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Anyone care to chime in with thoughts on this?http://inotch.com/2011/04/04/conundrums-are-such-conundrums/
I think your situation is understandable, though not entirely unique. Even in the private sector, I can see where workers might not like a certain industry even though they work in it. For example, a telemarketer might not like what he does because of the annoyance it causes people, but if his industry were to fade he would likely be out of a job. A lawyer might think there are too many lawyers in the world, but he would not want to quit as a means of realizing this.I, for one, think that the federal government is too big. This does not mean there should be no federal workers; just fewer. The government should never "drive" the economy. With each new layer of the government which is added, bureaucracy grows, spending grows, and sooner or later, taxes will grow. Unfortunately, as new federal workers are hired, more people come to rely on the governmental program as employer, and so when someone threatens to ax the program, the employees are the ones left screaming for their jobs. In the end, it's much harder to cut a government program than to add one.
I can see where you are coming from. Being in the Army right now and preparing to retire this fall, I have made the conscious choice that I will not seek government employment. Yes, there is job security in a GS position, but I for one, would rather take my chances in the private sector. I am confident I will be able to fulfill my dream if I am just persistent enough. I am also sick and tired of the bureaucratic nightmare that is government service. I currently work in an office that is mostly civilians and I think I would kill someone if I did not see the light at the end of the tunnel that is retirement. Of course, that could be because I did not join the army to work in an office but to shoot the big guns, kill people, and blow stuff up. I think that if I were in a line unit as a platoon sergeant I would be much happier and may not have submitted my retirement paperwork.I think I generally agree with your politics but you are tilting at windmills if you think the power brokers in Washington are ever going to suffer the same hardships as normal people voluntarily.
I think what you are both saying is true. However, let me add a couple things.I agree that the government should not drive the economy, but we have let it. Right or wrong, we have let the special interest groups, initiatives, and programs come to life. And as you said, the bureaucracy grows. However, all people see are those things and the politicians who drive them. What they don't see is the hospital workers treating the vets, the food workers who feed the troops at the mess hall and the IT guys who keep the militarys reliance on technology running (I wont say smoothly since that is what I do...LOL) and secure. The salary range for this group is generally between $28K and $70K with an average probably around $45K. That isn't a lot, and far from the triple figures. But these positions, regardless of programs or initiatives, are crucial and critical to keeping the military and government functional. These are the people are not the cause of the deficit, but they are being asked to pay for it.I may be tilting at windmills, but this is truly where the problem is. And what is happening is that most of the country is screaming about making the government smaller and axing these "little people" and just ignoring the real solution because it is perceived as tilting at windmills. Everyone believes that correcting it must be futile, so let's just layoff the middle class... no big deal. Cutting these people is not going to solve the budget problem. The problem is at the top, and until the citizens stop and really look at the big picture, they'll just assume that "big government" is the average federal employee. Until change is made at the top, cutting federal employee jobs, salaries and such is nothing more than a band-aid and I truly think weakens our government. I have been thinking about the concept of the government being too big. I don't really think that is what most people care about. I think they care about the federal government being too intrusive and equating size for it's ability to have it's hand in everything. I believe in a considerably less intrusive government and making it smaller isn't going to be a horrible thing, but making it smaller will not make it less intrusive. Again, the problem is at the top and until THAT is solved, nothing changes... But scout just said what is the belief probably of the majority of people that "the power brokers in Washington are ever going to suffer the same hardships as normal people voluntarily." Probably not, but if it is ignored and swept under the carpet in hopes that it will fix itself, we have a BIG problem. And that is what is happening... We are throwing our hands in the air and just accepting how it is. I may be tilting at windmills, but I think unlike Don Quixote, our adversary is real, and with persistance the battle can be won.
Again, the problem is at the top and until THAT is solved, nothing changes… But scout just said what is the belief probably of the majority of people that “the power brokers in Washington are ever going to suffer the same hardships as normal people voluntarily.” Probably not, but if it is ignored and swept under the carpet in hopes that it will fix itself, we have a BIG problem. And that is what is happening... We are throwing our hands in the air and just accepting how it is. I may be tilting at windmills, but I think unlike Don Quixote, our adversary is real, and with persistance the battle can be won.
I am right there tilting at windmills with you. Unfortunately, it will probably take something way more drastic than the Great Recession to make enough people realize that something needs to be done.I find it hilarious that the government is making the same mistake now that millions of Americans made over the last ten years when they tried to charge their way out of debt. I have never understood how more debt is the answer to a debt problem.
