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Memorial Day: When we remember and salute

Memorial Day is anything but a holiday. It is a time when we remember those who served and whose lives were altered, or ended, by war, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. Today we pay tribute to them and to people in the federal family — past, present and future — who served or will serve.

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Holiday guilt: Have a terrible (as in wonderful) time!

Most of you have a four-day weekend coming up. Some will even slip out a little early to get a headstart, so everybody is happy, correct? Wrong! Not in Washington, the city of the worried well, where many of us see bad news as good news and disaster as an opportunity, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. So if you want to get ahead in D.C., wipe that smile off your face and suffer like the rest of us.

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Pay info, dental records, DNA sample please!

Why is it that because so many members of Congress have managed to become millionaires, top career federal executives must play show and tell, baring their most intimate financial details to the world, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wonders. And could you be next?

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The Mayor of the Pentagon's 130-year legacy

What do you say about a family that dedicates 130 years to the public service? In this case, its part of the legacy of the legendary Doc Cooke, a.k.a., the "Mayor of the Pentagon," who is credited with saving countless lives on 9/11, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Facebook Nation: Let it all hang out

When your friends, neighbors and in-laws google your federal salary, will they laugh or cry? Will they be enraged at the big bucks you are raking in, or will they smuggle food packages to your wretched family? The definitive answer: It depends!

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Should your dog see you sans pants?

Do your dog and your neighbors need to see you naked? Is the world a better place if the person next door or your brother in law, can go online and find out how much money Uncle Sam is paying you, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wonders. Does this amount to too much information?

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Show and tell time

There is a new game that is spreading like wildfire in government and among the media, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. It's a version of show and tell, except in this one you show us yours and we don't show you ours.

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The naked civil servant

As a civil servant you have nothing to hide, so would it be okay if your friends and neighbors saw you naked. OK, if that seems a bit intrusive at least let us know how much money you make working for Uncle Sam, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Your boss: Helpful mentor or nagging nanny?

If the boss told you to lay off the sauce, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wants to know: Would you consider it career advice or an invasion of your privacy?

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Roth TSP is NOT a Roth IRA!

Do you know the difference between a Roth IRA and the Roth TSP option? Because if you don't, it could cost you thousands of dollars in taxes and in future income when you retire, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Uncle Sam tackles demon rum ... again!

Is Prohibition, which ended in 1933, coming back to federal offices? Will root-beer-based martinis be the new drink of choice of federal party-goers? Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wonders: Has it already started?

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The creature that ate your pension

If you ask the typical federal/postal worker what his or her greatest job-related fear was, many would answer they are afraid Congress will change their retirement rules and base their benefits on their highest five-year average salary. Yet the likelihood of losing the current high-three system is small compared to other, more real threats, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Feds: Answering to a higher power

Are naughty, stupid or arrogant federal workers any different than their private-sector counterparts, who have also been known to do naughty, stupid or illegal things while on the job? The short answer: It depends, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Pray for political inertia

What if we elected a Congress that fought all the time, couldn't agree on anything and where Democrats could hardly stand to be in the same building as Republicans, and vice versa? Well, fortunately, for federal workers we may have done that, and it could save you from taking a major pay cut over the next five years, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.

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Retirement tsunami: On or off?

The number of federal workers who retired last year was up big-time. Many experts thought the long-awaited retirement tsunami was upon us, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. Until last month when it slowed dramatically. So what does that mean for you?

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People who live in glass houses shouldn't...

When government workers foul up we know their name, rank and serial number, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. But when someone in the media makes an inexcusable 'mistake' his — or her — name is kept secret for privacy reasons. So, what's wrong with this picture?

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Uncle Sam: Eagle Scout or Charlie Sheen?

Are the recent GSA and Secret Service scandals the tip of the iceberg or just business as usual? Senior Correspondent Mike Causey asks. Is Uncle Sam, in reality, more like Charlie Sheen than an Eagle Scout?

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The cup of indignation runneth over

A few party animals at the GSA and Secret Service have made life easier for late-night talk show hosts, commentators, and people and politicians who just don't like the government, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. But the most angry, irate and stunned people are the 99.999 percent of feds who haven't done anything.

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Zombie government

Would changing federal retirement rules trigger a mad rush to retirement? Or would it turn the government into an institution run by tired, over- the-hill zombies, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wonders ... kind of like Congress.

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This is not a drill!

After years of false alarms about benefit cuts and a brain drain, things are starting to happen, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says. The federal retirement program may be the next casualty.

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