Osler's Razor

For many, perhaps even most, people there is no tangible sign of the partial government shutdown. That's because little of what the federal government does is providing direct services. They inspect the meat rather than sell it, so when you go to the store you still see a lot of meat, but don't see the fact that inspections have been cut. And when you get sick, you don't know the cause.

The FBI Agents Association just put out a fascinating report on how the shutdown has impacted their work. You can read the whole thing here.

The most obvious consequence of the shutdown is that the agents are not being paid. But there is more:

-- forensic interviews in sex offenses agains children are being delayed.
-- counseling services for sex trafficking victims has been curtailed.
-- they can't fund local initiatives.
-- funding for some kinds of investigations has run out.
-- translators are unavailable.

I suspect there are many agencies with similar problems...