If you work for the US Government you might need a"Shutdown" notice for your desk, so I knocked one up for you using Imagemagick.

Government shutdown extends to Mars and the extreme edge of the Solar system:


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Just before 11 p.m. Monday night, NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft sent this message via Twitter:

Due to government shutdown, we will not be posting or responding from this account. Farewell, humans. Sort it out yourselves.
— NASAVoyager2 (@NASAVoyager2) October 1, 2013

It would seem that while we were told that human beings and fish can co-exist by a certain member of the US Government, Americans themselves just can't manage it __{{emoticon}}__

We can manage it. It is just that certain old fogies run this country with wealth and attitudes.

You won't recognize this country after I am dead. People of color and women will be running things after my generation dies off.

At least I hope so.

I've been fascinated by the recent, over the top, turbo-charged insanity in the hallowed halls of Congress. The simplest explanation goes back to the extreme Republican gerrymandering in 2010 where they redrew congressional districts to favor Republicans and disfavor Democrats. It has thrown the Federal Government even further out of kilter than usual. Overall, Americans voted overwhelmingly to put Democrats into the House of Representatives, not Republicans. The problem is that the Congressional districts have been twisted around to nullify much of the Democratic vote and amplify the Republican vote.

Most of the intransigence in Congress is coming from Representatives and not Senators because it is the congressional districts that have been gerrymandered. Senators are elected state-wide and you can't (easily) gerrymander the boundaries of a state. The intransigent Representatives are, for the most part, Republicans from districts that have been bent into such pretzels that it ensures the election of only far right-wing Republicans. The problem is compounded by the fact that the districts of many other House Republicans have been twisted so they have no fear of Democratic challengers from the left (relatively speaking, of course). Their only fear is of primary challengers from the right. This gives the small minority of the furthest right-wing members of the Republican party almost a strangle-hold control over most of their party.

This is a classic case of unintended consequences. The Republicans bent the congressional districts out of shape in order to ensure Republicans maintained power even if the majority of Americans didn't want them in power and didn't vote for them. This tipped the balance of power even further to the right than is usual, including inside the Republican Party itself. If American voters were fairly represented in Congress then the Republicans would be the minority in both houses and none of this nonsense would be happening. This undemocratic takeover of the House of Representatives was the intended consequence. The unintended consequence is that just like the Republican party is over-represented in Congress, the far right-wing members of the Republican party are over-represented within the party.

This cascading effect greatly amplified the injustice and misrepresentation due to gerrymandering. Now a small cadre of far-right politicians, WHO ARE NOT ANSWERABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC, have the ability to shutdown the entire government if they don't get their way. The problem is not that the handful of far right Republican Representatives are Guano-crazy (although this may be the case) the problem is that too much political power has been put into the hands of a small group of inexperienced extremists who are not answerable to anyone. This is not a recipe for a happy ending.

Belgium carried on with no government for nearly two years. This proves governments do nothing useful except provide endless stupidity and hot air in exchange for endless taxes. We don't really need them. Without a government you really are"the land of the free".

__{{emoticon}}__ I really love Pepe Escobar's stuff.


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It's a bit of a problem when you announce - with great fanfare, and at the Pentagon, of all places - a"pivoting to Asia" to enhance the role of"Asia Pacific to US prosperity and security", and you cannot even pivot yourself to Asia for a few days to pitch it in person.

I wish I had thought of that line __{{emoticon}}__

Thou Shalt Not Pray For Sinners During a Government Shutdown!


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As Long as the Spa stays open. Who cares?


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House Gym Remains Open Despite Shutdown

Maybe they have a spa, but sex is off the menu __{{emoticon}}__


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