Public pensioners have a sweet deal

Are there any other Social Security retirees out there who are sick and tired of hearing the public employees whining about possible pension cuts? We are hit with TV commercials presenting the “plight” of these people everyday. One of their popular lines concludes with, “They should walk in our shoes.”

To that I say, “Try walking in our shoes.” We retirees receive maximum pensions of less than one-third of yours. We had to work until we were 65, not 30 years or to age 55. Including our employers’ contributions we contributed a larger percentage of our income than you did. We also contributed much longer (to age 65). We don’t have generous health plans. Including the premium deducted from my Social Security check every month, I pay almost $400 a month for coverage and have no dental plan. That, by the way is over 25 percent of my “pension.”

It would seem they are crying about being hungry with a loaf of bread in each hand. I’ll bet they have eaten steak this week. How many on Social Security have? Ground beef is not steak. I’ll gladly walk in your shoes if you walk in mine. If you do, be careful, if you step on a stone it will hurt — holes in the soles you know. My car is seven years old; how old is yours?

They claim to work hard. Several years ago I watched as a crew of four, plus a foreman, planted a small tree in my parkway. Teachers work nine months a year. Politicians work (?) even less. If I had known when I was young what I know now, I too would be feeding at the public trough.

Ken Kitzing

Mount Prospect