Government Shutdown Would Only Affect ‘Non-Essential’ Services
September 30th, 2013
If we’re to believe the talking heads of the mainstream media, the government is likely to shut down, possibly as soon as tomorrow, and all Hell is about to break loose. Democrats claim that Republicans are holding the government hostage over Obamacare, refusing to craft a budget that funds the unpopular and confusing health care overhaul. Republicans argue that Obama will be responsible if the government closes its doors, because he won’t compromise by delaying the law’s individual mandate for a year.
However, a closer examination demonstrates that this alleged government shutdown wouldn’t be much of a shutdown at all, as only “non-essential” services would be affected. If Congress and the President can’t come up with a compromise, the mail will still run, the wars will continue, domestic law enforcement agencies will still be spying on Americans, Social Security checks will make it to their recipients, and food safety inspections will still take place. Considering the fact that our nation is trillions in debt, maybe Congress should allow this type of government shutdown on purpose and push to make some of these cuts to non-essential programs permanent.
Priorities in a Government Shutdown
When the government shuts down due to a budgetary impasse, the Anti-Deficiency Act calls for all government programs to be discontinued unless they are essential for the protection of life and property. As it happens, most libertarians believe that the proper and legitimate role of the federal government is to protect citizens’ lives, property, and liberties. Unfortunately, the feds consider spying on Americans, interfering with citizens’ personal health choices, and arbitrarily occupying foreign nations to be programs aimed at providing national security, so proponents of liberty would hardly even be experiencing a reduction of the government to Constitutional size.
If a shutdown happens to take place, agencies running entitlement programs will continue to issue checks to those who are already dependent on them. Military hospitals will still see patients. Though executive branch regulatory departments will close their doors, food safety inspections will still occur.
Politicians Will Wail
If a budget deal can’t be reached and the government winds up closing its doors for a few days, politicians will take to the airwaves to claim that the world is ending in an effort to drive the opposition to the bargaining table. Furloughed non-essential federal workers won’t be able to collect their disproportionately-high wages (compared to many of the taxpayers they are fleecing) and will be portrayed as starving. Vacationers will be turned away from national parks and historic landmarks in dramatic fashion.
However, for most Americans, life will go on. The mail will still arrive. Air traffic controllers will keep on doing their jobs. Law enforcement agencies will continue waging the War on Drugs. Military adventures overseas will persist.
Pundits and politicians overstate the seriousness of the issue by even calling it a government shutdown. If anything, it would be a temporary, brief pause of a few non-essential government services with billions still being spent on arbitrary, unconstitutional activities like wars of choice, domestic spying operations, and drug prohibition.
Silver Circle is OUT NOW --> -->on DVD and Blu-Ray --> --> and showing on Video on Demand platforms! Check it out on our watch online page and find out about local theater showings of the film and other special events on our -->event page -->.
