We now interrupt our regularly scheduled program….

September 30, 2013.  

Congress, or at least some therein, has decided that it is more important to do what they feel is best for their party, than what is best for their country.  That it is more important to tow-the-line of the rabid wing of their party than compromise for the good of everyone.  That it is better to shut the whole government down rather than move one inch, give one iota, or bend one branch.

  Both sides claim they are being reasonable.  Both claim they have offered compromises.  Both sides are saying their opponents are being inflexible while their rabid wings nod in glassy-eyed agreement.  Neither side will budge.

  So here we are.  

  At midnight, the government officially shuts down.  780,000 to 800,000 of us will find ourselves out of work, through no fault of our own, save the careers we chose to pursue.  We work hard, as hard as anyone else.  We don't like seeing money wasted any more then the next guy because, you know what, it is our tax dollars we're spending, too.  I, just like you, want every penny's worth for my tax dollar.

   We Feds are Americans, too, though some would have you believe otherwise.  We have families and homes and bills to pay, just like everyone else.  We have hopes and dreams and desires.  We are no different from you.  Really.  But starting at midnight tonight, there will be one difference between you and me.  You will have a job to go to in the morning.  And I will not.  Honestly, how would you like to be considered non-essential?  That will be my status tomorrow.  

  What will this political theater accomplish?  Not a lot that anyone will notice day to day.  Essential services will continue.  Social Security will be paid, mail will be delivered, food will be inspected.  Most Americans will hardly even notice a difference.  Unless they know one of us.  They might notice if they wish to visit a National Park, or get a passport.  For most of them, it will be a minor inconvenience, at worse.  For some of my colleagues, they will be wondering if they will be able to pay their rent.  

  And therein lies the one lever we Feds might have in this puppet theater.  It is not a lever we wield from choice, but of necessity and we do not wield it out of spite.  With no certain end visible on the horizon, many of us will hunker down and conserve our resources.  We will spend less, as we don't know for certain when our next paycheck will arrive.  As this show drags on, the economy will begin to drag.  You simply can't layoff 800,000 people and not expect to see an impact.  In one swift lack of action, Congress could drag our slow, lumbering economy back down the slope it has so recently struggled to climb.  It doesn't seem worth the risk.  

  Tomorrow I am required to go to work for four hours, to help with the "orderly shutdown of the government".  That is not time I will be paid for until a continuing resolution is signed.  I have no illusion an actual budget will be approved. The money I would have earned during normal operations will not go back into the economy because I will not have it.  The money I have now will stay where it is as I must conserve it should this be a prolonged shutdown.  And with the Debt Ceiling fight looming in the next few weeks, even a quick resolution to this crisis will not necessarily free my purse strings.  We could be right back here all over again very, very quickly.   

  What have I done to deserve this?  Nothing, save that I have chosen to work for the Federal Government, doing a job that no one would do in the private sector, because there is no profit in researching coastal hazards.  My chosen field seeks to understand where we are most vulnerable along our coastlines.  I feel that what I do can help someone stay safe during a storm.  I feel I can help people, and there is value in what I do.

  My thanks for this?  Furlough.  Because our elected officials are too narrow minded to understand compromise, I will bear the brunt of their disagreements.  For doing the best job I can, I am being sent home, without pay, to ponder choices that are not my own.

  Tell me, where is the justice in that?