Snow Job

I like to think of myself as fairly tolerant, though those who know me best might snicker at this assertion. But really, while I am pretty staunch in my own beliefs, I also think that I am tolerant of others' views, no matter how misguided they might be.


But, the older I get, the less tolerant I am becoming with media weather forecasters, especially in winter. Of course, I run the risk of sounding like those "I used to walk five miles to school in all kinds of weather" types, but I really think that the media has contributed to our becoming a society of wussies.


Some years ago, I took a trip to upstate Vermont with my son to visit some relatives. It was early April, just about the time when we New Englanders start to feel that we've probably made it through the last of the snow for another season. We started from Connecticut in the rain. By the time we got to southern Vermont, the precipitation has turned to snow. By the time we hit our destination, just south of the Canadian border, we were in a full snowstorm. About 6 or 7 inches had already fallen and continued for several more hours. What was refreshing to me, however, was the fact that life was going on as if the sun were out and the temperature was in the mid fifties. There were no weather alerts on the television. There were no lists of delays, postponements, or cancellations of activity. People simply left a few minutes early to get to their destinations. Soccer practice at the local school was moved indoors. Life just went on.


In contrast, we had another "weather incident" here a few days ago. It was a Saturday. The weather gurus had begun predicting snow earlier in the week; most reports called for 1 - 3 inches. Then, some of the stations began to say it might get worse. We could get 6 - 8 inches. As the hours wore on, so did the increasing "possibility" of accumulations; why, some even said that we could get an old-fashioned Nor'easter. By noon on Saturday, events were being cancelled left and right. And then the snow began. It fell though the afternoon and into the evening. By 7:00 PM, it was over. The total: 1 - 3", depending on elevation.

Now, what's the purpose of this rant? To encourage a little more realism and a little less sensationalism. In this day of hundreds of cable channels, each one wants to come up with its own angle, something that will set it apart. I would like to suggest that one of them gives us FACTS. If you don't know, say you don't know. This is, after all, New England, where weather and natives are prone to just about anything at just about any time. Tell us the best and worst case scenarios, based on all the conflicting computer data. Don't call a guess a prediction. Don't foster hysteria by being the first to predict a near-catastrophe; be the first one to predict a non-event. You'll have at least one faithful viewer.