First, full disclosure...then, some thoughts.
Disclosure: DW and I will both get SS, I will get a military (retired reservist) pension and Tricare at 60. All other retirement income must come from our savings (401k, IRAs, after tax).
Some Thoughts:
1. This is a thought provoking thread, with lots of folks on 'both sides' of the public employee benefits argument; I like reading the opposing views.
2. IMO, the system is almost completely out of balance. Public retirement benefits are not sustainable, and must (they will, the $$$ will force it) adjusted toward the marketplace. The private market did this 25 yrs ago and the public sector will have to follow. For one data point, read the CATO Institute study on the imbalance of private pay/benefits vs public ones. Yes, the CATO Inst is conservative but, really, how can one say the system is not out of whack when, by any measure, a federal worker's package is double that of a private worker. I'm actually fairly liberal ( at least according to my Dad), and this data (even if it's off by 50%) scares the crap out of me; this is the road to becoming Greece.
3. From reading the link in an early post regarding the WA State employees "rights", it's clear to me that some confuse 'benefits' with 'rights'. We have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, the right to free speech; not the right to a sweet retirement package.
4. We need to start by reducing the pay/benefits packages of the politicians, which is probably the subject of another thread. But, I've met too many 'average Joe' public retirees making outrageously generous pensions to believe that 'it's just the big guys.'
5. Self interest combined with poor governance has been a deadly combo in this arena, as illustrated by the multiple examples of pension spiking, game playing, and late/indecision on fixes.
6. Admittedly, I'm probably not completely objective regarding military retirement benefits but, I honestly do think it's different and IMHO should be treated differently.