Pension spiking

Introduction to Pension spiking

Pension spiking, sometimes referred to as "salary spiking", is the process whereby public
sector employees are granted large raises, bonuses, incentives or otherwise artificially
inflate their compensation in the time immediately preceding retirement in order to receive
larger pensions than they otherwise would be entitled to receive. This artificially inflates
the pension payments due to the retirees.
Upon retirement any employee transitions from receiving a paycheck from the employer to
a pension check drawn on the assets of the retirement fund; this amount is typically
determined as a percentage of the employee's regular salary by state law or statute. When
an employee due to retire receives a "spike", the amount of money the employee will
receive does not reflect the percentage of salary the employee and employer haves
contributed for the majority of the employee's career, and places a burden on the economic
viability of the pension fund. This practice is considered a significant contributor to the
high cost of public sector pensions.
Several states including Illinois have passed laws making it more difficult for employees to
spike their pensions. The California CalPERS system outlawed this practice in 1993, but as
of 2012 it remained legal in the 20 counties which did not participate in this public
employee retirement system.Pension spiking is often seen in public sector employers (who
do not typically offer Golden Parachutes to employees the private sector does) and is an
example of the principal–agent problem. In the classic principal–agent problem, a principal
hires an agent to work on his behalf. The agent then seeks to maximize his own well-being
within the confines of the engagement laid out by the principal. The agent, or bureaucrat in
this instance, has superior information and is able to maximize his benefit at the cost of the
principal.

USS Rescue (1861)

Quiz 1 USS Rescue (1861)

USS Rescue (1861) was a small (111-ton) steamer commissioned by the United States Navy
during the American Civil War.
She served the Union Navy during the blockade of ports and waterways of the Confederate
States of America as a gunboat and dispatch boat. After the war's end, Rescue continued to
serve the Navy, but this time as a tugboat and as a fireboat.

== Fitted out in Philadelphia in 1861 ==

Rescue, built for the builders account in 1861 by Harlan and Hollingsworth, Wilmington,
Delaware, was purchased for the Navy on 21 August 1861; fitted out at Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania; and ordered to join the Potomac Flotilla.

== Civil War service ==

=== Potomac River patrol ===

Under the command of Lt. H. S. Newcomb, Rescue joined the flotilla prior to mid-September
and took up station near Alexandria, Virginia. By the 18th, she had shifted to the Mathias
Point-Popes Creek area where she seized the schooner Harford and her cargo of wheat and
tobacco.
On 11 October, the gunboat, with USS Resolute and USS Union, captured and burned the
schooner Martha Washington which had been awaiting Confederate troops in Quantico
(Dumfries) Creek. Ten days later, she returned to Mathias Point to engage enemy batteries
there.
A week of courier duty followed; and, on the 28th, she was detached from the Potomac
Flotilla and ordered to the Rappahannock River for duty in the North Atlantic Blockading
Squadron.

Independent Olympic Athletes at the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts
Games

NoteIndependent Olympic Athletes at the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games

The 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (Turkmen: Ý apyk binalarda we sö weş
sungaty boýunça V Aziýa oýunlary/Япык биналарда ве сөвеш сунгаты боюнча V Азия
оюнлары), which is also counted as the 5th Asian Indoor Games, was held in Ashgabat,
Turkmenistan in 2017. It became the third city in the former Soviet countries to win the
right of hosting an Olympic Council of Asia-sanctioned event, following Astana and Almaty
in Kazakhstan, which jointly-hosted the 2011 Asian Winter Games. The host city was chosen
in Kuwait on 19 December 2010. On 6 July 2013 the flag of the Olympic Council of Asia was
officially handed over to the mayor of the city of Ashgabat.

== Development and preparation ==

=== Venues ===

The Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games were held at the Ashgabat Olympic Complex,
which is a unique facility which has no parallel in the Central Asian region. The Complex
boasts of over 30 structures, which also includes 15 competition venues, an Athletes' Village
and a Paralympic Rehabilitation Medical Center. The construction was launched by the
President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow. On November 5, 2010, the
Turkmen President took part in the official stone laying ceremony for the Olympic Village.
Investment in the first phase amounted to nearly $2 billion. The second phase of
construction cost $3 billion.

Kong Strikes Back!

NoteKong Strikes Back!

Kong Strikes Back! is a 1984 platform video game published by Ocean Software in 1984 for
the Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. While its predecessor, Kong, is a
Donkey Kong clone, Kong Strikes Back! is a clone of Mr. Do's Wild Ride with Donkey Kong-
inspired graphics.

== Gameplay ==
The player must rescue a damsel in distress on a rollercoaster in a fairground, and the goal
of each level is to reach the top of the level to save her from Kong, a large ape. The player
must avoid rollercoaster carts and various hazards by climbing up ladders on the track, and
then climbing down and continuing up the track after the hazards pass.

== Development ==
Kong Strikes Back!'s graphics are inspired by Donkey Kong, while its gameplay is a clone of
Mr. Do's Wild Ride. Kong Strikes Back!

Kong Strikes Back!

NoteKong Strikes Back!

Kong Strikes Back! is a 1984 platform video game published by Ocean Software in 1984 for
the Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. While its predecessor, Kong, is a
Donkey Kong clone, Kong Strikes Back! is a clone of Mr. Do's Wild Ride with Donkey Kong-
inspired graphics.

== Gameplay ==
The player must rescue a damsel in distress on a rollercoaster in a fairground, and the goal
of each level is to reach the top of the level to save her from Kong, a large ape. The player
must avoid rollercoaster carts and various hazards by climbing up ladders on the track, and
then climbing down and continuing up the track after the hazards pass.

== Development ==
Kong Strikes Back!'s graphics are inspired by Donkey Kong, while its gameplay is a clone of
Mr. Do's Wild Ride. Kong Strikes Back!