(Reuters) - As cash-strapped U.S. cities and states struggle to address gaping budget holes, a long-honored benefit for public-sector workers has come into the cross-hairs of budget cutters: retiree health insurance.
A growing number of states and cities are eliminating or reducing health coverage for retirees, a benefit that has long fallen by the wayside for most private-sector workers.
But the coverage, which has meant that most retired public workers have all their medical bills fully paid, is expensive and hugely underfunded. And because health coverage does not typically have the strong legal protections that hamstring changes to public pension benefits, it is easier for governments to scale back.
The trend could leave millions of public workers with thousands of dollars in unanticipated healthcare costs.
The Koch brothers’ $60 million pledge to defeat President Obama — along with their political network’s $400 million spending — make them two of the most influential conservatives this election.
Not content with their unprecedented influence in politics, the Kochs have also taken to influencing the votes of their employees. According to In These Times, Koch Industries sent 45,000 mailers to employees at Koch subsidiary Georgia Pacific, urging votes for Romney and other conservative candidates. The letter warns ominously of “consequences” for the workers if Republicans lose.
SLAMABAD -- A Pakistani official says over 100 militants have attacked a police station in the northwest, killing six policemen. Two of the killed policemen were beheaded.
Police officer Ishrat Yar says the attack near the main northwest city of Peshawar started late on Sunday night and triggered a gunbattle that lasted for several hours. The militants were armed with heavy machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades and assault rifles.
Yar also says 12 policemen were wounded in the attack in the small town of Matni, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Peshawar.
The American Civil Liberties Union is accusing Morgan Stanley of fueling the production of risky, expensive loans that targeted African-American borrowers.
In the lawsuit, expected to be filed on Monday, the A.C.L.U. claims that Morgan Stanley is culpable for predatory loans made through the New Century Financial Corporation because the investment bank lent billions of dollars to New Century, a now-defunct subprime lender, and pressured it to make troublesome loans to African-American borrowers who could not afford them.
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