-- Connecting the dots between our economy, government and business --
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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Evanston is an expensive place to live, a mostly white-collar suburb of mostly college-educated professions – “elites”. Most of Evanston’s housing stock (houses) is now effectively priced well beyond means of average striver middle-class family w/school-age children. Evanston’s historically black neighborhoods are now also changing, gentrifying, into diversely-populated areas of obvious real estate speculation, where many black homeowners have financial incentive to “sell-out” to non-black gentrifiers and investor-flippers. “Virtue-signaling” has long been signifying trait of Evanston’s white homeowners, and this new program is yet another example of policy based on white progressive folks assuming to know what’s appropriate – noblesse… Read more »
The fact that Evanston is so woefully and deliberately underfunding reparations proves what a bunch of racists they are. Why won’t they raise taxes to properly fund what they owe the Black man? They’re going to screw the Black man again!!
How can a Duke economist say that the average white family has $840,000 more in net wealth than the average black family?? This is ridiculous on its face, as it would mean that the average white family is nearing millionaire status in net wealth.
Really, Duke University? Really, MSNBC? And these are the people who want to talk about fact checking and misinformation?
He just made the number up. There’s no rational though, science or economics behind it
Maybe he’s right and conflating the two words having similar, but different meanings: median vs. average. There are some really, really stinkin’ rich white dudes—Jeff Bezos all the way down the super wealth ladder to each of the Waltons, Donald Trump and beyond. Surely it doesn’t take all that many of them to drastically raise the average for every other white person out there.
A generous interpretation. A Duke professor should know that this is grossly misleading at best, and certainly knows the difference between median and average. I doubt either of those is $840k net wealth.
Only The Shadow knows. (from ye old time radio shows)
Those were the good old days, fond memories of the show
Evanston police and fire pensions are underfunded.
I can’t figure out who this program is designed to help. Sixteen families? The scheme appears so random that it undermines support for the concept of reparations. Plus, reparations are no way to make a better future. Human capital and not a one-time wealth transfer, is what matters. Evanston’s now deceased athletic director and track coach, an Olympic medalist, Willie May, achieved great success by looking past race. I admired him so much I feared a poor performance in front of him more than my coach (a great guy as well). I can only imagine what Willie May would think… Read more »
“The scheme appears so random that it undermines support for the concept of reparations.”
It’s intermittent reinforcement, kind of like playing a slot machine. Keep playing the reparations game, and someday, you too might hit the jack pot!