Jim Keating. Watchful waiting.

– Jim Keating writes about legislative matters for the newsletter of the Du Page Illinois Retired Teachers Association.

All right, action was called for and action was taken. The IRTA and others have  filed law suits in the hope of getting the Illinois courts to overturn Senate Bill 1 because it clearly diminishes our pension benefits. This law suit will eventually make its way to the Illinois Supreme Court. This is the court that will determine if the immoral and unethical legislative bill passed by our state’s General Assembly and signed by our governor is constitutional.

Our wealthy, financially secure state representatives have created a law that practically guarantees that we live out our remaining years with a gradual but constant decline in our buying power and our standard of living. The phrase,”circling the drain,” comes to mind here. That’s what the majority in both the House and Senate voted for. That’s what they want to see happen to us. But we challenged their cruel act and our financial fate is now in the hands of the state’s court system. This slow moving legal process may take months or even years to complete.

So, we all must wait. “Watchful waiting” is what we are doing. I’m sure many of the men in our organization have heard this term. If you are in your late seventies or early eighties and are diagnosed with prostate cancer, this “active surveillance,” is one of the treatment options. The theory is that since this type of cancer is slow growing, you will die of something else before it can kill you.

Sadly for many of us, both malignancies may affect our financial well being and our fragile health, and are major concerns. We now are waiting to see if we will grow old in financial comfort or grow old suffering from the indignities that come with poor financial health. Will we die soon and not run out of money or will we live a long life and die in poverty? The Illinois Supreme Court will answer that question in due time. Our other health issues will be determined by a higher power (not M. Madigan).

Let us remain hopeful and positive. Let us hope that the Illinois Supreme Court decides that we will live in financial security even with the normal afflictions of age and the threat of developing a personal acquaintance with the “C” word. As we age, health becomes the big issue and being able to pay for our health care becomes a major concern. Right now, we are OK but if the court decides against us we will be not OK. Good health and middle class wealth usually complement each other. We need both to have both.What’s worse, a pension attack or a heart attack? Both could leave you incapacitated in some way and very dependent on others. That’s why we need the court to say that our COLAs must stay as they are. Just hope that the majority of the judges on the court are old enough to understand these things and make the correct decision. We will wait and see. Stay positive. With age comes wisdom, you know.