States face $1.26 trillion shortfall in funds to pay retiree benefits - The Washington Post

Governments constantly make economic promises that they just cannot keep....

The report, which is based on state financial reports, found that states faced a $660 billion pension funding gap. Meanwhile, retiree health-care liabilities — which most states handle on a pay-as-you-go basis — totaled $604 billion, the report said.

This funding gap represents around $4,000 for every man, woman and child in the nation. And this is just for STATE retirees. This excludes any other important State responsibilities such as care for the poor, police, education, etc. that are the responsibilities of the State.

This is just another example of why the promises of socialism is an opiate that deludes most everybody. Officials promised to deliver employees retirement income to large swathes of individuals and not only did not plan out how to reasonably fund it, they could not since it would be impossible to do so, but kept offering those benefits to employees at the time since these promises cost them little or nothing. They kicked the can down the road and its another example of a demographic indulgence that faces almost every Western nation. The problems at the States are an example of problems at the Federal level where even more extravagant promises have been made to a much broader group of people that also will not be paid.

But the insidious problem facing the central government is definitely more troublesome. If a State has a problem, and tries to seize citizens assets to meet these obligations, the rational person would leave the State, many will and many leave high tax states now for less hostile environments. When the central government runs into problems and decides to seize the assets of people to meet all of these problems, then only the super wealthy will be able to leave. Most of us will be trapped in the nation and will have a difficult time exiting.

However, there are untold numbers of American citizens that take their money, move to another nation and will never be heard from again. It is quite easy to do this, If you have enough cash, leave. Become a citizen of another nation and one does not have to officially renounce citizenship, just disappear Stop filing tax returns. The American government does not own you despite it acting like it does. No need to go back to the US since the world is your oyster. But a fine example of how Washington thinks that they own you or people that want your money for their lives think that they own you....

I have previously explained the onerous 2008 “exit tax” the U.S. Congress and George Bush imposed on those who exercise their constitutional right to end citizenship. The only other countries that imposed a tax on those citizens who sought to expatriate were Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia and apartheid South Africa.

If you want to learn more about getting the heck out of place that will only become more-and-more hostile to those that work, save and are the most productive members American society, see this. Good luck.

States face $1.26 trillion shortfall in funds to pay retiree benefits - The Washington Post