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posted by Fnord666 on Monday January 14 2019, @05:10PM   Printer-friendly
from the business-as-unusual dept.

Two weeks into the government shutdown, National Parks are starting to close. The public has been getting free access, since there are no employees to collect entrance fees of up to $35 per car. But neither are employees there to collect trash and clean bathrooms. So, with overflowing trash cans and toilets posing a threat to human health and safety, parks are shutting down.

But in the nation's oldest national park, Yellowstone, local businesses are pitching in to pay park staff to keep it open — or at least parts of it.

[...] Jerry Johnson owns a business that rents snowmobiles and sends seven guided tours a day into Yellowstone in the winter. He calls it 'the trip of a lifetime.' When the shutdown began, he received a big spike in phone calls from people who had already booked trips, and he didn't want to tell them their Yellowstone adventure was cancelled because politicians in Washington D.C. couldn't resolve their differences.

[...] "If you don't groom," explained Johnson, "the trails will get very rough, and you get bumps, moguls, in them, and it'll be — it's just miserable."
So, during the shutdown, private businesses that operate inside the park are picking up the tab — about $7,500 dollars a day to groom Yellowstone's 300-plus miles of snow-covered roads, and to keep one paved road open to cars. Xanterra Parks and Resorts, which runs the only hotels operating inside the park in winter, is paying most of that — paying park service employees to perform the same grooming duties they do under normal circumstances.

Xanterra asked the 13 guide services that operate in the park to chip in to help pay, and all of them did. It adds up to about 300 bucks a day for each of the guide services.


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  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by fustakrakich on Monday January 14 2019, @06:18PM (17 children)

    by fustakrakich (6150) on Monday January 14 2019, @06:18PM (#786529) Journal

    It just keeps the shutdown opera running longer. The prez and congress will have no incentive to reopen.

    --
    La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
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  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 14 2019, @06:37PM (13 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 14 2019, @06:37PM (#786542)

    Even without having a dispute, half of Trump's base would go for the shutdown. Shutting down government? Yes please!

    Polls show that even democrat voters want the wall.

    So this is about democrat politicians trying to save face and/or trying to import replacement voters. They've been backed into an unpopular position. Worse yet for them, many of the democrat voters hate to see government shut down.

    Cher, of all people, understands this well. She tweeted about it with all the grammar and spelling of a person too young to be allowed on Twitter, but basically: democrats are doing what Trump wants, and this is not a hill they should die on.

    Remember, the essential employees are still working. Outside of government, we don't even have nonessential employees. They would be eliminated to cut waste. Whole departments can get shut down. Lots of republicans are having ideas along those lines, and with the booming economy it is a great time for government employees to find work elsewhere.

    • (Score: 2) by isostatic on Monday January 14 2019, @06:39PM

      by isostatic (365) on Monday January 14 2019, @06:39PM (#786545) Journal

      You don't have cleaners at your company?

    • (Score: 3, Disagree) by Runaway1956 on Monday January 14 2019, @08:12PM (6 children)

      by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday January 14 2019, @08:12PM (#786600) Journal

      Well, I differ with Cher - the dems can die on any hill they choose, makes no difference to me.

      But, I modded you up. And, I need to point out that damned near every politician in Washington who opposes the wall, has at one time or another backed the wall. My favorite radio talk show delights in playing back the sound bytes, when each of them supported, or even demanded the wall. Pelosi and Schumer are right among the leaders, as is Obama and Clinton. All of them have taken at least one turn, some of them many turns at demanding the wall and stricter immigration controls.

      So, what do we have here? Trump wants something that almost all of them have demanded. But, because it's Trump, they have to reject it.

      Yeah - Trump plays them like out-of-tune fiddles. He's been doing it for more than three years now.

      Lest anyone be confused, this is 90%+ a Democrat government shutdown. The remainder are the "Never Trump" Republicans. Jackasses, all of them.

      • (Score: 5, Insightful) by Joe Desertrat on Monday January 14 2019, @10:41PM (2 children)

        by Joe Desertrat (2454) on Monday January 14 2019, @10:41PM (#786670)

        Lest anyone be confused, this is 90%+ a Democrat government shutdown. The remainder are the "Never Trump" Republicans. Jackasses, all of them.

        Bullshit. This is a 100% Trump shutdown. This has nothing to do with national security and is all about Trump trying desperately to secure a political victory.

        • (Score: 4, Interesting) by bob_super on Tuesday January 15 2019, @01:58AM

          by bob_super (1357) on Tuesday January 15 2019, @01:58AM (#786740)

          Have you noticed how the shutdown has replaced Muller in the news ?
          Not an accident. Master of diversion at work.

        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 15 2019, @11:59AM

          by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 15 2019, @11:59AM (#786857)

          We're talking about a president wanting 0.11% of the budget to start making true on his central campaign promise

          Quite frankly if congress isn't willing to compromise that much with the president...
          Then that president is absolutely right in playing hardball

          I'm also fairly certain Trump has the stubbornness necessary to ride this game of chicken all the way to then end if he has to.

      • (Score: 5, Insightful) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Monday January 14 2019, @11:01PM (2 children)

        by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us (6553) on Monday January 14 2019, @11:01PM (#786687) Journal

        My favorite radio talk show delights in playing back the sound bytes, when each of them supported, or even demanded the wall. Pelosi and Schumer are right among the leaders, as is Obama and Clinton. All of them have taken at least one turn, some of them many turns at demanding the wall and stricter immigration controls.

        Did they get what they were asking for? Why or why not? I think you'll find as with all GOP propaganda it's half true at best. Maybe you'll find that the 2006 bills were about a different kind of security procedure than what's being proposed now. Or rather you'll find that there *was* a solid proposal for what should be put up (even though that evolved,) unlike the nebulous, grand, and completely undocumented facts as to what the current proposal actually is. Maybe Trump should make up his mind for more than five minutes at a time about what he actually wants to see there. And maybe border security is in fact important to Democrats, which includes what to do about the Dreamers (back when Trump could have had his wall if he was willing to negotiate on that). On, by the way, who was President in 2006? So whatever this is there isn't much history to say it must be a Dem-GOP thing. So once again you have a Trump playing "waaah! they don't love me," instead of looking at the facts.

        Maybe some of us just don't want to put up a U.S. version of the Berlin wall when there are better methods?

        --
        This sig for rent.
        • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Tuesday January 15 2019, @02:43AM (1 child)

          by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday January 15 2019, @02:43AM (#786755) Journal

          as with all GOP propaganda it's half true at best

          Except - they aren't GOP. They are libertarians. They spend plenty of time blasting the Republicans too. For as long as I've been listening to them, they point out that D's stick together, while R's are always infighting. If the idiot R's could stick together, there is no end to what they could accomplish. For instance, the R's could have appropriated the money to build the wall in Trump's first two years.

          http://www.waltonandjohnson.com/listen_live.html [waltonandjohnson.com]

          • (Score: 3, Insightful) by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us on Tuesday January 15 2019, @04:39PM

            by All Your Lawn Are Belong To Us (6553) on Tuesday January 15 2019, @04:39PM (#786958) Journal

            It might be libertarian talk show hosts. But Mick Mulvaney [politifact.com] also made the allegations about democrats previously voting for border security and he is chief of staff of a GOP elected, not Libertarian elected, presidential administration. Whatever his political bent, when he opens his mouth at this time he speaks as GOP force.

            But yes, you're right to wonder why this didn't get done when the Republicans did have control of both houses.

            After I posted it I realized that what I should have said was, "as with all political propaganda it's half true at best." That's usually true of either side. And personally I feel that with Trump what he says is 5% true at best. 10% if you cover his entire administration and not Trump personally. He gives entirely new meaning to the notion that politicians tell lies. He's willing to speak things that cannot be justified as true by any stretch of any imagination if the lie will play to his base.

            For example, if Mexico was going to pay for this wall (and install it on their side) that's their choice. Why aren't they paying for it? (And no, Trump NEVER qualified it during the campaign that "trade savings will pay for it" - at least I'd love to be shown where Trump personally promised that particular little goodie and I invite correction.) But this is yet another example of Trump isn't consistent about what he's asking for at all, let alone the price tag he wants it to come in at.

            --
            This sig for rent.
    • (Score: 5, Informative) by DeathMonkey on Monday January 14 2019, @08:22PM (4 children)

      by DeathMonkey (1380) on Monday January 14 2019, @08:22PM (#786611) Journal

      Even without having a dispute, half of Trump's base would go for the shutdown. Shutting down government? Yes please!

      Right up until it impacts them directly, like the airports shutting down or the farmers not getting their Trade-War Bailout checks.

      Polls show that even democrat voters want the wall.

      No they don't.

      So this is about democrat politicians trying to save face....

      “I am proud to shut down the government for border security, Chuck. … I will take the mantle. I will be the one to shut it down. I’m not going to blame you for it.” --Donald J Trump, December 11

      "The Democrats now own the shutdown!” --Donald J Trump, December 21

      Who's trying to save face?

      Remember, the essential employees are still working.

      Yeah, without being paid for it, AKA slavery.

      • (Score: 2, Insightful) by fustakrakich on Monday January 14 2019, @09:47PM (2 children)

        by fustakrakich (6150) on Monday January 14 2019, @09:47PM (#786646) Journal

        "The Democrats now own the shutdown!"

        The voters do. They are responsible for this mess. They put these assholes into office, reelecting the same old corrupt bullshit. There is no one else to blame, not that you all don't try like hell to find somebody, of course from the opposing tribe.

        --
        La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
        • (Score: 2) by ilsa on Tuesday January 15 2019, @05:25PM (1 child)

          by ilsa (6082) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday January 15 2019, @05:25PM (#786970)

          It's unclear if you're talking about republican voters or democrats voters. From what I keep seeing, the only people that are demanding that wall are Trumps core.

          • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Sunday January 20 2019, @04:20AM

            by fustakrakich (6150) on Sunday January 20 2019, @04:20AM (#788909) Journal

            It's unclear if you're talking about republican voters or democrats voters.

            Maybe it's because I'm talking about both. The message is perfectly clear...

            --
            La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 15 2019, @12:01PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday January 15 2019, @12:01PM (#786859)

        you do realize that if they resign they stop being 'essential employees' right?

  • (Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 14 2019, @06:55PM (2 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Monday January 14 2019, @06:55PM (#786563)

    The prez and congress will have no incentive to reopen.

    Exactly! It'll degenerate into an anarcho-capitalist utopia where everything that needs done gets done through voluntary, mutually beneficial exchange, and then where will we be?