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San Diego City Employees pension fund ailing
Interesting to note how much overtime contributes to the problem. How much of that overtime is accrued "working" special events like golf tournaments, football and baseball games, truck-pulls, and marathons? Organizers and beneficiaries of events that are known to require additional policing and paramedics on standby have to pay that expense themselves. How much does Spanos or Moores pay for having police and paramedics tend to their customers and employees? Anything? And when police or paramedics work these events, don't they consider it a perk? Then why are we paying overtime as well? There's lots of room to cut these kinds of expenses, and maybe keep a few more libraries and sports fields open for the kids instead of giving away our tax money to corrupt bazillionaires and pampered public "servants".— February 4, 2009 10:23 a.m.
San Diego City Employees pension fund ailing
Finally, some solid numbers on public servant pay: http://voiceofsandiego.org/pdf/08demaio020309.pdf JF, looks like those gold-plated salaries you deny exist are an established fact in San Diego. I don't begrudge firefighters a decent salary, but anything over $100k is just too much in today's economy. There are too many fire and police employees making executive level compensation while the rest of the economy is going down the tank. Time to trim back salaries, or the city will be forced to trim back positions.— February 4, 2009 10:05 a.m.
Fairness at IRS?
It points to another truth...the current system is so complicated and contradictory that even those who wrote and administered the laws don't seem able to comply. This being the case, ALL those who have been penalized for simple failure to understand the impenetrable rules should be let off the hook until they fix the system.— February 4, 2009 10:01 a.m.
U-T Axe Was to Fall Friday. It Didn't. Newspaper May Need Employees to Slam Together Long-Delayed Pagination System
I find it nothing short of incredible that a functioning newspaper would still be printed without digital technologies. What century are they living in? I used the old photo-based system when I was on the staff of my High School newspaper...more than 25 years ago! This must be highly embarrassing to everyone at the UT. How can the present employees even find another job when they don't know how to use industry standard software? I feel sorry for the ones still toiling for the inept or indifferent top brass at the UT. If I were working there (and I wouldn't) I'd be writing some wicked limericks on the bathroom walls.— February 4, 2009 9:58 a.m.
U-T Axe Was to Fall Friday. It Didn't. Newspaper May Need Employees to Slam Together Long-Delayed Pagination System
Don, could you throw in a couple carriage returns in your posts? When it's a long brick of prose, it's difficult to read online. Give us a (paragraph) break! Thanks, Fred— February 4, 2009 9:44 a.m.
Alan Gin's USD Leading Indicators of San Diego Economy Continue Plunging
Hi JF, It's fascinating how much the Fire Department dominates the first three pages of this report. It does seem that your compensation is pretty high for a job from which you cannot be fired. On the other hand, IT jobs come and go. I can make good money, but I've also been paid with lots of worthless stock options. There's times when I go months with no work. There are NO guarantees in my line, and the competition is fierce. Your position, while needed, is not subject to any of these pressures. It's not that firefighters don't deserve a good salary...it's just that public employees, with all the perks and benefits plus superior job protection, don't additionally need to receive astronomical salaries. Obama just proposed capping executive pay at $500k per year until this crisis is over and obligations are repaid. I'll go further and suggest that we cap City of San Diego salaries at $100k until our city is solvent and our obligations, like the pension deficit, are repaid. Isn't that reasonable? Can't you get by on $100k a year? Best, Fred— February 4, 2009 9:41 a.m.
Lollipop Guild
Magic, feel free to use as you see fit. When I comment, I assume it's in the public domain. Barbarella, you are very welcome. Keep on writing your good stuff. Senor Gringo, you're committing a juvenile fallacy. You claim that anything that cannot be proven NOT to exist, must therefore be assumed to exist. That's nonsense. Bertrand Russel long ago explained it this way. If I claim there is an orbiting teapot spinning around Mars, there is no way for you to ever disprove it. Does that mean it's true? Of course not. That's why the burden of proof lies with those making extraordinary claims. You claim there's a angry sky monster who made heavens and earth and is going to punish you for each and every time you masturbate. Okay, prove it. Otherwise, admit that there is substantial proof of everything else on your list EXCEPT that angry sky god of yours. Then you can teach your children about how to avoid REAL dangers while ignoring superstitions made up by goat herders thousands of years ago. Smart five year olds know that Santa Claus is a hoax, but they go along with it for the presents and cookies. Same with Sunday School...without the hand clapping, music and cookies, no kid in her right mind would sit through that nonsense. Religion is child abuse. Telling kids the truth, especially when it's unpleasant, is a parent's highest duty. Telling them make believe stories about animals on arks, faith healings, and tongues of fire descending from the sky that make you multi-lingual...well, that's the way to turn your child into a credulous slave to anyone with a good story. Best, Fred— February 4, 2009 9:12 a.m.
Michael Phelps -- 8 Gold Medals, 2 Drug Busts
Okay then. We're back in agreement again. If he were black, he'd be in the poor house if not in jail. Since he's white, he only has to worry about his public image. No biggie since just about everyone in America knows that a 23 year old smoking a bong is nothing to be surprised or concerned about. What we're missing is the fantastic opportunity to not only say it's no big deal for Phelps, but that it's no big deal for ANYONE to enjoy the occasional bong hit. It's also okay for ANYONE to enjoy the occasional beer, for the President to take a smoke break now and again, and for ALL of us to be free of being arrested, thrown in jail, and stigmatized for life for doing something that is actually not a big deal. Then, when black kids aren't incarcerated for being caught with a joint, we can all giggle about how those dolphin lungs suck up all the best bud. We could joke about how his fingers are so long that he could roll a joint with a newspaper, or how after he got stoned he challenged everyone to a breath holding contest, then cleaned out the refrigerator. Right? As always, it's a pleasure to comment on your blog, Josh. (How's that "Josh and Fred Radio Show" coming along? Have the lawyers figured out our profit splits yet?)— February 4, 2009 7:05 a.m.
Lollipop Guild
Religion, especially Christianity, is child abuse. How can you justify telling children that they were created inherently evil? What kind of parent would insist on teaching their kids to ignore science and the myriad proofs of evolution, and replace that with a bronze-age creation myth featuring a talking snake? Why would you want to terrify kids with tales of eternal damnation, or inflict pointless guilt on them for having bodies with both genitalia and alimentary canals? What benefit comes from believing that this "loving" God must resort to torture and murder to "save" us from the sins He allegedly imbued in His creations? What part of this is moral? What part of this is healthy? The evolution of "morality" lies in the obvious benefits of mutual reciprocity. Religion hijacks this natural shared cognitive facility and claims to have invented it. Nope. Tell kids early and often that there's NO magical sky-daddy. The real world really is real. We're not the creatures of an imaginary space being who predetermines our lives. We come from the same stuff as the rest of the universe, and have to live responsibly in our world. We're not the special favorites of some all-powerful being. Anyone who teaches kids differently has serious problems with understanding the nature of reality, and would be better off not reproducing.— February 4, 2009 6:54 a.m.
Deion Disses L.T.
Camel, I can assure you that in person Josh is a very personable guy, easy to talk to, friendly, and bright. How and what he writes explains why you may disagree with him or find his material alternatively boring or outrageous. It's his job. He's paid to write something people will read and respond to. Did you read it? Yes. Did you respond to it? Yes. So Josh earned his paycheck. From experience we know that a lot of parties are actually quite mundane...especially if you're not joining in the drinking and are a stranger. Josh reflects this in his writing. It would be irritating to read Burl Stiffish puffery, where every event is the most marvelous in all the world's history, all the women are gorgeous, all the men distinguished, and all the food scrumptious. I prefer reading about parties that seem a lot like parties I attend...just normal people having a laugh, talking, meeting each other. In addition to his crashing, Josh writes about current events, sports, entertainment, and whatever else pops into his blogging mind. When I disagree with what he says, we engage in commenting back and forth. We even call each other names. For all his faults, Josh puts out a lot of copy, day after day, and a lot of it hits the mark by entertaining or provoking readers. This brings in eyeballs and page hits as well as comments, and in the internet world that means revenue. The Reader is fortunate to have him on the staff.— February 4, 2009 6:37 a.m.