchor Rising

Negative Outlook, but Still Able to Confiscate

Ratings agencies aren't grading the government on the job that it's doing, but on its ability to confiscate wealth to pay debtors.

Posted by Justin Katz at 6:52 AM
Anchor Rising

November 28, 2011

How Easily the Hybrid Pension Reform Can Be Undone

A 0.75% or so increase in pay every year above what otherwise would have been given will completely undo any savings in lifetime pay and pension that the people of Rhode Island gained by implementing a hybrid pension system.

November 23, 2011

A Limited Snapshot of Next Governor's Race

An NEARI poll has Robitaille beating Chafee and Raimondo for governor, but it appears to be all three at once, so I'm not sure how much it really tells us.

Posted by Justin Katz at 4:27 PM
Anchor Rising

November 22, 2011

The Horse Looked Desirable; That's Why It Was Deadly

I've responded to a response from Ted Nesi to my post on pension-reform credulity.

Posted by Justin Katz at 1:16 PM
Anchor Rising

The Reason Behind Pension Credulity

Perhaps some of the credulity with which Rhode Islanders are accepting the pension reform narrative has to do with a desire to believe that their vision of government can work.

Posted by Justin Katz at 10:00 AM
Anchor Rising

November 21, 2011

Lambert's Council Brings Disappointing Chill in Negotiation Season

Meanwhile, in Tiverton, a Town Council that looked likely to stand firm in union negotiations is not performing as expected.

Posted by Justin Katz at 10:00 AM
Tiverton.Patch.com

Pension Reform Bait-and-Switch to Block Broader Reform

The last-minute 5.5% privatization tax slipped into the pension reform bill may prove more insidious than it at first appears.

November 18, 2011

A Tourniquet on the Knee for a Gushing Thigh

I've elaborated, a bit, on why I find enthusiasm for the just-passed pension reform so misplaced.

Posted by Justin Katz at 11:12 PM
Anchor Rising

November 17, 2011

The Cultural Cycle We're In

We're in a cycle of decline, and it would be better to reform peacefully now than to collapse or revolt later.

Posted by Justin Katz at 10:00 AM
Anchor Rising

Pension Reform: It's Like Obama for Rhode Island

Advocates for the pension reform currently before the RI General Assembly sound like the Obama cultists of 2008.

Posted by Justin Katz at 6:14 AM
Anchor Rising

November 15, 2011

Building and Talking Pensions

ABC6 has posted video of the news story in which I appeared, last week, about pensioners who make more than they did as employees.

Posted by Justin Katz at 9:10 PM
Anchor Rising

Small Pensions & Double (and Triple) Dipping

Today, on the Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity blog, I've reviewed pensioners with very low pensions as well as those who receive more than one pension from plans administered by the state.

November 14, 2011

Retirees, the Young and the Wealthy

I've taken a look at the public entities with the youngest retirees, as well as the wealthiest.

November 11, 2011

Raimondo's Definition of Leadership

The RI Treasurer's pension reform is an exercise in leading by following and fixing problems by putting them off.

Posted by Justin Katz at 8:07 PM
Anchor Rising

What Kind of Progress?

The modern zeitgeist doesn't seem to make distinctions between progress in various areas of society, even when they're at odds.

Posted by Justin Katz at 10:00 AM
Anchor Rising

November 10, 2011

Pensioners Above Pay

I've added some different cuts of the data concerning RI public-sector pensioners who make more in pension than they did in pay. The most significant takeaway is that COLAs alone don't account for the phenomenon; the top 50 pensioners making more than their salaries have base pensions (not counting COLAs) that are 95% of their salaries.

Posted by Justin Katz at 12:50 PM
RI Center for Freedom & Prosperity

November 9, 2011

IRS as Police Agency

Does every government agency get its own black-sunglasses brigade?

Posted by Justin Katz at 6:33 AM
Anchor Rising

November 8, 2011

Me Versus the Rally

I'll be on the 5:00 and 6:00 evening news broadcasts on ABC6 talking about my analysis of public pensions that are higher than the salaries from which they grew.

Posted by Justin Katz at 12:32 PM
Site-Related Announcements

A Referendum to Thwart Dishonest Politics

Tiverton politics illustrate the dishonest "Rhode Island Way" and highlight the way out.

Posted by Justin Katz at 8:00 AM
Anchor Rising

November 7, 2011

Political Donors as the Judges of Right and Wrong

Campaign contributions to RI's general treasurer shouldn't be taken as a sign of her moral worth.

Posted by Justin Katz at 10:00 AM
Anchor Rising

Pensions Beyond Pay

I've taken a closer look at the phenomenon of retirees with pensions larger than their former paychecks, and the reasonable scenario of gradual increases doesn't appear to apply. For one thing, older retirees appear much less likely to have pensions that exceed their final salaries than retirees who've been off the job for just a few years. For another, the entity for which the retiree worked appears to make a significant difference.

November 1, 2011

In-State Tuition Raises Larger Question About Social "Investment"

In-state tuition for illegal immigrants undermines respect for the rule of law.

Posted by Justin Katz at 6:51 AM
Anchor Rising