What will happen to you if we default?

[politicat]

69. My project will probably die or be forced to 100% private funding.

We've got 51% public funding (VA, NIMH and NIH grants) and 49% though a pharm. We lost some of the cash with the sequester, but we're churning through with shorter hours and fewer lab assistants and more self-funded or uni-funded grad students. I assume that our renewals will be at lowest priority.

The project could revert to 100% pharm funded. I'd probably keep my job since I am the PI, and my lab (this has serious potential as a profitable treatment protocol for major disorders) but we'd lose our graduate students and thus the ability to do the work. Or be asked to move to the pharm's development center, which is several states away. My normal telecommute might not fly.

Mr. Me's current project is funded and 100% private money, and with a not-US company. That's probably safe-ish for a while, but he can't telecommute much either. So a long-distance marriage for a while and stash every penny in the mattress. We don't 401k -- the ROI doesn't even keep up with inflation. The IRAs are probably safe enough, or not there at all. (Schroedinger's investment, you know?)

One sib is on VA disability, in a contracting town; there go all three of their income streams and their wealth is in their house. Other sib was sitting her foreign service exams. That's on hold. Her partner is an essential DoD contractor, but that won't last. At least they have savings and their house. Gran relies on SS, Medicare and farm income; I expect her futures will be piddly at best, so she and my mother will have to learn to live on the same block. Mom's probably okay -- she works for the semi-super wealthy who will probably make bank and want to keep their accounting straight.

My father is screwed -- a civil engineer who just took his retirement. No jobs likely, pension probably gone.

Cliff ahead. Every night in my dreams, some permutation of keeping everyone fed while driving over the edge....