A lot of people hated me when I worked for a well-regarded state agency, implementing the laws, administrative rules, etc., dictated by the legislature. Believe me, I dropped a significant number of dollars in the local economy all those years, plus of course ponying up my share of my retirement account, health insurance premiums, not to mention local taxes to fund schools, etc. Did not resent any of that, but did resent the ongoing slings and arrows from those who seemed to totally devalue my work. Remember a few years ago, when the Oregonian, Statesman Journal, Bend Bulletin, and a bunch of other news media outlets sued and won the right to publish retirees' incomes? I do, and it was so infuriating I launched a letter writing campaign objecting to what I considered to be an egregious intrusion of my privacy. Alas, to no avail. While I greatly appreciate the health care benefits afforded by my agreement with PERS, I'm pretty sure those who hold me in such disregard have no clue as to the major hit I take to my paltry paychecks as my share of the premiums. And then there are those continued dollars I contribute to the economy by shopping local businesses.
Okay, I'll stop now. Just ran across this thread and your post, and somehow felt compelled to engage in my rant, prompted by my simmering anger at those who would deny me the benefits I paid into during my career with the state, and which I figure I've earned.
Okay, end of rant. Thanks for the post.
As I often do here, I'll close by quoting our state motto:
OREGON: She flies with her own wings.
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