The discourses, discussing 'grazing the pasture-land', what this refers to is, if one grazes the pastureland, just like cattle when their head is down, graze pastureland in search of greener grasses, while knowing what the boundaries are which is off limits, eventually, if they keep grazing in areas around and adjacent the pastureland they are not supposed to be, they fall in it.

Application and analogue, is 'government shutdown'.

Importantly are two key concepts:
1- if you keep grazing the pasture-land, in this case the pasture-land being 'government shutdown', you are facing the possibility of the prospect that of the stark reality suddenly coming upon you

2- 'Government shutdown' even on the lexicographic level, is a very dangerous term to use, the reason is, even though it may be being used as a euphemism for lapse in appropriations, the true literal meaning of these words, 'government shutdown', is just that, the government shuts down and does not get back up.

    The danger of 'government shutdown' at that level exists, as evident, even in consideration of interpretations that 'government shutdown' has occurred before, as the next time 'government shutdown' occurs, there might not be a next time, as the shutdown could weigh the full extent of the possibility of the lexicographic meaning.

Not to belabour the 'magic' of words, but 'government shutdown' is not one of those terms that should be taken lightly in terms of being used with regularity.

A few additional points, as to the construction that could answer how overusing the term 'government shutdown' can cause far more severe damage than what is calculated on paper, theory, and conversation:
When terms like 'government shutdown' are used too often, and are placed on the headlines and focal topics of discussion in the media, the MOMENTUM gets started, and people start making preparations for a potential shutdown, so in elementary level, other processes that are connected to government directly or indirectly, have started shutting down, or at least in shutdown gear, and can drag the dimensions of government initially the subject of government shutdown, to actually shutting down, even if what would ordinarily have been an effective mechanism to avert the shutdown is put in place.

A second point, is, taking in consideration what has been explained above, and there is far, far more knowledge that can be expounded on relating the subject of finance, shutdowns, and grazing the pastureland, repeating the idea of 'government shutdown', is like playing with fire.  One thinks they can meddle with struts and support beams to a bonfire removing one here and there without a mammoth sized bonfire collapsing, but what really happens is, one of those beams gets pulled away, and just like tragic incidents involving loss of life, the entire bonfire collapses.  The risk-taking with the bonfire beams, is not the mentality that should be taken when it comes to a matter of the seriousness as the prospect of 'government shutdown'.

Thirdly, is, invoking the term 'government shutdown' over and over, it calls it forth, not something we want to call forth, or make a reality, just like no one in their right mind would call a monster from the past to come true and haunt their children's' playground. 
What do computers do when they see the term 'shutdown' repeatedly?-- they start shutting down,  ever so slightly in places, and after a while, computer systems critical to functioning, can be adversely affected.  Therefore, staying away from 'government shutdown', including use of the term, has wisdom.

When one is up against a countdown, a forefront case in point, namely until 'Tuesday at midnight', or major institutions that symbolize America will be embarrassed throughout the world, the equation from the start might be viewed as having aspects that are problematic.

Very briefly, on the idea of expounding, there is surely a broad array of mechanisms, laws, and legislation that can be brought into the picture.