Play the government shutdown game!

[azbackpackr]

OK, let's play a game. See who wins. Let's guess on (1) whether or not the government will shut down on Friday night, and (2) if it does, how long will the shutdown last?

You have to guess on question (1) before 9 p.m. on Friday, April 8th. If you don't see this post until after the shutdown occurs, you can still guess on question (2).

My guesses: (1)It will shut down, (2) and it will open up again on Thursday April 14.

Your turn!

[chumley]

I don't think anybody won the game by guessing there would be no shut down.

WASHINGTON – Perilously close to a government shutdown, President Barack Obama and congressional leaders reached a historic agreement late Friday night to cut about $38 billion in spending and avert the first federal closure in 15 years.

Obama hailed the deal as "the biggest annual spending cut in history." House Speaker John Boehner said that over the next decade it would cut government spending by $500 billion — and won an ovation from his rank and file, tea party adherents among them.

"This is historic, what we've done," agreed Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., the third man involved in negotiations that ratified a new era of divided government.
They announced the agreement less than an hour before government funding was due to run out, instantly turning hundreds of thousands of furlough notices for federal workers into historical relics.

The shutdown would have closed national parks, tax-season help lines and other popular services, though the military would have stayed on duty and other essential efforts such as air traffic control would have continued in effect.

I don't understand politics anymore. Dubya was a big-government conservative, and Obama is a democrat bragging about "biggest annual spending cut in history". I guess it's all about screwing your base 'cause you assume you'll get their vote anyway?

[azbackpackr]

Well, I am glad they reached an agreement for the time being. I am happy to be wrong about my predictions! And everyone sitting at Lee's Ferry with a Monday launch permit, who was told they can't go, can now go!

[montanatrail]

They do this almost every year. It's all show to get the people riled up and gain support for whatever their political objectives are. Most govt. employees will go to work anyway and they will get paid. So, is it still a shutdown? No, Nada.

[Jeffshadows]

They do this almost every year. It's all show to get the people riled up and gain support for whatever their political objectives are. Most govt. employees will go to work anyway and they will get paid. So, is it still a shutdown? No, Nada.

That may be the case, but the "Government employees" spend WEEKS preparing for nothing but a shutdown. That's time they are not spending working for us. Your trail crews are not out working on trails and stopping fires, they're packing gear away for a shutdown; administrators, law enforcement, all the same. It ruins their and their families' lives for weeks waiting in suspense and then it either does or doesn't happen. That may be okay with some people but it certainly is not with me.

[azbackpackr]

Me neither. At Lee's Ferry, right before the shutdown-that-didn't-happen, the Park had made the decision that if the government shut down on Friday night, they would allow Grand Canyon launches until Sunday, but not Monday's or beyond. Both commercial and private groups have thousands of dollars tied up in their launch dates. They also have fresh food, for up to 24 people for 2 weeks. The people have paid, and many were on planes, headed for Arizona, from as far away as New Zealand, Europe, etc. But if their launch date was to be Monday, too bad so sad. Both the outfitters and also the private parties stood to lose tens of thousands of dollars.

Thankfully the government worked it out at the last minute, and everyone got to go down the river.

And the Park Service is such a tiny part of the budget. It's just so ridiculous how the government has become.