Ten feet of snow strikes us as a legitimate reason to shut down schools and businesses.
But a dusting? You?d think Baltimore-area residents were being bombarded with a blizzard like residents of Oswego County, N.Y., where the sky won?t turn itself off. Snow is not even sticking to roads in downtown Baltimore City but as of the latest reports, schools closed three hours early Tuesday.
Public and private schools, including universities, shut down early throughout the region yesterday, too ? sending parents scrambling to care for children.
Meanwhile, cars sculpt mini-mountains of salt in the streets, first created by last week?s overreaction to winter storm warnings.
It?s great that the Maryland Emergency Management Agency is regularly MONITORING APPROACHING WINTER STORM WITH ROUTINE STAFFING IN JOINT OPERATIONS CENTER. But does the notice deserve all capital letters? Why are we always preparing for disaster ? and acting as if one happened when it didn?t by shutting down schools and government for no good reason?
Should we blame the Weather Channel for its documentaries on catastrophic environmental meltdowns and regular dispatches from reporters in ravaged areas for these freak outs? Do we needto fill the void created by the lack of information about the paternity of Anna Nicole Smith?s daughter with an alternative obsession? Or do we just want a day off?
Whatever the reason, we should rename these shutdowns ? because they surely are not snow days.
