The Week in Comments: Ugly babies, trailer scams and salary wars
The best in reader reaction to recent articles.
A roundup of some of the comments received this week in the GovExec.com Mailbag. All comments are presented in their original, unedited form.
On USPS loses billions of dollars due to excessive pension contributions
Does this mean we'll go back to .03 stamps? and they wonder why they are getting beat by $ grabbin FEDEX, UPS, kids on bicycles, carrier pigeons.
How incompetent can they be, how do you not know that you have an extra 50 billion laying around!
On Report finds DHS contracts over budget, behind schedule
Sometimes it feels, as a government employee in DHS, that I work for contractors and I have to do things to keep them happy and support their programs so it is only fair I guess that they get to waste all of the money.
We need more power in an independent contract management oversight function. How many times do we have to watch a Program Office and Contractor use poor practices in planning and unrealistic expectations. Someone needs to call their baby ugly when it is.
I can't tell you how amazed I am every time I read these type of reports. Not only for DHS, by you should all look at the Inspector General's reports on BLM/MMS, the TSA...they are all incredibly incompetent when it comes to focusing on securing our nation. They have only mastered spending our money on what seems to be "nothing to show for it!"
On White House releases annual salary data
Big deal. These guys are NOT overpaid. Folks in the White House work incredibly long hours, and have earned their positions in large part by proving their top-notch world-class talent and dedication to serving in the administration. The level of talent that's paid $170K in the White House would warrant a $1M salary in private industry. Their work demands sacrifice from personal life, and the ensuing additional personal costs; and don't forget that D.C. has a high cost of living (unless you want to live where you better be home before dark and have solid bars on all your windows). These folks earn every penny they are paid many times over.
Why no mention of any of the "czars" pay? We're up to the 40th appointed czar, by Washington-based watchdog group Judicial Watch's count. These pay $ figures just give people like Kudlow of CNBC last night more reason to beat up on federal workers.
On FEMA trailers are back in the spotlight
Thompson needs to look at his OWN voters. It's not the government, DOJ, GSA, or FEMA that's reselling these trailers; it's the general public taking advantage of the general public. GSA and/or FEMA can only disclose the issues and have the purchaser sign the acknowledgements. GSA/FEMA do not have police responsibilities or authority to take any actions against these idiots. If the homes weren't sold it would be reported by Thompson that GSA and FEMA are not allowing these to be sold. He would be the first one in line taking pictures of these same trailors being destoyed and complaining about it. He talks out of both sides of his mouth. It's just like someone selling a home or car and not disclosing the 'issues' related to the house/car. Take a look at your own back yard before you cast the first stones.
Why did FEMA auction off the excess trailers through GSA with a certification statement about the trailers being contamined with formaldehyde? Why weren't these trailers just destroyed? What did FEMA or GSA really think would happen to those trailers once they were sold?
This issue has always been a scam to make sure more free money continued to NO. These trailers have been built the same way for decades and no one who spent their OWN $$ ever got ill
Dan-- As ever, you are incorrect. These trailers were NOT built the same way as others. They were rushed into production to meet the post-Katrina/Rita demand and used substandard wallboard containing more formaldehyde than is normally the case. If memory serves, imported board (from China).
On Hiring reform isn't as easy as it looks, officials say
This process will only continue the hiring of those that are 1.friends of the hiring manager, 2. relatives/friends of higher level officials.
I know the administration means well. However, if it does not convince Congress to modernize the arcane position classification system, much of the time-consuming staffing back-end processes will remain. Everyone knows it needs to be done. Someone in charge just needs to have the courage to lobby for it.
How about this - send me all the resumes and cover letters and let me decide whom I should hire. we could eliminate most of OPM and save the gov millions
On U.S. seeks to block Arizona law
I'd bet that if Obama or Holder lived on that border, they would want to protect their families from the human trafficers, drug runners, gunfire, and violence, too. But, as G. Gordon Liddy so aptly pointed out 20 years ago, the dems want the votes and the reps want the cheap labor, so the politicians all turn a blind eye. Shame on them. Shame on the Mexican govt, too, for allowing all of the violence in their own country to spill over into the US - they are obviously incapable of running anything.
Arizona should sue the Feds for not enforcing the law and also file additional suits which resulted in bodily injury or death of any Arizonian as a result of any and all illegals being involved in a crime within the last 10 years (per statue of limitations). Funny how the Feds will go to the wall to prevent Arizona from doing what the Feds themselves should be doing but the Feds will simply dismiss all actions against the new Black Panther Party for voter intimidation. I think Arizona has it right. To Arizona it's about enforcing the law. To the Feds it all about buying votes.
They may want to reconsider this suit after a careful reread of the Constitution. States have rights and framers would be ashamed of the current administration's action. Law are written to be enforced and AZ is enforcing the law.
Get a grip, folks! Did you all drink from the same barrel of tea?
Fact of the matter is that Arizona is impeding on Federal law and it doesn't really matter if you approve or not: the principle that has to be upheld if we are remain the United States is that individual states cannot usurp the Federal Government role -- even in those cases where you personally feel they should.
I don't know if you simply don't like this prez or if you would have reacted the same had the previous prez done this, but the overreaction of some of you to this sniffs of a heck of a lot more than anger over this action.
States may be sovereign, but the law of the land is the Constitution. And the Constitution clearly states that states will not interfere or encroach on the authority of the Federal Government. I agree that illegal immigration is out of control and that the Federal Government has not done all it needs to do. But that is no excuse to discard the Constitution. Vote people into office that will take care of the problem at the Federal level if you want to change things.
Hmm. So how would the AZ law be enforced? If you look Mexican would you be questioned? Do all Mexican or Latin looking people need to carry their birth certificates around? What if you have an accent? Does this apply just to Mexicans or does it apply to other non-white minorities too? How about eastern european (white) illegal immigrants? Looks like a half-baked AZ can of worms to me. I say we go after the criminals first rather than people with accents.
Just what we need all 50 states with there own Immigration laws on the books. Gee, why didn't I think about that.
On Hiring challenges weigh most on federal managers
Got to agree with the situation has deteriorated over the last two years. But it began before that. We are so thin at my location, it's less than one deep. People used to cover for each other when someone went on leave. Now, there's no one there to cover for you and you don't have time to cover anyone else. Most people I work with no longer take vacations beyond long weekends -- the pain from the backlog when you return is just too much. I can't remember when I took an actual vacation. Forget telework and all that other stuff. Heck, I just want to sleep at night again without stressing about all the stuff that won't fit in the job jar.
The irony is, CHCOs and HR Departments are suffering from the same understaffing, low morale problems that everyone else is, thus affecting the service they give. What a vicious circle!
"Several suggested chief human capital officers create a road map for career tracks within different agency functions." Once again, managers shirking THEIR responsibility. Career tracks reflect the assignment of work made by MANAGERS, not HR and certainly not politically appointed CHCOs. The uniformed military has leaders and the civilian government has narrowly focused technocrats. The management culture is broken in the civilian ranks.
On Study rekindles debate over federal pay and benefits
We are in a race to the bottom and these idiots think the economy will be great if everyone makes $10 an hour with no pension. These same people, defended CEO's making $80 million a year because they were "creating sharehoder value." The sad thing is many people making the $10 an hour think they have it great and people are weak for not competing for these $10 an hour jobs. The system is so broken now it does not matter anyway.
I guess it will never end. It seems ridiculous that these studies are always so predictable. One side says the feds earn too much while the other side says it's not enough. One thing is for sure, some people are making good money to regurgitate this information over & over.
Consider the source for the report: The Heritage Foundation. Should tell any reader all the reader needs to know about the validity of the conclusions of the study.
I'm sure there will be more eloquently worded comments, but all I can say is consider the source. The Heritage Foundation has no real interest in anything but their own agenda. They can say they only have the taxpayer's best interests at heart, but if all of their suggestions had been or would be put into use, there would be no need for the Heritage Foundation to exist and then where would they be?
What this really shows is how much the pay and benefits for the non-executive workers of the private sector have deteriorated since 1980. Federal compensation has been relatively steady, so it is a good benchmark to observe how private non-executive compensation has gone from much better than the Feds to much worse than the Feds.
This is an interesting but flawed analysis in that it does not control for possible confounding variables like occupation. I keep track of what the private sector and academia pay folks with my experience and training and the federal pay and benefits is usually around the 25th percentile. I will admit to appreciating the stability of the federal system and that is one factor that has influenced me to stay when offered higher paying positions in academia.
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