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Editor's Note: Karen Stewart is a Kentucky transplant to Wisconsin. Below is a small taste of her account of Gov. Scott Walker's recall election-

"...It began in 2010, when Wisconsin elected Scott Walker governor. Walker, the Tea Party’s poster boy, had previously served in the state legislature and as Milwaukee County Executive. He was also the first Wisconsin governor in 64 years to lack a college degree. ..."

Future Shock: Kentucky's Politicians Opulent Pension

Have Become a Modern-Day Gold Rush

Lowell Reese, the owner of Kentucky Roll Call, is the recognized expert on how members of the General Assembly enriched themselves at the expense of Kentucky taxpayers. Simply put, legislators can collect full time state retirement benefits from part-time legislative work if they can show applicable public employment.

The rewards are sweet - consider new Ag Commissioner Jamie Comer who, according to Reese, "hit the jackpot as a result of his vote on House Bill 299 in the 2005 legislative session. Suddenly Comer's pension for having served 11 years in the legislature nearly tripled. Simply upon taking the oath, his annual legislative pension spiked from $13,100 a year to $34,369."

The report, paid for Bluegrass Institute, is an equal opportunity critique of both parties. Reese documents the pension fates of both Dems and Reps. He even lists the governors who have sweetened the pension pot over the years.

The 25 page pdf report is worth downloading and printing off. Pensions are now a "societal issue" that, according to Reese will divert funds from essenial government services, chief among those education, which is the largest line item in the state budget.

 Editor's Note: While we are not fans of Bluegrass Institute, Reese's report is a bipartisan blast. The link will take one to the pdf report.