The Week in Comments: Federal paychecks, fishing rods and the Tower of Babel

On The $100,000 question: How much pay is too much for a federal employee?

$100k limit? It wouldn't have any effect on hiring for most federal jobs. For example, a GS-11 entry level position that requires PhD pays $57k per year and a GS-5, entry level that requires a Bachelors degree gets $31k per year, at least in our bureau. The employee pays $400 per month for Blue Cross Blue Shield standard family plan health insurance. Now tell me again what the private sector jobs pay for an entry level bachelors degree or PhD? Let's at least compare apples to apples.
tom

What you make is based off of your education level, your track record, your chosen career field, and where you live. These are choices that YOU make. Anyone can clear $100k a year if they make their choices wisely and are willing to put in the effort to get there. In this country we are short on engineers. Engineers make well into the $100k. If you are not where you want to be, then take a good long look in the mirror.
AMS

Lower salaries means scraping the bottom of the manpower barrel, because highly qualified people will choose to work where they receive the best compensation for their labor. Such a proposal would make the federal government the employer of last resort. In the federal government, as with everything else in life, you get what you pay for.
Just Saying

Maybe Joe Barton should focus his investigation on the salaries and benefits of Congress, to include that rich retirement systme they enjoy for just a few years of service.
Mike Sydow

I'm on sick leave today and never take much time to surf govexec.com. Are you all reading and posting while at work? Yea that's what I thought....... Bunch of slackers!
Hydrodog

On OMB chief calls reports federal employees are overpaid 'misleading'

Thank You OBM for backing us up. I am tired of being beatup in the press every day. Comment above cites perks that we don't get- I agree. Comment from taxpayer above means he doesn't work in my department. I lose people because I can't pay them more for the tedious mind numbing work we have to do to account for everything that we do. We keenly feel our responsibilities to the American People and work hard to ensure we aren't wasting their money.
hardworking taxpayer

Funny how when the economy is doing good, nobody wants to work for the government because the pay apparently sucks!! I started out as a GS7 out of college and worked my way up for GS12 step 6 in ten years. I may not earn $100,000 or more but close enough. Am I not deserving of this? I have gained extensive knowledge in my position and consistently meet and exceed my expectations within my duties as a civil servant. Why don't you whiners then go work for the government if we're so overpaid.
joe

He certainly showed restraint. Instead of "somewhat misleading" I would have used "total crap."
Mel

On Burning Question: Is the Obama administration coming for your fishing rod?

I consider my god given "right" to fish, as equal as my "right" to bear arms. As long as I have the later, I'll keep the other.
Chris

And I can see his point. Who is to say what this gov't will do and decide what is illegal to do. They seem to try to take over everything else why not fishing as well.
JRoy

Are these administration people on some sort of mind-altering drug? First, they institute a policy that mandates a "federal" licensing fee in order to fish the coastal waters - something that has traditionally been free to all - and now they want to acquire the authority to potentially ban all fishing...everywhere in the U.S. The voting populace had better wake up to the realization that this administration wants to chip away at your rights, bit-by-bit, until there are no individual rights remaining. What a bunch of bozos.
Whitey

On Screening of all U.S.-bound air cargo still years away

Why don't we tell the terrorist which airports are the most behind to give them an advantage as to where to ship the WMD's. They now know they got two years to get the job done thanks to articles like this.
rlball2

The terrorists do not need to ship WMEs by plane, or ship. They currently hire the gang members in Mexico to smuggle people, or contraband through our porous Southern border with very little resistance. They can bypass the usual security measures that we now have, or want to install. We need to focus on this area more than the foreign inspections.
Dr. 'A'

On Turning around negative view of government will take time, Obama official says

I would suggest that the biggest problem the government faces is NOT technological or even human resource related. The biggest (and most fundamental) problem, faced by the federal government today, is the practice of fed-bashing by career politicians. Too many politicians feel at liberty to routinely, and unfairly, malign and attack the federal workforce as a means of scoring political points with the electorate. This practice has been popular, with elected officials, since the Reagan years and it will take at least as long to undo the harm it has caused in the public perception of public servants.
Cicero

People who don't regularly use government services generally don't trust the government because, every two to four years a congressperson running for re-election or a presidential candidate do nothing but, beat up government employees. Then the government is effectively paralyzed while the thousands of presidential and special schedule employees from the last administration leave or burrow into government positions and the new thousands of presidential and special schedule employees are confirmed and have to learn their jobs. We need to stop this vicious cycle. Stop being tolerant of politicians who beat up federal employees. Stop talking about the low life in your office that doesn't do work and gets away with it. If you have been in private industry you see there are slugs there also and likely from my experience in the same proportion. Start talking about the public service provided by government employees in accordance with the law and court decisions. Start protesting the number and quality of presidential and special schedule appointees that are just building resumes and then move on after 12 - 18 months to more lucrative positions. Stop allowing presidential and special schedule appointees to burrow. Let your voice be heard above the noise and be clear and articulate. If you don't like working for the government and serving the people of the United States, shut up and go find another job.
Seen It Before

I agree with Cicero. You've got a whole generation of people who grew up in the Reagan/Limbaugh era of "government is the enemy". As such, to them, there is nothing that government can do correctly - especially when compared to the private sector - despite the fact that government has certain responsibilities that the private sector never has, and never will (for example, guess who has to pay when private employers renege on their pension obligations - the government). As such, demonizing government has become a way of life, and doesn't require any thought for a lot of people. However, these same people seem to love their own congressmen and senators, but consider everyone else's congressmen and senators as a problem. And worse, politics for too many people is the same as sports - Republicans v. Democrats is no different from the Dallas Cowboys v. the New York Giants - it's more important that my team win than anything else (never mind what they do after they win). I never thought Bush II was the devil, nor do I think the same about Obama; nevertheless, there are many who feel that they were/are, merely because the one they dislike is on the other team. Sad.
Watcher

On Burning Question: Is government broken, and can it be fixed?

Its the system of politics that is broken. Both parties for years now do not do the will of the people rather what they can do for their buddies in industry. Thats why you have no industry today in America. Both parties are crooked both parties on their outward apperance seem to be working an issue for the people and behind the scenes they stuff fraud into bills money that will only assist a few rather then the many. This is what is wrong with Washington today. Democrats used to stand for something and Republicans used to stand for something but today they are the same. Even as they fight over health care we see hidden agendas in both camps that only benefit a few. Until Washington starts to perform the will of the people our country will continue to decline and I believe the greediest of all have made there way to Wahington historically both parties. Our political system has allowed industry to leave our shores so they can get product built in countries that have no enviromental laws or labor laws yet they stand in Washington and tell you they are working on jobs for the people. A politician thinks of the next election. A Leader thinks of the next generation. We have lost that in this country its all about me now and not the future of our country and future generations. I sure am glad that my grand parents cared more about my future then their diversified portfolio. AMEN!! Because we have a generation of people that would sell their own mother if their stock would split.
LC

What LC said IS SPOT ON!
Rooster

I agree with LC. Isn't it funny how the generation from the 60's, all anti-war, peace, and love, have become the greediest generation to ever run our country.
Mattrenn

Amen, LC! Hit the nail on the head. People who believe in one party over the other are fools - played by the media hacks who are also bought and paid for by the same special interests who have bought the pols in Congress. Term limits for both houses of Congress! It's time.
Mark

LC, you said it very well! But I'd like to piggy back on your observation about taking American business off shore. When American industry went off shore to places where theoretically costs are lower because there are no environmental, labor, and other moral laws, did prices Americans have to pay for all to often inferior goods/services go down? No they stayed about the same or actually went up. What's happening is the fat cats get to keep a bigger share while they screw their homeland. And the screwing is double because everyone knows that people who manufacture goods or provide services to America from off shore don't pay US, state, or city income tax and don't pay real estate, sales, or any other taxes in America. Politicians don't seem to be able to blind to the fact that they let American business/industry destroy America's revenue base. To complicate things even more we have the part of the government that is the most broken, the US Supreme Court, making unconstitutional decisions that allow the fat cats to further their "self interests" by pouring more money into the political election processes. Apparently the Supreme Court doesn't think equal representation for all Americans is an inalienable right! Last thought, let's get rid of fat cats have their cake and eat it too. If they want to be part of a global economy, how about let's have our politicians elected by a global society, and when they mess up have them held to account in an international court? No, I don't really want that. However, if elected and appointed officials don't get their act together pretty soon, it's not just politics or even government that will be broken. The backbone middle class of America will be broken too. The next burning question should be "where will the fat cats?" Yes, government needs to bring spending under control, but it also needs to address declining revenue and taxing imports and those people/institutions who have benefitted most are the logical place to start.
Truth and Justice

On Look-alike Census mailings targeted by House measure

I got 1 today that was written in 6 languages. Its embarrassing that as a country we have become a tower of Babel
dan ketter