A buddy of mine works in DC... He's still at work and getting paid because of the contracts they have, but there's no actual work to do because the people he supports aren't there. He says the shutdown is a big deal up there, but I told him back here in reality (aka Texas) no one really cares
Far from true. I am a govt contractor here in SA, and there are many of us being affected by the shutdown. I can't go into detail but it has directly impacted me and not in a good way.
Still, I do think it is necessary; the Federal government cannot continue to spend itself deeper into debt. Programs such as Obamacare, whether you support it or not, are too costly to implement right now when the focus needs to be on cutting costs not increasing them. Raising the debt ceiling doesn't solve things either, it simply delays the inevitable. The firmly believe the Republicans are trying to set things straight whereas the Democrats are taking it as a way to prevent them from furthering their socialist agenda. I am also embarrassed by our President's reaction and reluctance to negotiate a solution to the problem. His playing golf while all this is occurring is equally sad, it shows he really is an elitist who, if he doesn't get his way, refuses to work with any bipartisan efforts to resolve matters...
Also slavery and prohibition were once "law of the land" and held up by scotus.