EDITED Who are America's fastest-growing class of millionaires? They are police officers, firefighters, teachers and federal bureaucrats, who, unless things change drastically, will be paid something near their full salaries every year--until death--after retiring in their mid-50s....a retirement sum worth millions.
Based on a realistic 4% return, an $80,000 annual pension payout with full health benefits implies a large pot of money--$2 million, to be precise.
That $2 million also happens to be the implied booty of your average California policeman who retires at age 55........in Carlsbad, Cali, the average firefighter or police officer typically retires at age 55 and has 28 years of service w/ an annual city pension of $76,440 for life.
SOURCE http://www.forbes.com/
If this high deficit spending eventually results in high inflation which is very likely the value of our pensions could be wiped out in very short order. This happened to my uncle who retired in the early 1970s and now receives only a few hundred dollars a month and has to supplement his income by driving a school bus in his late 70s.
In California... firefighters, police and some other state employees pensions are calculated at 3% per year multiplied by the average of their highest five years. Their pay is higher than ours to begin with. Obviously 3% per year adds up a whole lot quicker than 2% per year. I have no idea about federal employees retirement benefits.
I wouldn't deny that some firefighters and police have been given a cushy retirement deal... but not all. In Washington the previous retirement system is way over-funded and was at one time about a billion dollars ahead of its expected obligations. Ours is not as good as the previous system. Our Firefighting is the kind of job that very few old people can do well.