Upon the government’s partial shutdown at 12 a.m. Tuesday, “nonessential” government services have been suspended, including all national parks. Some have seen this as not all bad, considering that a Ku Klux Klan rally scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 5, at Gettysburg National Military Park has been cancelled as well.
“Tourists will find every one of America’s national parks and monuments, from Yosemite to the Smithsonian to the Statue of Liberty, immediately closed,” said Obama in Tuesday’s statement, and then added, with a touch of pathos, “And of course the communities and small businesses that rely on these national treasures for their livelihoods will be out of customers and out of luck.”
Perhaps not too many will be heartbroken that the KKK meeting was cancelled. The Maryland group, Confederate White Knights, and their rally isn’t the only group to have their plans disrupted. World War II veterans visiting the National Mall on Tuesday forced their way into the WWII Memorial, to pay their respects to those who gave their lives in the war. Of course if the KKK did the same, there would be a national outcry, but perhaps a double standard is to be expected in this situation?
Whatever the case, all parks will be closed pending a resolution in the government’s budget.