I've computed out all of my deposits over the years, allocated interest to them using the current T-bill rates at the time, and gone ahead and retired.
Based on my current "draw" (to use a non-government term), I would need to live to 200 years of age to actually recover my deposits with interest.
What you "schmart guys" forget is that federal retirement is not inheritable. The payments end when the beneficiary dies. That tends to gobble up all that "unfunded pension liability". Actually, it doesn't just "tend" it actually does gobble it up.
Only in the private sector can you compute out a personal retirement program that assumes heirs will get a piece of the action. Rockefeller had such a program. Old Joe Kennedy had one. I'm sure most rich folks do. Salaried personnel usually don't except for their 401(k) plans or IRAs.
I suggest that you look up my research on pension compensation (Michael Mannino published in the Journal of Pension Economics and Finance). I have computed pension compensation for a plan (Florida Retirement System) with lower benefits than the FERS plan. The average level of surplus deferred compensation was $250,000+ in the FRS plan with much higher levels for higher paid professionals and administrators. My calculations took into account non inheritable features of defined benefit plans. The private sector sells annuity plans that provide lifetime income without an inheritable feature.
In summary, you are wildly misinformed about government defined plans. I do not know the specifics of your situation. Unless you retired at normal retirement age (or later), you received substantial surplus deferred compensation.