An Open Letter to the House and Senate

Ladies and Gentleman of the House and Senate,

I am a 31 year old mother of two young children, the wife of a decorated Army officer and patriotic woman, devoted to the ideals upon which this country was founded. That being said, please understand that I acknowledge that the job of the few, to lead and protect the masses is no easy feat; I watch my husband and many other service members do exactly that, on a daily basis.

I believe I speak for the majority of my fellow countrymen when I say we are tired; tired of a congress and house that waits until the last minute to try and resolve our grievous national problems. We’re tired of our leaders playing ping pong with our national interests: throwing the blame at the other guys, while being so one sided, narrow minded and stubborn that no compromise is ever reached. And we are tired of a government that seems to care more about the benefit and interest of its members, rather than the welfare and betterment of the majority of our nation and those citizens whom you represent.

Sirs and Madams, wake up, grow up and open your eyes! Refusing to compromise and get anything done is negatively affecting the safety and security of our nation, the status of the United States as a premier nation and the economy and strength of our nation’s currency. We, the people, implore you to see past your blinders and fully understand that your inaction does nothing to further defend our nation, or create a positive national climate.

As you know, as a result of the government shutdown, almost all NASA employees will be furloughed. There will be further delays at airport security checkpoints due to the fact that fewer TSA workers will be on the job. This jeopardizes the safety of aircraft and the airline employees and passengers. The federal courts would continue to operate as usual for 10 days, but after that, all non-essential personnel would be furloughed. Cases would continue to be heard, but at a much slower rate. With a stressed, overworked judiciary, decisions would inevitably be compromised. By shutting down the government, civilian defense employees, all of whom play a vital role in our nation’s defense, cannot work. These valuable employees play a vital role in our defense readiness. We are in effect, opening ourselves up to being attacked and this puts our service members and their families in harm’s way. This is simply unacceptable.

Veterans filing a claim against denial of disability benefits would wait longer than the year + average wait time due to the fact that the board would not convene to make any decisions during a government shutdown. Our veterans have sacrificed so much and given so much of themselves for our country, do not insult them by making them wait for benefits that they so clearly deserve. We owe them so much and we cannot deny their sacrifices and hardships during these uncertain times. And finally, our approximately 1.4 million active duty service members will have delayed paychecks. This may shock you, but the families who serve, particularly enlisted families, don’t make a large amount of money. In fact, many of them haven’t secured a savings safety net because they simply cannot afford to do so. Due to the rising cost of consumable goods, the rising rate of inflation and the weakening of the US dollar, many people have had to go without to feed their families. Therefore, citizens and families simply cannot afford this government shutdown. Our military families are among the best this nation has to offer, and we endure many things; we are used to hardships, deployments and budget cuts. We will get thru this, but the question is, will you? Will you have a job after the next election? I will not be voting for my current congressman in the next election, will not support my senator and I’m willing to bet that there are thousands, if not, millions who feel the same as me, and are not afraid or too complacent to act upon our better judgment.

So I challenge you to earn back the respect of the people, and in doing so, maybe securing your jobs: Will you go without your inflated salaries until all employees are back to work and are receiving their paychecks on time? Will you give your benefits to those who truly need it? Will you sacrifice your comforts to meet the basic needs of our nation’s citizens?

I believe in the ideals that our nation was founded on, and shutting down the government that is for the people is not the answer. Ladies and gentlemen do your jobs, or we’ll elect better equipped, more capable people who will.