100 bonus pts to the first Teabagging pol who appears in front of a war memorial after the shutdown's over and says "the federal govt spends FAR too much maintaining these memorials!"
Wars are good for the economy. We generally can't go a decade without starting one. Guns are also good. It's our right and keeps gun manufacturers happy Why do you hate on our awesome freedoms?
No. The irony is that the politicians who caused the shutdown are the ones showboating in front of the cameras about how inappropriate it is to close the memorials because of the shutdown.
Some of the decisions as to what to shut down are pretty questionable, to say the least. Sure, the Smithsonians can't remain open without their staff. But the WWII Memorial is basically just a plaza with a fountain. Barricading it makes very little sense.
Once a dependency is created, it results in complex problems. Do you realize, for example, how many factories would have to close and how many people in former Soviet republics would starve to death if the good people from the drug cartels, crime syndicates, paramilitary groups, street gangs etc around the world stopped purchasing AK-47's?
I personally guarantee if the government closed the SEC and forced the suspension of trading on Wall Street, this stupid shutdown would end in approximately 4 minutes. The problem is that right now it's only hurting the little people.
Not that I have to explain myself to proles like you, but several uncles served & pops was just weeks away from shipping out with the Marines to be cannon fodder on some remote Pacific island. Then we lit up Hiroshima & Nagasaki and that was that. WWII was our last "good" war and a far cry from the sh#tstorm that was Iraq for instance. AKA the War of the Chickenhawks.
Just caught this on the BBC... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-24525913 US shutdown severs a lifeline for dying children The US government partial shutdown has left vital drug trials on hold, which is a matter of life and death for some patients. Now in its third week, the budget dispute is delaying eight-year-old Chrissy Grube from getting the treatment that could save her. Four years ago the soft-spoken third grader was diagnosed with Giant Axonal Neuropathy (GAN), a rare and incurable degenerative disease that often begins at a young age. Already the disease has robbed her of the ability to walk. Her breathing is laboured, and everyday tasks, such as going to the bathroom or getting into the car after school, are an ordeal. "I'm really scared sometimes," says Chrissy. "It's just my biggest, biggest dream ever to be like other kids, like my friends. It really hurts my heart to be like this, I just sort of feel like I'm trapped." People with GAN become progressively paralysed, then dependent on a feeding tube and ventilator before they die, usually in their teens or 20s. Chrissy understands that she is only getting worse, and that this disease will probably be what kills her. She also bears the burden of knowing what is to come for her three-year-old sister Amanda, who shows few symptoms now, but also suffers from the disease. Recent advances in research have offered the Grubes a glimmer of hope. The government does not conduct research on GAN, but a charity called the Hannah's Hope Fund has put forward an experimental gene therapy project that could be the first treatment to stop progression of the disease. While it would not reverse the damage done, it is Chrissy's only shot at survival. But the shutdown has put all of this on hold, because the body responsible for approving the new treatment, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), remains closed.
I also didn't indicate cost concerns. ERs are for emergencies, not considering cost. Too many use ERs for routine stuff, like flu shots. I'm not a medical professional, but I do know some. And they have said that people think routine stuff (akin to flu shots) are emergencies. Not everybody, but quite a few.
Wife has been very busy lately dealing with conferences and presentations, so this hasn't come up. But I'm wondering how her lab - and the NIH grants/funding - is effecting her lab.
Over? Nothing is over until Ted Cruz says it is. Was it over when we couldn't repeal Obamacare for the 42nd time? Hell no! Because when the going gets tough...the tough call Obama a Kenyan communist on Fox News.
Perhaps flu shots was a bad example. Only an idiot would go to an Er for a flu shot when they are available in numerous places for free. I am not trying to be obtuse here, but doesn't nearly every county have a health clinic that does routine stuff like immunizations, flu shots, std screenings, TB checks, etc? I live in a county that is not wealthy and mostly rural but they do it here. I am unconvinced the premise of more insured people is going to equal more preventative care. A lot of people simply do not care for Doctors and only go when they have no other choice. Others tend to rush to the hospital at the first sign of discomfort. I suppose some of the latter might choose a primary care physician if they had insurance and the issue occured during normal working hours and they could get an immediate appointment, but that does not translate to some huge savings? Lots of ifs and ands in your scenario. I really am skeptical that this insurance is going to lead to a change in behavior for massive numbers of people. Some folks just do not like to go to the doctor and won't unless they are extremely ill. Even if it does those doctors visits are not free, and in your premise there would be millions more doctor visits per year, with billions of more tests so any saving would need to be offset by these cost increases. On a final note where are all the primary care physicians going to come from?
It makes very little sense TO YOU. That's a you problem. I think it's hilarious how the Teabaggers have latched onto this damn thing. It's been open for less than 10 years. We survived just fine without it for over 200 years.
He's right. It's silly to barricade a plaza in the middle of the National Mall. The problem is that it's turned into a media sideshow, when it's a completely insignificant and unimportant "problem" in the grand scheme of things.
It's silly...except (I'll bet you anything) them's the rules for when there aren't any gvt. personnel there. It's silly...until someone turns an ankle there and sues the gvt. for his injury.
As opposed to suing when the park is open 24/7 during normal times? I don't recall Park Rangers holding people's hands as they go through the Memorial to prevent anyone from falling. Also, more personnel is needed to keep the place shut down than what is used normally. Then there is the cost to put up the barricades, have them put up again, again, again, and again. Makes a lot of sense.