In the cities decent pensions are almost as rare, except among workers in the privileged state sector.

ECONOMIST: The consequences of an ageing population

As my Forbes colleague Dan Fischer points out, while rogue traders get jail, high-ranking executives who lost other banks far more money through bad bets on mortgage-backed securities, got decent pensions, largely because they operated within company rules.

FORBES: UBS 'Rogue Trader' Told Facebook Friends I 'Need A Miracle'

Equally, what once seemed like decent treatment for city workers, i.e. generous health care, pensions and pay, particularly for firefighters and police, is now seen as absurd featherbedding.

BBC: Debt and defiance in bankrupt Stockton, California

Those reforms were a much-needed incentive for employees to build up their pensions at a time when many employers were abdicating responsibility for providing a decent income in retirement.

ECONOMIST: Tax