Library of Congress and the Federal Government Shutdown

To librarians, as well as other people who love books, information, thinking, and beautiful buildings, the Library of Congress is Mecca. The physical structure and holdings are wonderful, and the online digital resources are fabulous. But due to the federal government shutdown, the following is what appears when one clicks on www.loc.gov

Due to the temporary shutdown of the federal government,
the Library of Congress is closed to the public and researchers beginning October 1, 2013 until further notice.

All public events are cancelled and web sites are inaccessible
except the legislative information sites THOMAS.gov and beta.congress.gov.

Very sad.