Don’t blame public employees for mess

Mr. Froberg’s letter, “A Tale of Two States” misses the point entirely as to what is happening in Wisconsin.

He states that Gov. Walker is taking a courageous stand to restore his state’s financial stability. Walker’s stand is anything but about finances, as the teachers union has already agreed to contribute more toward their pension and insurance. It is solely about destroying the public unions and their collective bargaining power.

Froberg goes on to blame public employees and their pensions for the financial woes of Illinois — which is so far from the truth. If our state had paid its pension obligations of 6.6 percent each year for the past three decades, pension issues would be merely a side note. However, the state chose to miss many, many annual payments and, in fact, raided the teachers’ retirement fund like an ATM for all of its pet projects.

The state’s obligation is basically the same as Social Security, which Illinois teachers don’t receive. Illinois teachers pay 9.4 percent of their salary each year into the pension fund as opposed to Wisconsin teachers, who pay only 5 percent.

Froberg also referred to all public employees as “selfish, spoiled people.” Thank goodness, most people don’t feel that way.

I would like to take this time to publicly thank all the teachers, firefighters, police officers and other public employees for their dedication and service to our communities.

Douglas A. Clark

Geneva