Shut it down. The single biggest threat that this country faces is fiscal/economic collapse. Every month that we spend $125B more than we take in brings us closer to the brink. We might already be too far gone to avoid an economic collapse, but for the time being let's assume that we still have a LITTLE time left to fix things. We have to do it NOW. Any argument saying that we should postpone this (like until when the "government's general operating budget expires") is just kicking the can down the road again. Boehner and the Republicans really screwed up when they raised the debt ceiling in August 2011. Basically Obama rolled them, was able to tack on an additional $2T worth of debt, and was able to buy votes.
If Republicans do happen to force a shutdown in Washington, it's very possible they'll be embracing a political loser while doing the rest of us an immense favor.
With three Washington-manufactured fiscal apocalypses -- sequestration, the debt ceiling and a new "budget" -- on the docket, the idea of shutting down government to extract concessions from the iron trap sometimes known as the Obama administration has gained traction among Republicans. Or, I should say, the idea of threatening to shut down Washington has.
Pat Toomey, John Cornyn and other conservatives have said as much, though they've littered their shutdown statements with comforting modifiers,...
I agree, shut it down.