Opinion

Bad mix: Pensions and government

Posted January 13, 2013 3:06 am

How did we allow a socialist concept like pension funds creep into our lives? Teachers especially were stupid and naive to give a government entity 9.4 percent of their salary to save for their retirement, for 35 to 40 years.

As we now know, the trustees who administered the pension fund, were not to be trusted. They did not guard the money in the fund. If they had guarded the money and invested wisely after 35 or 40 years, a conservative estimate of the amount accumulated would be about $1 million.

If teachers had invested 9.4 percent of their salary in tax free municipal bonds for 40 years — this is the amount they would have. Workers should have a choice as to how they want to save for their retirement. There should not be a mandate requiring workers to contribute a percentage of their salary to a pension fund, including social security — another “Big Brother” socialist concept.

We would all be better off without these government agencies in charge of our retirement funds.

Charles Coletta

Lombard

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