A good summary from an insider.
With that said, I tend to be a small government type person. I see a lot of government waste in various forms and I see individual employees who are a waste of money. There are some government employees doing important work and doing it very well though. The importance of my position is arguable. My productivity is not. Of all the people who do what I do on the Gulf Coast, I have historically turned in the best numbers by far. I don't say that to toot my own horn but to set the stage for my overarching point. My job is highly independent. I work alone and rarely see the person who is my supervisor. Most of my job take proactive rather than reactive/response effort. I take my duty as a public servant seriously. I want to give the taxpayers and the people I serve the very best I can give them for their tax dollars. I always will, no matter how much I am used as a political pawn by our dysfunctional congress. But there are others who will abandon their loyalty over this. The government management model and organizational construct produces mediocrity as it is. They can ill afford to have disloyal, dispassionate employees who don't feel a sense of importance or belonging. Morale is important. These shutdowns have a productivity cost that cannot be measured. There are good people who will reach their fill over this and become the type who will do as little as possible for their paycheck. Why bust their balls for an ungrateful employer and an often ungrateful public. I have seen it happen.
The shutdown threat is a political stunt, as is a "true shutdown", which is a misnomer. The TSA, FAA, etc will continue to function, although with great publicity to make it obvious how valuable their particular service is for safety.
Who can we blame for this mess? Everyone looks for a scapegoat or a vague cause to create attention. The federal spending continues to spiral out of control.
The federal workers who are "essential" will continue to go to work and will be paid. The "non-essential" employees will be at home. When the "shutdown" ends they will be paid as if they had been working at their "non-essential" job.
Unfortunately there are a large number of governmental employees who "do as little as possible for their paycheck" and damned few who "take my duty as a public servant seriously.
I want to give the taxpayers and the people I serve the very best I can give them for their tax dollars. I always will, no matter how much I am used as a political pawn by our dysfunctional congress."
Thanks, Paul, for your dedication and service.
After all this furor is past everyone will again forget that OUR federal government is spending way too much on things that are not important and employing many people who do not have the interests of the tax-payer on their front burner.
