The received wisdom is that self-sacrificing bureaucrats who labor in the halls of government receive low salaries, which sacrifice is partially offset by their security of employment and comprehensive benefits, to say nothing of their sense of altruism and public service.

Well the facts are a little different. According to the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the compensation of the average federal civilian employee in 2005 was $106,579. Which, it turns out, is almost exactly twice the average compensation in the private sector ($53,289). And the gap is widening. Since 1990, average compensation for the unfortunate bureaucrats has risen by 129%, compared to 74% in the private sector.