Why? Because the shutdown is political theater. Hundreds of billions of dollars of contracts are still valid. Money that is being wasted on [name your least

Why? Because the shutdown is political theater. Hundreds of billions of dollars of contracts are still valid. Money that is being wasted on [name your least favorite gov't spending program] is not affected one iota. Instead, the "little people" will be made to suffer so one party or another can score political points. These "little people" are both the designated non-essential personnel, and end-users of government sites and services like you and me. That's why the President can take multi-million dollar vacations, but White House tours are cancelled. Embassies are staying open and the Secretary of State's trip to Asia is still on, but national parks are closed and NASA operations are all but dead. Billions of dollars are still being wasted. The people in power will not only continue to be in power, but they'll collect a paycheck for this period. This is a farce.