Too much of too much blights our future
Many
seniors enjoy talking about “the good old days” when this country was
distinguished by the chance it afforded its citizens to improve and advance.
Past generations seized the opportunity and worked and saved so their progeny would have a better life and opportunities.
Recently, a state retiree commented on the 10 cents he was given by his parents to attend the Saturday movie. That was the price of the matinee. His family lived within its budget. They gave him nothing extra for soda or popcorn.
Yes, it was a simple time when families worked to advance and prosper, with a commitment to the security of future generations.
One wonders how these values became so skewed and how this country has become so profligate in spending. The national debt is now $12.4 trillion. The interest, alone, is unsustainable and crippling America. This threatens our global economic leadership and portends massive future inflation.
Our state indebtedness runs into the billions and seems to grow exponentially from one month to the next. It threatens New Yorkers’ jobs and retirement security.
Thomas Jefferson cited “public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared. To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt.”
Our political leaders are aware of this crisis, but appear to be incapable of dealing with it. Vice President Joe Biden recently said of the national debt, “The burden on my grandchildren is phenomenal.”
PEF President Ken Brynien, in testifying recently, reminded state legislators New York state pays thousands of consultants an average of 62 percent more for professional services than it pays state employees to do the work.
Meanwhile, state workers and retirees constantly face threats to our hard-earned benefits, such as the proposal to make us help pay the cost of Medicare Part B.
We need fiscal responsibility, not steps backward.
Some in our society are enjoying the movie, the popcorn and the soda. They are putting the tab on a credit card and leaving the bill for future generations. At risk is American hegemony.
We cannot let it happen on our watch. Let’s work together to get our country on the right path. Alone, we can do little; together, we can do so much.
