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Yours is more of a supply side view. The shut down resulted in economic losses mainly from reduction on the demand side.
What demand was reduced? other than wanting to visit federal buildings, national parks, beaches and cemetaries? Seems to me, the demand was still there, but the ability was cut off.
What demand was reduced? other than wanting to visit federal buildings, national parks, beaches and cemetaries? Seems to me, the demand was still there, but the ability was cut off.
Much of the demand was still there as you say, but unmet.
As in AZ and the Grand Canyon, as people stopped showing up, or as people made plans to go elsewhere, the AZ and local economies around the GC suddenly found less demands for all their stuff and lost money.
"some people grow plants and harvest them
its put on a truck
It goes to a bakery.
they bake it into bread
someone drives a truck to bring bread to store"
Government payrollers will eventually get paid but businesses that feed off government activity will never get it back. Concessions in the national parks, restaurants near DC attractions, some contractors, are examples of those hurt.
we lost money because we paid people who didn't work. we used extra resources to close down parks and memorials that didn't need to be closed. we sent armed police to businesses that are privately owned and receive no tax dollars to operate to shut them down because they are located on federal property.
we lost money because we have a broken system that needs a heavy kick in the ass and a major reset.
Every incipient shutdown requires contingency planning and extensive work to place government functions in a non-operative state. This consumes resources that would otherwise have been spent on productive work. Then, when the shutdown concludes, the backlog of work through which it is necessary to sort, can not be discharged as efficiently as if the work were to have steadily progressed (that is, were there to have been no shutdown). So in a very real sense, it costs more to non-operate the federal government, than to actually keep it running.
Every incipient shutdown requires contingency planning and extensive work to place government functions in a non-operative state. This consumes resources that would otherwise have been spent on productive work. Then, when the shutdown concludes, the backlog of work through which it is necessary to sort, can not be discharged as efficiently as if the work were to have steadily progressed (that is, were there to have been no shutdown). So in a very real sense, it costs more to non-operate the federal government, than to actually keep it running.
Unless we put a Closed sign on the door permanently. We could do that with a number of departments and not even notice. There is so much overlap, redundancy and waste in gov't they could easily trim billions and we wouldn't feel a thing. Lord only knows how much black ops and non-gov'tl organizations cost us, that's so classified Congress isn't even privy. Shut down a couple bases overseas, Puerto Rico, for example, doesn't want us there. How many countries are we occupying?
This shut-down was nothing but a game of chicken by Obama and Reid so they could hold their breath until all their demands were met, and America's sinkhole just opened up wider.
They got an extra 2 weeks paid vacation and no work being done. The IRS collected no funds. The parks took in no revenue. The people who depend on the tourists around the parks made no money. Do you understand now?
so that makes park a necessary service. It seems it was earning for us .. why not cut out what doesnt earn ... like so many congress members.
This shut-down was nothing but a game of chicken by Obama and Reid so they could hold their breath until all their demands were met, and America's sinkhole just opened up wider.
It was also a major Obama victory. Disenfranchise the American people, and turn them against the republicans, all in one shot.
Quote:
Originally Posted by claudhopper
In order to make this analogy work, you would have to come up with what the gov't produces that we were unable to buy during that period. All I can think of is jobs, which we will pay for anyway even tho the non-essential workers stayed home, and weaponry, which I am sure continued to be produced.
The companies that supply the U.S. military with their weapons were just as busy as ever during the government shut down.
Quote:
Originally Posted by A Common Anomaly
The government is a major economic player, and when you take the government out of the equation, you reduce demand.
When you have less people working and less people spending, this depresses the economy. It is pretty simple, but then again RW don't play by the rules of reason, they make them up. They think that less people working and less people spending, stimulates the economy.
Right wingers believe that if you take demand out of an economy lacking demand, then demand will increase.
And libs believe when you take a dollar out of the left pocket, and put it in the right pocket, you've somehow created a new dollar. They also believe that republicans kill unicorns and are hiding a stash of pixie dust required to balance the trade deficit and yield a treasury surplus.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hollykick
so that makes park a necessary service. It seems it was earning for us .. why not cut out what doesnt earn ... like so many congress members.
Because when such a proposal it put before them, who's going to respond with a "yea"?
Those tourist still had/have money so in the end there were other business' or people who made money. That tourist money didn't just vanish in thin air.
The fact that many Americans are only able to understand the federal government shut down as "the national parks are shut down and those mean park rangers are keeping us out" is so incredibly simplistic it's both outrageous and hilarious. And a good explanation of why total nitwits get elected to Congress - they are reflective of their constituents.
Federal port inspectors didn't inspect. Many kinds of goods did not get distributed, so business owners lost money by not being able to sell product.
Federal supply officers who work for the armed services did not buy parts for trucks and ships and anything else. So the businesses who make and sell those parts did not get paid, lost money.
Construction projects which were at least partially funded with federal money ground to a halt. Non Federal workers did not go to work, did not get paid, did not have money to spend.
Income for the Federal government from the sale of Federal property, whether that be army surplus or land, did not come in.
Ranchers in SD who were hit by the freak blizzard lost a large percentage of their herds. No federal offices were available to help them with market analysis or with disaster relief $. As with any disaster, when vicitims aren't able to quickly recover financially, every business and service around them also does not recover.
And on and on and on and on.
Just go on www.usajobs.gov to get a better understanding of the great variety of Federal jobs there are.
Or look at the Congressional Budget Office site to understand where Federal $ is spent. www.cbo.gov
The fact that many Americans are only able to understand the federal government shut down as "the national parks are shut down and those mean park rangers are keeping us out" is so incredibly simplistic it's both outrageous and hilarious. And a good explanation of why total nitwits get elected to Congress - they are reflective of their constituents.
Federal port inspectors didn't inspect. Many kinds of goods did not get distributed, so business owners lost money by not being able to sell product.
Federal supply officers who work for the armed services did not buy parts for trucks and ships and anything else. So the businesses who make and sell those parts did not get paid, lost money.
Construction projects which were at least partially funded with federal money ground to a halt. Non Federal workers did not go to work, did not get paid, did not have money to spend.
Income for the Federal government from the sale of Federal property, whether that be army surplus or land, did not come in.
Ranchers in SD who were hit by the freak blizzard lost a large percentage of their herds. No federal offices were available to help them with market analysis or with disaster relief $. As with any disaster, when vicitims aren't able to quickly recover financially, every business and service around them also does not recover.
And on and on and on and on.
Just go on www.usajobs.gov to get a better understanding of the great variety of Federal jobs there are.
Or look at the Congressional Budget Office site to understand where Federal $ is spent. www.cbo.gov
blame the current Resident, it was his decision on what to close and what to leave open. He even closed private businesses - because he is a childish idiot!
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