I know some people who just finished uni, moved across the country, and started work for various agencies like wildlife management who may also be impacted by this. They got emails today saying to prepare for this possibility. For some people it means working without pay and getting backpay after an indeterminate amount of time. Some contractors aren't guaranteed backpay at all.
I think its pretty representative of the clown show that this is a semi-regular occurence.
what's doubly insane is that those of us who work with federal employees understand that shutdowns mean we can't expect our federal counterparts to get things done. things break, projects pause. so while they don't get paid, lots of shit isn't getting done.
then when the theater concludes, the backpay is issued (as it should be) but a remarkable amount of work hasn't gotten done.
it is a deeply wasteful game that costs so much to play every time. deficit hawks that do it are massive hippocrites and have all their benefits clawed back to offset those costs.
