Posted on 08/09/2011 12:13:16 PM PDT by Clintonfatigued
The stock market plunged over 500 points last Thursday, but no one seemed very perturbed about it in this tiny factory town. Three days before, Central Falls had filed for a Chapter 9 bankruptcy. These working-class folk see bottoms fall out on a regular basis.
For people used to living one paycheck or unemployment check to another, the number that mattered this day was not the Dow Jones Industrial Average but the temperature, which that summer evening registered a balmy 75.
Thus, young people were joyfully playing soccer in a park near the picturesque Blackstone River waterfall that gave this city its name. Older residents gathered on the spacious porches of their ancient Victorians or wooden triple-deckers, drinking beer and conversing in Spanish, Portuguese and sometimes English.
If any U.S. city was destined to go bankrupt, it was this one -- though Vallejo, Calif., beat it by three years. Like Vallejo, ruinous public-employee contracts sent Central Falls over the edge. Unlike the San Francisco suburb, Central Falls has a smaller, less economically diverse tax base. (The median household income is under $33,520 a year.) Its local government at the time of the bankruptcy filing was far more corrupt than Vallejo's.
(Excerpt) Read more at realclearpolitics.com ...
Here’s a look at financial insolvency from government on a small, local level.
And once again, it was excessive government pensions, particularly to the uncriticizable First Responders, that did the city in.
On this thin tax base, Central Falls faced an annual deficit of $5 million and unfunded pension obligations of $80 million. For a long time, its police and firefighters could retire on full pensions after only 20 years of service. So even though their monthly payouts were not princely, workers could start collecting them -- and free health coverage for life -- while in their 40s. Bankruptcy lets a city tear up union contracts and start over.
The ruling party?
Never mind.
What happens to the union pensions? The article does not say.
I suspect they are terminated, leaving those retirees high and dry. Their fault for choosing to retire in their 50’s with a “guarantee” rather than spend more productive years working and saving for their old age.
My favorite Leftist is asking “why not just stop paying federal interest?”
This article may help formulate a response.
Tee hee hee. Screw them all!
Part of starting over ought to be making it a condition of city employment that one not belong to a union. Unions use their dues income to corrupt the political process.
Froma Harrop is an total idiot. There are dozens of factual misstatements and errors in that piece...but it’s not worth while to address them..
“Tee hee hee. Screw them all! “
While some of these situations are somewhat abusive, I don’t see any reason to celebrate, especially in this economic time.
Like Dennis Miller says in response to our country owing billions to lenders, “F-em. Dont pay em! There, solved that problem.”
Pennsylvania did just that, and no one will lend them money, which is probably a good thing. However, the Constitution requires the U.S. to pay all legally incurred debt.
Even if the U.S. repudiated all debt, we would still owe trillions in retirees (including military) pensions, veterans benefits and Social Security and Medicare.
It’s only a matter of time before CA and most probably IL and NY (at a minimum) hit up the Fed (a.k.a. “us”) for bailouts.
And for those of you who don’t know, Central Falls, RI is the sh*thole of sh*tholes.
I’d rank it even lower than Lawrence, MA.
True for those of us who actually respect the Constitution.
Corruption is what it all really boils down to. Look for one concentrated Democrat parasite nest after another to declare bankruptcy during the next several years. They will be falling like dominoes. As long as we can keep GOP legislatures in charge of the purse strings, those parasite nests can swirl happily down the toilet where they belong.
Otherwise, bend over and grab your ankles, because the Democrats will do whatever it takes to confiscate money from normal, working Americans in order to turn their bankrupt turds into floaters that just won't go down no matter how many times you flush.
The balanced budget amendment ought to include the states as well as the Federal Government and include promises of future payments, i.e., pensions as debts. No more government pensions. Outlaw them.
Excellent ideas!
Chance of actually being implemented in a Blue state: 0.
Never heard of it.
If you had to live for 6 months in one of them which would it be, Central Falls RI, or Provincetown MA?
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