GOP politicians and their followers plus many idiotic Democrats continue lying about pensions and public employees.

It's a world turned upside down when workers are vilified for having fought and finally won a living wage, affordable health benefits, and a pension that allows them a modicum of dignified retirement.

That public employees pensions have created massive state budget deficits is a big fat lie.

As Jonathan Tasini at Working Life writes:  "The Center for Economic and Policy Research has a very important study out. It must be given wide distribution and visibility (and, if there are foundation officers or rich people reading this, do us a favor: give CEPR a windfall of money: it's one of the few organizations talking sense about the economy). The basic conclusion:

" 'Most of the pension shortfall using the current methodology is attributable to the plunge in the stock market in the years 2007-2009.'   [Emphasis added.]

"And...

" 'The size of the projected state and local government shortfalls measured as a share of future gross state products appear manageable.' "

"The first conclusion is critical because it completely counters the notion that blame for pensions shortfalls should be laid at the feet of public workers. Instead, we should lay the blame at the feet of the reckless people in the financial industry on Wall Street who gambled with our economic future.  [Emphasis added.]

"And the second conclusion is just as important: the shortfall can be addressed without taking a hatchet to state budgets and attacking workers, libraries, roads and other services we need to have a functioning, decent society.

"By the way, both those conclusions precisely mirror the nonsense you hear at the federal level: the government's deficit and debt are a direct result of the financial collapse, not out-of-control spending AND neither the deficit or debt are a crisis that can't be handled in a very measured way--though neither political party seems to get that."