[Darth-Apple]

The government literally has just over four hours to pass a budget before it faces yet another shutdown. Due to obamacare being on the table this time, I doubt it will be a short shutdown personally.

What are your thoughts about this situation?

[Acko]

Just shows how useless this government is.

[Darth-Apple]

LOL

So the government has officially now shut down. I'm not expecting it to really be a "big deal" for the general "civilian" population today, but if Congress doesn't resolve this situation within less than a week, I'm not going to be surprised when America feels the direct effects of this. What's worse is that disputes over the debt limit are on the table as well, and this + America's first default would not be a good combination for America's economy.

[AtlasWest]

72% of Americas oppose shutting down the government and tying it to Health Care cuts

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-01...-cuts.html

I'm actually sorta surprised the stock market is in the positive today... lol!

[Darth-Apple]

The whole situation has been quite ridiculous. Nothing is really different at the street level, but if they don't work out these issues soon, it could end up in a hot, sticky mess very soon.

The debt limit is also going to be an issue with all of these expenses. The time to reduce spending was years ago, but apparently the government hasn't taken it seriously to actually fix these problems yet.

[spork985]

No, because in our country, we like to give everything to everyone. Do you know the government gives free cell phones to families with low income? FREE CELL PHONES. Now of course they're limited, something like 300 minutes per month BUT OH MY GOD. If you can't afford them yourself you either need 1) A better paying job 2) To get off your lazy butt and get a job 3) Cut your spending where it isnt needed or 4) Accept the fact that you can't afford one.

This kind of crap is what keeps the debt going up and taxes rising. It sucks.

/end rant

[Darth-Apple]

I agree honestly. To some degree, free services for the low income families are a necessity, as there are many cities in America where people are simply at a disadvantage and cannot easily pull themselves from their position, but do we really need all of the services that we have? No, not really. Can America afford it? Nope. You know things are messed up when people are buying soda with food stamps.

Not only is America paying now in higher taxes, but it will pay even more when the debt crises collapses the American economy. I feel like most of our politicians want to add more and more benefits to the budget, but don't think about the fact that America's problems won't fix themselves.

[AtlasWest]

If you can't afford them yourself you either need 1) A better paying job

Just want to let you know that the free phone program for low income families was started under Reagan because back then, people couldn't get jobs easily if they didn't have a phone number to be reached at. For that very reason, the program was expanded under Bush to include Cell Phones.

Anyway, my view is that social programs are an important safety net to people that may lose their jobs. I also think it's a safety net for our economy, as it would hurt our economy more if people that lost jobs stopped spending entirely on daily necessities. Without social programs, it'll make it that much more difficult for people to get back on their feet and contribute back into the economy and community.

That said, our government does have a spending problem. And while I agree we can make government more efficient in many areas areas, the big red tape is coming from Medicare and the Military. Talking about cutting anything else, is really not going to help our long-term outlook imo.

[Darth-Apple]

The deadline for the government to come to a decision on the debt limit is tomorrow. We shall see what happens.

[Darth-Apple]

It's official. Congress has evaded a shutdown by just a few hours. Let's hope we don't get this close in February.

EDIT: Default*