The Week in Comments: Buyouts, job cuts and federal service
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 notifies 1,700 employees their jobs will be cut
It's clear to see what mgmt. has in mind with the hiring of people making $12-$15 an hour. So why arn't they allowing bargaing employees with a year or less to go? (RIF)This would help with the reduction and allow the older work force to move on. Believe me, Wer'e ready to move on!!But, then again we must realize who were dealing with. Maybe, this makes too much sense!!
The USPS is a valuable service for some. However since junk mail is the majority of mail many receive and in some places like Oklahoma the mail service is very unreliable, you get other peoples mail and don't receive your mail it gets delivered to other peoples houses on a routine bases, I think it is time to do away with the USPS and save tax payers money.
On Environmentalists hail Grand Canyon ruling
So rather than produce uranium domestically and create American jobs, we will import uranium from other countries. So much for all the phony hand-wringing that this Administration is doing over job creation. Of course, as long as politicians and environmentalists have jobs, they care little about the rest of the country.
Great decision. We built the great Alaskian oil pipeline in order to have much needed oil for this country and where do you suppose the majority if not all the oil goes? Yeap, Japan. This country has a history or telling the people the wilderness needs to be ravaged in order to make fuel more affordable for the US, but in reality it is only big business that profits from it. We need more people in charge who will stand up and protect our natural resources so our future generations can enjoy them.
Save the Snail Darter, save the sagebrush lizard, kill the USA.
On Army settles on site for national museum
Just add it to the War Department's budget. It's unlimited, isn't it?
To Kwmcbride:
War Department? It hasn't been called that since WWII. And No, DoD has no interest or business running monuments or museums. We need to focus on protecting the country and fighting in ever god forsaken country we get sent to.
Reference the comment on the funding and reading the article, who do you think ends up eating those corporate tax right offs? The treasury, nothing big business does is out of the goodness of their rotten and corrupt hearts.
On IRS has difficulty ensuring its own employees' tax compliance
Until we can implement a flat-rate income tax for ALL U.S. taxpayers - individual and business - and eliminate most of the IRS, why not simply garnish the wages of those tax-delinquent IRS employees?
If the bills introduced earlier this year would prevent tax-delinquent employees from working for the federal government, does that mean tax cheats such as Geitner would never work for the government? NAH. Someone would have submitted a waiver. So much for setting a good example.
The IRS has over 100,000 employees and only 133 were found non-compliant with the tax laws. That's 0.13% of the agency's employees. That IS a miniscule number. The TIGTA study probably cost more than the actual taxes owe by the 133 people!
On Former Fed chairman backs new plan for overhauling government
Hmmm, cuts to USPS, cuts to the Executive branch, Hey , when will there be cuts to the Legislative branch????? ... interesting isn't it? ... how Congress protects themselves, while pontificating and grandstanding for votes ... basically, Congress speaks out of both sides of their mouths ... it's the old "do as I say, and not as I do" approach ... Congress is the real problem!
It's a start....small, but a start. Now what they should do is look at the hundreds of ideas on the govt reform website that were submitted. Start with the ideas that the worker bees suggest first. Managers really have no clue, it's the guy or gal in the field that can spot fraud, waste or abuse faster than any supervior can. No committee should be started unless there is a guarantee that at least a majority are the workers vice managers. Agree that the gov't needs more contract oversite, more IG's in the field (not one, maybe two to a large command)and less retired 0-6 faux program analysts who just muck things up for the rest of us!
7.5 million contractors more or less? Civilan federal workforce 2 million. Now where could the fat be?
On Education considers buyouts
The entire Department of Education needs to be eliminated. Education is a stateissue, not a Federal responsibility. Shut it down now.
If DOE is eliminated there will be no national standards and the rump states (Mississippi, Alabama, Fla) will sink even lower than their current pathetic levels. Idiots!
If the feds were serious, they would shut this down and also look at wages, benefits of Congress Senate, etc. They should look there as well as the 85 czars under the Whitehouse.
On Relationships key to attracting students to federal service
With government cutting back on incentives such has tuition re-imbursement, moving incentives, etc., how is going to work for the government more attractive than the private sector where my contractor counterpart in the next office gets 20 to 30% higher pay (and bonuses that mean something), has only half the responsibility and is not legally liable for any mistakes he makes and only has half the productivity with twice the staff)? And on top of that, they have a better health benefiets package with less out of pocket costs. Whenever a vendor states "I'm going to save the government money" they usually mean they are going to save the money in thier own pocket. These are the same whiney-arses that have spent thier entire career on corportate welfare who want to cut programs.
Given the current attack on the Federal Workforce by Congress.. You can't attract the garbageman let alone the youngest and the brightest. They would just as soon as go work for the government contractors. I sure wouldn't advise my son or daughter to get a job with the government.
I have two engineering degrees and will make twice as much in private employment as I would make in Fed Service. Forget it.
Why would anyone want to be a Civil Servant now with no money for movement, pay freezes, furloughs threatened every year, more work less resources, hire 1 for every three we lose? The best and brightest, (what a joke)! like they can come in off the street and "magically" be equivilant to double digit experience, and many of us "oldies' have the same degree as you. If you ARE the best and brightest you wouldn't look at Government at all!
Why should the student apply? There is a hiring freeze, it would be a waste of time. Offer VSIP's with enough $, the baby boomers are ready to leave with incentive. I agree with all the pay freezes, hiring freezes, paying more into pensions, a young person is going to get a sour taste for fed service.
On Postal Service suspends pension contributions
As a veteran of the real world, I can attest that this is what you get when you run government "like a business."
Oh, come on. Issa is part of the problem. How many private companies have over 500 members on their Boards of Directors? And with so many different agendas? I'm surprised they do as well as they do.
Isn't this a bit like not paying the electric bill so you can pay the gas bill? and when the next electric bill comes, it is so huge, you can't pay that either?
Do you really think that the overfunding by the USPS in FERS and CSRS is a billing error? Both retirement systems are under funded by every government agency that is paid by the Treasury. They have no access to money other than what is budgeted, but the USPS can raise its prices and in effect tax the american people to balance the budget. This has been going on since the early 80's. Don't be fooled, they are not going to give up access to another means of getting their hands in your wallet.
On Obama announces 33,000-troop cut from Afghanistan
More obfuscation; nothing but a political strategy to win votes next year. If this is such a good plan, why don't the military leaders serving in theatre agree with the timetable?
Timing is everything and Obama's back in the campaign mode. The insurgents will just wait us out and take over since nature abhors a vacuum. This administration has no idea what "success" in a war is, no matter how ill-conceived the war. It's winning.
So once again the president is going to "declare victory" and the US forces will leave. And three years after we leave, Afghanistan will be like we were never there at all.
Afghanistan has become Viet Nam on steriods. Weak central government propped up by US troops and dollars, population that is apathetic and just wants to be left alone, local economy in the toilet, and an enemy that is fanatical and blends in with the population - the paralels are stunning. The sooner we get out the better.
What is said in public about the troop situation in Afghanistan is said for many reasons. It is hope for many, a warning for others, and bait for the rest.
It seems to me that we have met all the objectives we had for going into Afghanistan. Obama is right, it's time to start pulling out.
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