[businessprofessor]

” the Treasury robbed from several pension plans and furloughed many workers.”

Stop spreading misinformation. The Treasury did not rob the pension plans because the bank was empty. There were no assets to steal. The Treasury simply made book keeping entries that permitted the government to keep operating. For the furloughs, I understand that every government employee was given backpay so government employees simply received extra vacation time.

A day of reckoning is coming over unsustainable government spending. The day of reckoning will involve real economic events, not fraudulent government accounting.

[JohnBovenmyer]

That fraudulent government accounting would be considered theft if done by a private person or firm. And if it were done with government funds appropriated for other purposes I'm confident the feds would drop the hammer on them. And those poor government employees on 'extra' vacation days. Did they have to expend any of their earned vacation days first? Were their expensive health care and other benefits continued during their unearned, unbudgeted vacation days?

Functionally the government shutdown was much like a strike for higher wages. With management supporting the strikers in defiance of the stockholders. At least in a real world strike those striking pay a financial price for their efforts. Here their alleged costs were a sham. They didn't dare have a real strike. Reagan was still alive and his example too fresh. But the result for the stockholders was the same. A similar group is currently using somewhat different tactics for the same cause with the Wisconsin recall elections. In spite of claiming great damages from Gov. Walker they seem to have loads of spare money to throw around. But this time management, or at least most of it, is standing with the stockholders.