# Run For the Hills! (Government Shutdown in Effect) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [October 1, 2013, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068 "2013-10-01T04:12:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/21 "2013-10-01T06:30:22Z")
I’m amused that the press calls these shitheads “lawmakers”. They don’t make anything; they block everything. Go to work, assholes! ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/22 "2013-10-01T06:40:35Z")
Congratulations, GOP, you did it once again. :rolleyes: I’m severely tempted to actually see Obama do something like calling for a general strike until the Republican Party starts to be reasonable again. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/23 "2013-10-01T06:46:26Z")
Off topic, I suppose, but when did **Qin Shi Huangdi** turn into Arianna Huffington? ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/24 "2013-10-01T06:54:57Z")
I find it interesting that Cruz is not going to turn down his paycheck as are some of the other Senators. Doesn’t he know yet that that is not where the _real_ megabucks come from? ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/25 "2013-10-01T06:56:55Z")
> [@Silophant](#): > > Wait, wait, wait. I thought the ACA was going to be a failure because no one in America wants it? That’s what the mandate is for, surely? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 6:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/26 "2013-10-01T06:59:37Z")
> [@Werekoala](#): > > Most likely, unless something is hashed out this week, you won’t get to go in. I mean, the canyon will still be there, as it was for millions of years before Washington D.C. was established, and was visited and explored by Native Americans and Spaniards and even early American settlers, mostly safely, but the highly trained Federal professionals who take your money at the gate and make sure you don’t start forest fires won’t be there to let you in. But the question is, will there be anyone there to keep them _out_? ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/27 "2013-10-01T07:13:21Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > I’m severely tempted to actually see Obama do something like calling for a general strike until the Republican Party starts to be reasonable again. Do you also advocate fighting kitchen fires with gasoline? On an unrelated note—anyone know if the mail will continue to run? ---
**Author:** ![DagNation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@DagNation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DagNation)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/28 "2013-10-01T07:17:57Z")
> [@Linear\_Crack](#): > > When you see cats and dogs living together, it will be time to worry. > > -LC [Crap!](http://www.downtownpet.com/blog/uploaded_images/cats-dogs-together-760114.jpg) The world is coming to an end!!! ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/29 "2013-10-01T07:20:27Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Do you also advocate fighting kitchen fires with gasoline? > On an unrelated note—anyone know if the mail will continue to run? Yes. Mail carriers will come to your house, but not leave anything. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/30 "2013-10-01T07:33:58Z")
I’m reading last shutdown in '95 cost 1.4 billion dollars. How much is that in today’s money? Oh, who cares. Idiots galore at the Capitol. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/31 "2013-10-01T07:38:56Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Do you also advocate fighting kitchen fires with gasoline? > On an unrelated note—anyone know if the mail will continue to run? I believe so along with stuff like Social Security checks going out. [http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2013/09/30/227884483/the-shutdown-a-guide-to-what-would-and-wouldnt-close](http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2013/09/30/227884483/the-shutdown-a-guide-to-what-would-and-wouldnt-close) ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/32 "2013-10-01T07:46:53Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Do you also advocate fighting kitchen fires with gasoline? > On an unrelated note—anyone know if the mail will continue to run? Agencies that raise most of their own funding will continue, so “…neither wind nor snow nor Ted Cruz” will stop them from their appointed rounds. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/33 "2013-10-01T08:05:20Z")
An overview of program shutdowns: **[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/29/government-shutdown-impact\_n\_4013687.html](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/29/government-shutdown-impact_n_4013687.html)** > [@](#): > > A look at how services would or would not be affected if Congress fails to reach an agreement averting a government shutdown at midnight Monday. > > AIR TRAVEL > > Federal air traffic controllers would remain on the job and airport screeners would keep funneling passengers through security checkpoints. Federal inspectors would continue enforcing safety rules. > > INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL > > The State Department would continue processing foreign applications for visas and U.S. applications for passports, since fees are collected to finance those services. Embassies and consulates overseas would continue to provide services to American citizens. > > BENEFIT PAYMENTS > > Social Security and Medicare benefits would keep coming, but there could be delays in processing new disability applications. Unemployment benefits would still go out. > > FEDERAL COURTS > > Federal courts would continue operating normally for about 10 business days after the start of a shutdown, roughly until the middle of October. If the shutdown continues, the judiciary would have to begin furloughs of employees whose work is not considered essential. But cases would continue to be heard. > > MAIL > > Deliveries would continue as usual because the U.S. Postal Service receives no tax dollars for day-to-day operations. It relies on income from stamps and other postal fees to keep running. > > RECREATION > > All national parks would be closed, as would the Smithsonian museums, including the National Zoo in Washington. Visitors using overnight campgrounds or other park facilities would be given 48 hours to make alternate arrangements and leave the park. Among the visitor centers that would be closed: the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island in New York, Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Alcatraz Island near San Francisco and the Washington Monument. > > HEALTH > > New patients would not be accepted into clinical research at the National Institutes of Health, but current patients would continue to receive care. Medical research at the NIH would be disrupted and some studies would be delayed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would be severely limited in spotting or investigating disease outbreaks, from flu to that mysterious MERS virus from the Middle East. > > FOOD SAFETY > > The Food and Drug Administration would handle high-risk recalls suspend most routine safety inspections. Federal meat inspections would be expected to proceed as usual. > > HEAD START > > A small number of Head Start programs, about 20 out of 1,600 nationally, would feel the impact right away. The federal Administration for Children and Families says grants expiring about Oct. 1 would not be renewed. Over time more programs would be affected. Several of the Head Start programs that would immediately feel the pinch are in Florida. It’s unclear if they would continue serving children. > > FOOD ASSISTANCE > > The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC, could shut down. The program provides supplemental food, health care referrals and nutrition education for pregnant women, mothers and their children. > > School lunches and breakfasts would continue to be served, and food stamps, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, would continue to be distributed. But several smaller feeding programs would not have the money to operate. > > TAXES > > Americans would still have to pay their taxes and file federal tax returns, but the Internal Revenue Service says it would suspend all audits. Got questions? Sorry, the IRS says taxpayer services, including toll-free help lines, would be shut as well. > > LOANS > > Many low-to-moderate incomes borrowers and first-time homebuyers seeking government-backed mortgages could face delays during the shutdown. The Federal Housing Administration, which guarantees about 30 percent of home mortgages, wouldn’t underwrite or approve any new loans during the shutdown. Action on government-backed loans to small businesses would be suspended. > > SCIENCE > > NASA will continue to keep workers at Mission Control in Houston and elsewhere to support the International Space station, where two Americans and four others are deployed. The National Weather Service would keep forecasting weather and issuing warnings and the National Hurricane Center would continue to track storms. The scientific work of the U.S. Geological Survey would be halted. > > HOMELAND SECURITY > > The majority of the Department of Homeland Security’s employees are expected to stay on the job, including uniformed agents and officers at the country’s borders and ports of entry, members of the Coast Guard, Transportation Security Administration officers, Secret Service personnel and other law enforcement agents and officers. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services employees would continue to process green card applications. > > MILITARY > > The military’s 1.4 million active duty personnel would stay on duty, but their paychecks would be delayed. About half of the Defense Department’s civilian employees would be furloughed. > > PRISONS > > All 116 federal prisons would remain open, and criminal litigation would proceed. > > VETERANS SERVICES > > Most services offered through the Department of Veterans Affairs will continue because lawmakers approve money one year in advance for the VA’s health programs. Veterans would still be able to visit hospitals for inpatient care, get mental health counseling at vet centers or get prescriptions filled at VA health clinics. Operators would still staff the crisis hotline and claims workers would still process payments to cover disability and pension benefits. But those veterans appealing the denial of disability benefits to the Board of Veterans Appeals will have to wait longer for a decision because the board would not issue any decisions during a shutdown. > > WORK SAFETY > > Federal occupational safety and health inspectors would stop workplace inspections except in cases of imminent danger. Let’s all have a big round of applause for The Greatest Nation On Earth! Way to keep America proud! ---
**Author:** ![Wolf333](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf333/32/3460_2.png) [@Wolf333](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolf333)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/34 "2013-10-01T08:17:50Z")
> [@Werekoala](#): > > Ha… no. And even so, if it were open and available to millions of people regardless of the whims of Washington, would that be such a bad thing? Yes, because it would be a fucking Walmart. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 8:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/35 "2013-10-01T08:18:51Z")
Psssst, everybody…sneak into a National Park. 😉 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/36 "2013-10-01T08:19:51Z")
It’s not sneaking. If nobody stops you, then you’re allowed to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/37 "2013-10-01T08:27:00Z")
Fortunately I renewed my passport last year and have no plans to visit the US or even the embassy here in Bangkok anytime soon. This may not affect me personally all that much. But I’ve not paid as close attention to the situation as those who are right in the thick of it. Could this be close to a death knell for the Republican Party come election time? ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/38 "2013-10-01T09:10:04Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Could this be close to a death knell for the Republican Party come election time? I doubt it, unless this goes on way too long or they do it again. They lost the overall vote by 1.7 million votes in 2012 and won a 33 seat majority, so they have a huge number of votes they can lose while keeping the House. The only way I see it being a negative electorally is if this results in other candidates who lose general elections. When this is all said and done, there will be knives out for some of the Republicans who help end it. The super-lunatics are perfectly fine with the shutdown continuing forever and they turn out and vote in midterm primaries. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/39 "2013-10-01T09:37:42Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > It’s not sneaking. If nobody stops you, then you’re allowed to do it. Well, unless there is a sign. Can they afford a sign? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2013, 10:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068/40 "2013-10-01T10:14:09Z")
> [@Cyros](#): > > Well, unless there is a sign. Can they afford a sign? I didn’t see any sign. Did you see a sign? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/run-for-the-hills-government-shutdown-in-effect/670068.md?page=3)