More Californication (Are We Bored Yet?)

The venereal New York Times reports: California Pension Fund Hopes Riskier Bets Will Restore Its Health.

Big as California’s budget woes are today, so are the problems lurking in its biggest pension fund.

The fund, known as Calpers, lost nearly $60 billion in the financial markets last year. Though it has more than enough money to make its payments to retirees for many years, it has a serious long-term shortfall. Meanwhile, local governments in the state are pleading poverty and saying they cannot make the contributions that would be needed to shore it up.

Mr. Dear wants to embrace some potentially high-risk investments in hopes of higher returns.

Calpers has a lot riding on Mr. Dear’s effort to achieve above-market performance. The fund just posted a loss of 23 percent, the worst in its history. That leaves it 66 percent funded, the lowest level in two decades, meaning it has only $66 on hand for every $100 in benefits promised to 1.6 million California public employees and their families.

They were so astute that they lost 23% in a year. Now, they are so astute that they want to "embrace" riskier strategies.

The EE will provide a simple translation:

Dear California-Taxpayer, you are fucked!