Federal Furloughs — Commentary

Publisher
01/16/2019 07:43 AM (update 04/10/2023 11:09 PM)

By Cogitare —

How important is it to remember history? It can be a guide or a nudge for our behavior. For seven years during the Revolutionary War, soldiers and officers served and fought and died. In most cases they had hopes of getting paid, in some they were paid late, and in many cases they were never paid, nor were their widows.

When we were children in the middle twentieth century, we remember, although most of our memories from then are vague, government employment was kind of a last resort. If you could not function well in the private sector there was at least some comfort and a sense of security in working for the government. Admittedly there were then as now, many government employees who were dedicated, talented and very productive people. The pay was not so good but the satisfaction of public service was a factor. Others were there for a safe simple life.

With the astronomical growth of government and the strength of the government employee unions we now have a whole different world. Government pay is higher in many instances than similar jobs in the private sector. And mostly you cannot get fired.

So when one quarter of the federal employees are furloughed and not getting paid, although they will eventually, they cry disaster. If those furloughed federal workers are really living paycheck to paycheck they are not very good money managers. Maybe they have stretched the budget more than they should have to cover the monthly payments on the house, car, pickup truck, boat, skidoo, big screen, maybe the furniture and who knows what else. Hard to feel sorry for them when they don’t have to work but are going to get paid anyway. Instead of demonstrating in the streets, if it is that bad maybe they could hustle up a part time job to pay the minimum on the credit cards. While federal employees are forced into furlough, not producing or performing, their private industry equivalents remain on the job, producing to cover their own responsibilities as well as the taxes that will go to cover the salaries of their federal counterparts. Instead of protesting the government shutdown, disgruntled federal employees could show some gratitude for the blessings of America and for their publicly funded jobs by volunteering to pick up trash around the federal parks.

Upload date: 01/16/2019 07:43 AM

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