Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of the mottos of Princeton, my alma mater, is "Princeton in the nations service"

It is so sad that none of these anti-DC posters see that many of us working at the FDA, Fed, NIH, or other agencies feel that public service serves a vital function in our country, and are willing to accept lower pay to contribute to society.

This. Thank you.

Government shutdown proved how many are, actually, expendible

I was one of the many govt workers who reported during the shut down because my job was deemed vital. There were more of us than y'all think,.

Sure, there is redundancy just like in the private sector. But many highly educated government workers take public sector jobs because they believe in the mission and are turned off by the idea of working for big pharma or wall street.

Anonymous wrote:I know quite a few former public servants who went to big law as partners.

But we all know a lot more who review FARA forms from home ...

Im amused by all these Macedonians trying to pretend they are private sector lawyers working 100 hour weeks, yet somehow still finding the time to post repeatedly here.

Anonymous wrote:Can we get past the myth of the army of public servants that could be making so much more in the private sector? I don't doubt that many public servants sincerely believe in the mission, but the vast majority of civil servants could not cut it long term in the private sector. This is especially true of lawyers. Sure, they may survive short term stints in big law or the private sector but most lack the temperment and personality to do it long term.

That isn't necessarily a bad thing....

What the hell are you talking about. Not everyone goes to big law to slave away. I know quite a few former public servants who went to big law as partners.

^^Government worker here. Have never done Christmas, but certainly July 4 and Labor Day. Once almost the entirety of Thanksgiving. I have come to see getting together data and well argued points against poorly thought through ideas as a hobby.

Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. The former mostly when either the facts are irrefutable or when I can find colleagues who feel similarly and they are willing to sign on if someone else does the work. Most wins of course are just around the edges, but it is amazing the impact just one smaller point in a multi point initiative can have on the private sector.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of the mottos of Princeton, my alma mater, is "Princeton in the nations service"

It is so sad that none of these anti-DC posters see that many of us working at the FDA, Fed, NIH, or other agencies feel that public service serves a vital function in our country, and are willing to accept lower pay to contribute to society.

This. Thank you.

Government shutdown proved how many are, actually, expendible

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Frankly my husband and I could have had more lucrative careers in the private sector like many of my college and law school classmates but we came to government out of a sense of patriotism and civic duty."

Now this is what I call a Bwahahahah moment!

Translation: "Frankly my husband and I would love to have more lucrative careers in the private sector like many of my college and law school classmates who had better grades and worked harder than we did, but we came to government out of a sense of desperation because no one in the private sector would look at us."

+1. There are very few exceptions to this, but generally, so true.

I am going to give her the benefit of the doubt. She may well be capable of being successful in the private sector, but chose govt for other reasons ( low stress, security etc). Not believing that patriotic bull.

+1

OP you are making way too many assumptions about private law practice. I graduated from a top 20 law school 20+ years ago and my job at a medium size firm in DC pays less and has worse benefits than peers working for the fed. Who work from home 3 days a week. Supposedly. And then there's the fact that firms offer absolutely no security anymore.