Sun Came Up

The GOP held their ground and we are in a so-called "shut down" of the Federal government. The sun still came up. The sky did not fall. The military continues to defend the nation. The US Postal Service will continue to deliver the mail. Social Security recipients will still be paid. The only real consequence of the failure of the Democrat majority in the Senate and Barack Hussein Obama to negotiate with House Republicans is that eight hundred thousand so-called "non-essential" Federal workers will either stay home or work a half day today. My question is: If they are "non-essential", why does the Federal government employ them in the first place?