I disagree because it's not this simple. Those employees produce VALUE. That money isn't being burnt. You can't do simple math like this when it comes to human

I disagree because it's not this simple. Those employees produce VALUE. That money isn't being burnt. You can't do simple math like this when it comes to human beings. IF those employees stick around AND the industries in the state continue then the state earns more money from said industries. How much money do you think Detroit, once the most profitable city in the US, brought in? Now, Detroit has been sucked dry and left to rot and the state is on the hook for those pensions. But did the pensions cause this? In my opinion, no. I think people like to blame the pensions because it's easy and simple, and also because many inherently have a bias towards defending the private sector.