Divide and Conquer

link here to article

One of the many myths that floats around the internet, and other unreliable sources, is that public employees have seen their wages and benefits rise while privately employed labor has done less well. The largest group of public employees happen to be school teachers but that is not the point. Private employees have been turned against school teachers and other public employees by the myth and by those who spread the myth for their own benefit.

This article contains data (not the myth) on public employee compensation. It shows that it had fallen substantially in the recession and that compensation growth compares with that of private employment compensation growth (data not provided). Both groups have seen their compensation growth fall in the downturn. Divide and conquer is working as it usually does. The same strategy is being used in discussions about entitlements. Many young people have been told that social security will not be there for them when they retire because it will be insolvent. Those who believe the myth will be less interested in protecting social security from those who don't like entitlements and the taxes that come with them. They are typically those who don't need social security to fund their retirement.