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by Jeff Goulden  Viewing Some of the Vandalized Joshua Trees During the partial government shutdown from Dec 22, 2018 to Jan 25, 2019 most of the US National Parks were closed or were open but not able to provide services, public safety or protection of the park resource. During the time of the shutdown, Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California was frequently in the news. Campers were driving off-road and in some cases even cut down the protected Joshua trees to make room for their vehicles and campsites. In some parks people left their trash and even human waste. It saddened me deeply to see the way some thoughtless people treated our beloved national parks. What kind of people do this? There are many reasons to keep our federal government running and protection of our national parks is just one of them. The latest government shutdown should teach us all a lesson. We need our federal government and the essential services that it provides. Shutting the government down is a threat to national security and safety. In my opinion we need legislation to prevent another government shutdown. I would propose that if Congress and the Administration cannot agree on a budget, then the government needs to be able to continue operating at current funding levels. Secondly, pay should be suspended for Congress and the Administration until they pass a budget. We should not allow the American people and federal workers to be held hostage because politicians can't agree on a budget. We depend on the federal government for a wide variety of services. Those who say that "we need to make government small enough to drown in a bathtub" are just plain wrong. We need to keep the government open and serving the American people. To see more Joshua Tree National Park pictures go to my Joshua Tree Gallery on Istockphoto. Signed fine art prints from many of my photographs are available for purchase on Fine Art America. For special offers and to follow my photographic journey please Join My Email List.
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