Since the beginning of time, people have been bound to a government. Whether it was a theocracy, where priests rule under the name of god, or a dictatorship, where one person is in charge of the whole government, a government is the backbone of a country.
It is no secret that over the last half-decade or so, there have been numerous tensions within the U.S. government. One of the most intense elections of the past few decades was last year during the 2024 elections. The election had a huge impact on the modern internet. Like the 2020 election, much of the younger generation would sit down and watch the 2024 election unfold like never before. With the outcomes of this past election, many things have unfolded in our country for better or worse.
Recently, on October 1, 2025, the United States Government issued a full shutdown. Anything the government deems as non-essential is temporarily shut down or receives less funding and resources. The primary reason for this shutdown is disagreement over funding for the United States. Democrats of the Senate want to focus mainly on alleviating the struggles that Americans have with healthcare, while Republicans do not want any major changes in funding. This has led the Democrats to shut down the government to convince the Republicans to agree on their policies. Everyone has been trying to find a compromise, but nothing has come up yet for the time being.
The shutdown has led to many difficulties within the government. Things like national museums, federal research, and IRS taxpayer services, leaving many government employees without pay. Some government workers during this time are going under a furlough, a mandatory temporary unpaid leave of absence, while others are being let go under a Reduction in Force (RIF). Where the employers have to decide which employees should be let go under certain rules set by The Office of Personnel Management. Even so, many government employees have also been working without pay, no furlough or RIF. One of the prime examples of this is the workers at the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), who are air traffic controllers. If you have been to the airport recently, you may have noticed that going through TSA has taken significantly longer, or your flights are getting delayed more than usual. This is probably because a lot of employees in the aviation department have chosen not to work due to not getting paid. This has led to a lot of outrage and instability within the government and among American citizens.
During these government shutdowns, essential things like food stamps are still being distributed throughout the country. While it has recently come by via the Trump Administration that starting Nov. 1st Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP, and administering food stamps, will not be disturbed if the shutdown does not resolve its funding issue. This will affect over 40 million Americans as they all get at least some kind of relief from SNAP. Not only will many Americans lose their main source of food, but November, being the month of Thanksgiving, is crucial for food culture in the United States. Many families will not be able to celebrate their regular Thanksgiving for the month in sacrifice for their lost food stamp funds.
If you can, please consider looking into local food pantries where you can either donate food directly or donate money through websites. In Texas, you can donate through the Central Texas Food Bank (CTFB) website to help thousands of families that will be affected by their lack of food stamps in November and maybe even more months to come.
