A judge has upheld the bankruptcy of Detroit. In one fell swoop, the taxpayers of Detroit have freed themselves from the economic burden of the retirement and health programs that had been promised to municipal union members.
For decades, the liberal political establishment had bought votes from the unions. They had signed agreements guaranteed to bankrupt the city.
Taxpayers moved out of Detroit. Welfare recipients stayed put. It took 40 years, but the city went bust. The judge has now confirmed the obvious.
The unions are howling bloody murder. Let them. They can’t get blood money out of a turnip.
This is the light at the end of the tunnel. This is deliverance. This is the wave of the future. Just declare bankruptcy.
When it comes to municipal unions, just say no.
The unions’ gravy train has ended in Detroit.
The unfunded liabilities of cities across the nation will produce a similar result. There is no escape. The solution is comparatively painless. Detroit has shown the way.
Next on the list: Illinois.
Damn right Gary.
While I agree with your sentiment, I do not believe this decision will stand. Ultimately the courts will create some legal nonsense to vacate, or the Feds will step in with some sort of public interest argument (like they did to bail out the car makers) and nationalize the welfare / union-subsidy. They do it for all kinds of companies, they will certainly do it for the govt-unions.
What we’re seeing here is the beginning death spasms of Liberalism…Good riddance.
The Democrats controlled Detroit for more than 40 years. Why? Because the people kept them in power. Now, is it not fair that they pay for the burdens they voted on themselves ? They freely chose this, now want others to pay for their choice!
Yes, Illinois is definitely next. Right now out of Springfield, they are trumpeting success over a "deal" to reform the 100 billion dollar state worker's pension mess here. No real improvement. So judge, get ready to pack your bag. Next stop, Illinois.
Amen. The notion of "public unions" should have never been allowed to exist in the first place. Who was at the negotiating table for the people?
As the article says "taxpayers moved out, welfare recipients stayed put". There's nobody left in Detroit to make the payments into the public union trough. Enter the federal government (it's GOTTA be coming). It's the rest of the country that will end up paying the tab. . . . .
If you're right, and I tend to believ that you probably are, that means that I (in FLorida) and you (in wherever) will be paying for this. Somethings are just not right.
Perhaps other municipalities and government entities will see the light and follow Detroit's bankruptcy strategy. For far too long municipalities and other government entities have granted government workers' unions all kinds of benefits that the electorate cannot afford. It used to be that government workers were " civil servants" and as such were immune to layoffs and economic swings that the private sector endures. I hope the judge's decision stands, but we all know the lefties will use court challenges to progress their agenda.
The bankruptsy judge did them a huge favor, time will teii whether or not they are smart enough to stay out of trouble in the future. I'll bet they are not that intelligent. The intelligent people all left.
President Franklin Roosevelt evidently agreed with you.
"The employer [of government workers] is the whole people. Government employees, have the obligation to serve the whole people, whose interests and welfare require orderliness and continuity in the conduct of Government activities. This obligation is paramount. Since their own services have to do with the functioning of the Government, a strike of public employees manifests nothing less than an intent on their part to prevent or obstruct the operations of Government until their demands are satisfied. Such action, looking toward the paralysis of Government by those who have sworn to support it, is unthinkable and intolerable." – FDR wrote in a 1937 letter.
God bless you, and I agree with you 100%.
This is 20 years coming late. The private sector started ending pension back in the early 1970’s, and most were gone by the mid late 1990’s.
Way past time to end all government pensions, and make these lazy bastards do like the private sector, and get 1% COLA Social Security raises most years, and have O’Bummercrap Healthcare shoved down their throats.
In the countries public school system, our schools don’t even finish in the top 20 of all the countries in the world, in any subject. Over all we are rated 39th in the world. Damn right, government workers are way over paid.
I for one am glad that Detroit is going to declare bankruptcy. I live on the west side of the state and we have been subsidizing Detroit for years. If there was any extra money in the state budget, it went to Detroit. if there was a special project that would benefit others in the state, it went to Detroit. Detroit has been a leech sucking the rest of our state dry for the past 50 years.
I'll do that when I'm elected as a write-in from the Radical Libertarian Loon® in 2016. rich_grise.tripod.com