To a lot of people, the prospect of a government shutdown whenever federal funding is on the brink of being interrupted is like the threat of an apocalyptic earthquake: something often discussed but rarely experienced. Somehow or other, even in a time of vast partisan polarization, the politicians find ways to keep the government operating, in part because no one wants to get blamed for the human suffering and widespread inconveniences associated with a shutdown.

We’re facing another “shutdown crisis” at the end of this month as the stopgap spending bill enacted in March expires on September 30. And though we’re just a couple of weeks away from the fish-or-cut-bait moment, Republicans and Democrats are not even negotiating over a temporary, much less permanent, resolution. Democrats are a

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