Stressful week, family member died....need some information!

[JanMichael]

Is there any way some smart DU'er can sum up the fed. gov. shut down for me? I have never asked for something like this in a post...we JUST walked in the door from a long drive...picked up the dog from the Doggie Bed and Breakfast (no, I am not kidding, we are pathetic)....and have not been able to follow the news-

Thank you in advance!

[babylonsister]

1. Not a smart DUer, but here's a smart blogger-in a nutshell...

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/the-morning-plum/2011/03/03/AF5KJs0C_blog.html

And I'm sorry for your loss. :hug:

[JanMichael]

2. I think you are pretty darned smart

to come up with a link that quickly! Reading it now! Thank you!

[Rhiannon12866]

3. Here's what I got, mainly just from watching MSNBC this afternoon.

I'm sick. :(

The Republicans are threatening to shut down the government over funding to Planned Parenthood. Now, if the issue is abortion, only 3% of Planned Parenthood services involve abortion. The other 97% is cancer screenings, pap tests, breast exams, family planning counseling. So this is mainly an effort to restrict women from having health care, especially lower income women who use their services. :grr:

Chris Matthews brought up a good point, one that crossed my mind. He said he didn't think this was over abortion, but birth control. I tend to agree and it makes no sense. If women are denied birth control, won't that result in a significant increase in the number of abortions, something that the Republicans are adamantly against? :crazy:

As for federal spending, a 1976 law prohibits any federal money being used to fund abortions, so this is really over basic health care being available for women. :(

And if the government does shut down, so does the IRS (not so bad, imo :D), our National Parks, and paychecks for our men and women in uniform. How is this Supporting the Troops? x(

Anyway, that's what I have. I'm sure that Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell will have a lot more on this tonight, if you get the chance. And I am also so very sorry for your loss. :hug:

[SheilaT]

4. I think the best way to understand it is to realize

that Republicans are totally determined to have the shut-down. Planned Parenthood, any gap between what Dems are willing and what Repubs want to cut are just window-dressing.

These are people who are utterly convinced that all government is Bad, which of course begs the question of why in the world they want to be part of that Bad Thing. They are also convinced that everyone in this country, well, almost everyone, will applaud the shut-down, will be pleased to learn that we really don't need the government after all, and all will be just fine.

They are wrong, of course. The government is necessary in ways they don't understand or acknowledge, but they are like young children who throw temper tantrums to get their way. And of course the best way to deal with a temper tantrum is to just ignore it. That behavior should NEVER be rewarded. The eventual outcome will hinge on two things: how the public perceives the shutdown, meaning whether or not they themselves are affected, and how the mainstream media covers it. That second is also dependent on how well the Democrats get their side of the story across. Right now the mainstream media is trying to claim that both sides are trying equally to avoid shutdown. That is not true.

Hope this helps, and sorry about your stressful week.