In my opinion, Mr. Clifford should not have been given that severance package (I'm sure I'll hear an "Amen!" on that!), but he also should not have been fired in the first place.One solution would be to just hire him back. He's willing to come back, I heard this morning, and I'd say that he's pretty well been vindicated. Of course, there's now no board that can hire anybody, let alone him.Meanwhile, even without all of these yahoos and hacks sitting on the handlebars, Metra seems to be pedaling along fine.
Carl
Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)
CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)
Chicago is Chicago - which says it all.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
BaltACD Chicago is Chicago - which says it all.
One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the DuPage County Board with the advice and consent of the DuPage County Board and shall reside in DuPage County.
C&NW, CA&E, MILW, CGW and IC fan
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-rta-20130822,0,4847431.story
Methinks the lady doth protest too much.
Mac
schlimm Your comment is an outsider's and has little to do with the reality. Metra's governance has been a mess, but not because of chicago politics.The Metra Board One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the DuPage County Board with the advice and consent of the DuPage County Board and shall reside in DuPage County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the McHenry County Board with the advice and consent of the McHenry County Board and shall reside in McHenry County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Will County Executive with the advice and consent of the Will County Board and shall reside in Will County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Lake County Board with the advice and consent of the Lake County Board and shall reside in Lake County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Kane County Board with the advice and consent of the Kane County Board and shall reside in Kane County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Mayor of the City of Chicago with the advice and consent of the City Council of the City of Chicago and shall reside in the City of Chicago. Five (5) Directors residing in Cook County outside of the City of Chicago, as follows: (i) One (1) Director who resides in Cook County outside of the City of Chicago, appointed by the President of the Cook County Board with the advice and consent of the members of the Cook County Board. (ii) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Barrington, Palatine, Wheeling, Hanover, Schaumburg, or Elk Grove. (iii) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Northfield, New Trier, Maine, Niles, Evanston, Leyden, Norwood Park, River Forest, or Oak Park. (iv) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Proviso, Riverside, Berwyn, Cicero, Lyons, Stickney, Lemont, Palos, or Orland. (v) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Worth, Calumet, Bremen, Thornton, Rich, or Bloom. So, if you knew local politics you would see that at the most, only three or four board members are controlled by the Chicago Democratic machine, while six or seven are from collar (GOP) counties or areas in Cook County not influenced by the machine. The "machine" BTW, is much weaker than it was when either Daley was mayor.
Your comment is an outsider's and has little to do with the reality. Metra's governance has been a mess, but not because of chicago politics.The Metra Board
Politicians are like a bunch of bananas.
They hang together,
They're all yellow,
And there's not a straight one among 'em.
Disclaimer: Sarcasm intended.
Norm
billio schlimm Your comment is an outsider's and has little to do with the reality. Metra's governance has been a mess, but not because of chicago politics.The Metra Board One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the DuPage County Board with the advice and consent of the DuPage County Board and shall reside in DuPage County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the McHenry County Board with the advice and consent of the McHenry County Board and shall reside in McHenry County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Will County Executive with the advice and consent of the Will County Board and shall reside in Will County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Lake County Board with the advice and consent of the Lake County Board and shall reside in Lake County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Kane County Board with the advice and consent of the Kane County Board and shall reside in Kane County. One (1) Director shall be appointed by the Mayor of the City of Chicago with the advice and consent of the City Council of the City of Chicago and shall reside in the City of Chicago. Five (5) Directors residing in Cook County outside of the City of Chicago, as follows: (i) One (1) Director who resides in Cook County outside of the City of Chicago, appointed by the President of the Cook County Board with the advice and consent of the members of the Cook County Board. (ii) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Barrington, Palatine, Wheeling, Hanover, Schaumburg, or Elk Grove. (iii) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Northfield, New Trier, Maine, Niles, Evanston, Leyden, Norwood Park, River Forest, or Oak Park. (iv) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Proviso, Riverside, Berwyn, Cicero, Lyons, Stickney, Lemont, Palos, or Orland. (v) One (1) Director who resides in the township of Worth, Calumet, Bremen, Thornton, Rich, or Bloom. So, if you knew local politics you would see that at the most, only three or four board members are controlled by the Chicago Democratic machine, while six or seven are from collar (GOP) counties or areas in Cook County not influenced by the machine. The "machine" BTW, is much weaker than it was when either Daley was mayor. Schlimm, what your lengthy shopping list of Metra directors, and where they come from, ignores is that the Republican board members are just as hackacious as their Democratic colleagues. Ths same applies to the clowns whom they appoint/elevate to Metra staff positions. The result is a staff composed of political bozos whose most useful contribution to Metra is to not screw things up worse than they already are. The worst outcome, of course, is rampant incompetence and corruption, and (as anyone in the Metra service area gives a rat's rump) felony behavior that can (and has) result in criminal charges. Someone told me that the two great perks that accompany being a board member are a virtually unaudited $45,000 expense account (this was 10-15 years ago) and the ability to reward folks to whom you owe favors with a payroll slot at Metra. The greatest aspect of whatever reorganization that leaves Metra with its currently constituted board is the increase in the number of hacks who comprise it. One last observation: the composition of the board, which is Republican-heavy, could not have occurred without the assent of Cook County/City Hall Democrats. A triumph of the two-party process, assuring all parties a share of the spoil. Ain't it great?
I was simply responding to Balt's ill-informed suggestion that the problem with Metra is Chicago politics. I am very familiar with the GOP politics in the western suburbs, which are often nearly as dependent on "clout' as any precinct in the city, and frequently corrupt. The entire state suffers from bi-partisan corruption and has for many years, with at least five GOP and Democratic governors dating back to Bill Stratton, serving prison time. However, the Metra board appointments from the collar counties and the GOP townships in Cook are not dependent on the assent of the Cook County Democratic Party.
billio schlimm Schlimm, what your lengthy shopping list of Metra directors, and where they come from, ignores is that the Republican board members are just as hackacious as their Democratic colleagues. Ths same applies to the clowns whom they appoint/elevate to Metra staff positions. The result is a staff composed of political bozos whose most useful contribution to Metra is to not screw things up worse than they already are. The worst outcome, of course, is rampant incompetence and corruption, and (as anyone in the Metra service area gives a rat's rump) felony behavior that can (and has) result in criminal charges. Someone told me that the two great perks that accompany being a board member are a virtually unaudited $45,000 expense account (this was 10-15 years ago) and the ability to reward folks to whom you owe favors with a payroll slot at Metra. The greatest aspect of whatever reorganization that leaves Metra with its currently constituted board is the increase in the number of hacks who comprise it. One last observation: the composition of the board, which is Republican-heavy, could not have occurred without the assent of Cook County/City Hall Democrats. A triumph of the two-party process, assuring all parties a share of the spoil. Ain't it great? I was simply responding to Balt's ill-informed suggestion that the problem with Metra is Chicago politics. I am very familiar with the GOP politics in the western suburbs, which are often nearly as dependent on "clout' as any precinct in the city, and frequently corrupt. The entire state suffers from bi-partisan corruption and has for many years, with at least five GOP and Democratic governors dating back to Bill Stratton, serving prison time. However, the Metra board appointments from the collar counties and the GOP townships in Cook are not dependent on the assent of the Cook County Democratic Party.
schlimm Schlimm, what your lengthy shopping list of Metra directors, and where they come from, ignores is that the Republican board members are just as hackacious as their Democratic colleagues. Ths same applies to the clowns whom they appoint/elevate to Metra staff positions. The result is a staff composed of political bozos whose most useful contribution to Metra is to not screw things up worse than they already are. The worst outcome, of course, is rampant incompetence and corruption, and (as anyone in the Metra service area gives a rat's rump) felony behavior that can (and has) result in criminal charges. Someone told me that the two great perks that accompany being a board member are a virtually unaudited $45,000 expense account (this was 10-15 years ago) and the ability to reward folks to whom you owe favors with a payroll slot at Metra. The greatest aspect of whatever reorganization that leaves Metra with its currently constituted board is the increase in the number of hacks who comprise it. One last observation: the composition of the board, which is Republican-heavy, could not have occurred without the assent of Cook County/City Hall Democrats. A triumph of the two-party process, assuring all parties a share of the spoil. Ain't it great?
True, the collar county board members' appointments come outside the Chicago Democratic Party's vetting/payoff process -- each collar county, heavily Republican -- has its own appointing/payoff mechanism, but their numbers (the constitution of the board) are the result of a political agreement between R's and D's. I wasn't clear in this; I never meant to imply that the Republican board members must get the seal of approval from Mayor Rahm, the Democratic Governor or any other other Illinois Dem. In one sense, they've got the City over a barrel: since Chicago itself lacks the finances to underwrite commuter rail service to the Loop, it needs the finacial boost of the collar counties to keep the system running. Which explains why so many Republican hacks populate the Metra board.
Illinois, like Gaul, is divided into three parts, Chicago, the collar counties, and downstate. The composition of the RTA and Metra boards was dictated in an inordinate amount of negotiation and horse-trading based on the collar counties' historic distrust and fear of anything coming out of Chicago, which in turn is based on the historic American anti-urban bias (all cities are evil places) from the Jeffersonian era.
While "railfanning" over the recent past weekends with some of my buddies at Eola we've decided that if Metra wants us, we'll be happy to step up and run the agency for them. We have a nice mix of railroaders (Carl, we could use your help if you would be available), business managers (like yours truly), etc. that could easily fill the shoes of the political appointees who recently vacated the Metra board slots! I'm sure just about any of us could run a REAL railroad agency better than some "reverend" who wouldn't be able to tell a 110lb rail from a 110lb pulpit!
So true. One of Metra's biggest goofs was eliminating the discount on 10-ride tickets, a tradition dating back at least 60 years. result? Ticket sales have had an 18% decline. And that one was not even a function of rail-related knowledge, just basic marketing and pricing.
Regrettably, I can't join in this because Metra is considered a railroad--and I can't work for any railroad without jeopardizing my pension. Nor have I ever been good at persuading railroads to do things my way. And if the salary of a Metra director would offset my pension pay...well, it really shouldn't!The discount on ten-ride tickets has varied over that time, though--from 95 percent down as low as 80 percent. I think that before it was eliminated you paid 90%--get ten rides for the price of nine. Heck, even going to 95% would have given people a break.
eolafan While "railfanning" over the recent past weekends with some of my buddies at Eola we've decided that if Metra wants us, we'll be happy to step up and run the agency for them. We have a nice mix of railroaders (Carl, we could use your help if you would be available), business managers (like yours truly), etc. that could easily fill the shoes of the political appointees who recently vacated the Metra board slots! I'm sure just about any of us could run a REAL railroad agency better than some "reverend" who wouldn't be able to tell a 110lb rail from a 110lb pulpit!
Of course, like brother Carl, I wouldn't want to jeopardize my pension, so I'd have to work for stock dividends, cash, and other under-the-table goodies.
Oh, wait, isn't that how all of this got started.....?
Nevermind.
What this is plain old Illinois politics. Payoff a good ole; boy who is loyal to the party no matter which one it is with a plumb job. How many illinois govenors, alderman and othe politicans have gone to jail in the last 25 years for illegal activites? Many by my count..
Don't forget the METRA Chairman that met the knuckle of one of his locomotives - at speed.
caldreamer What this is plain old Illinois politics. Payoff a good ole; boy who is loyal to the party no matter which one it is with a plumb job. How many illinois govenors, alderman and othe politicans have gone to jail in the last 25 years for illegal activites? Many by my count..
Illinois is by no means unique in this sort of stuff, they're just not as discreet as in other states.
CSSHEGEWISCH caldreamer What this is plain old Illinois politics. Payoff a good ole; boy who is loyal to the party no matter which one it is with a plumb job. How many illinois govenors, alderman and othe politicans have gone to jail in the last 25 years for illegal activites? Many by my count.. Illinois is by no means unique in this sort of stuff, they're just not as discreet as in other states.
Maybe not uniques, but we surely lead the way.
Regarding governors,
7 have faced criminal charges.
4 on charges related to the office.
3 on charges for crimes after leaving office.
6 convicted, 1 acquitted.
Rich
Alton Junction
CSSHEGEWISCH Illinois is by no means unique in this sort of stuff, they're just not as discreet as in other states.
Just as special sections of the bankruptcy code dealing with railroads were created, I suspect that somehow we are going to have to create a section of federal law that deals with a "bankruptcy" of an entire state, although just how that can be accomplished within a federal system could get interesting. By most measurements Illinois is a leading candidate. The bottom line is that Illinois can no longer afford its political class, and the problems of Chicago Metra are just the tip of the iceberg.
Dakguy201 CSSHEGEWISCH Illinois is by no means unique in this sort of stuff, they're just not as discreet as in other states. Just as special sections of the bankruptcy code dealing with railroads were created, I suspect that somehow we are going to have to create a section of federal law that deals with a "bankruptcy" of an entire state, although just how that can be accomplished within a federal system could get interesting. By most measurements Illinois is a leading candidate. The bottom line is that Illinois can no longer afford its political class, and the problems of Chicago Metra are just the tip of the iceberg.
Whether the state of Illinois is bankrupt is a matter of debate, but it is more than likely insolvent, and this is primarily the result of the pension funding crisis facing the state.
While municipalities may declare bankruptcy, states cannot and any federal law to that effect would violate the doctrine of supremacy since the individual states cannot be subordinate to or answerable to the national goverment.
Illinois has to solve its own financial problems, and that means more revenue and less expense to reverse the insolvency situation. Again, the number one financial problem lacing Illinois is the pension funding crisis. The media talks about pension reform, but more likely what will occur is pension default and then benefits will need to be cut from the five principal state pension plans. The same problem exists with pension plans at the local level in Illinois.
Pension reform in any state is a subtle of saying "We'll stick it our employees". The private sector has been doing this for years now. A 401(k) is a savings plan that boils down to hoping that the stock market doesn't collapse when you're ready to retire and that you won't outlive your savings.
Pensions are becoming a dinosaur. Like it or not, defined contribution plans are the future.
The problem in Illinois has been the failure to annually fund the pension plans.
That seems criminal to me. But, the legislature gets away with failure to act on its fiscal responsibilities.
The problem in Illinois with pensions was not primarily that they were not funded. They are funded by mandatory percentage contributions from the employees and matched by the local district or government or state agency, not part of the state operation budget. The problem was: 1. Both GOP and Democratic governors for years used the pension funds to balance state budgets to avoid unpopular tax increases or service cuts 2. Local school districts offered "enhancements" (the 2/20 plan) to senior teachers with high salaries to retire early with greatly increased pensions. This shifted the burden from the local district to the TRS on the state level for future generations. This practice only ended a few years ago.As to defined benefit vs defined contribution, the former's appeal was security and stability; the latter's appeal has been primarily to the benefit of businesses to reduce their expenses and liabilities and to plan managers and investment companies in the form of fees, while transferring all risk to employees
schlimm The problem in Illinois with pensions was not primarily that they were not funded. They are funded by mandatory percentage contributions from the employees and matched by the local district or government or state agency, not part of the state operation budget. The problem was: 1. Both GOP and Democratic governors for years used the pension funds to balance state budgets to avoid unpopular tax increases or service cuts
The problem in Illinois with pensions was not primarily that they were not funded. They are funded by mandatory percentage contributions from the employees and matched by the local district or government or state agency, not part of the state operation budget. The problem was: 1. Both GOP and Democratic governors for years used the pension funds to balance state budgets to avoid unpopular tax increases or service cuts
That's just another way of saying that the pension plans were and are not funded.
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