That is something that I have wondered as well. It is not like they will be socked in for any large amount time. We just got about 10 inches here in Norther Indiana which is rather typical for us. But there will still be those who freak. On the other hand I have lived in the UP of Michigan where large snowfall and very low temps are an everyday thing. We are supposed to dip below zero tonight and several people I talked to were wondering if they would close the schools. Up in Escanaba it dropped below zero around Thanksgiving and stayed there until March. Of course the schools never closed. Only thing out of the ordinary was the Coast Guard ice cutters coming into break up the ice in the harbor so the big oar ships could get in an out. They are not used to snow in the DC and other places and when it comes, they are not sure of what to do. Wonder how many folks up in Fargo complain about the snow and cold?

Does DC get a lot of snow? If not, I can understand their behavior.
Here, we're having the coldest winter in memory.
Before we started experiencing aberrant patterns and the advent of the global warming hysteria, winters in the area between Little Rock, Memphis and Jackson went something like this:
December - some cold, usually a lot of rain, a few mild days, maybe even a short-sleeve Christmas.
January - bitter cold for about a week, ordinary cold the rest of the month.
February - spells of warmth mixed in with the cold.
In recent years, our cold periods rarely lasted more than a few days, and we might go an entire season without a winter storm. Light jackets are usually sufficient.
2009-2010
Since December, we've had winter storm advisories 4 times. There have been few light-jacket days. Lots of gray skies, plenty of days slightly above freezing and several sub-freezing nights. My area has seen a few days of snow flurries but no accumulation. Areas north of us got some ice about 2 weeks ago, and the area south of us is expecting severe snowfall (their 2nd) by the end of the week.

They get snow, but not like they have been getting in the past few days. But even here in the snow belt people tend to panic. The ten inches we just got is pretty normal, but in those winters when it gets to that 20 or more inches you see folks cleaning out the shelves at local grocery stores. Kind of silly really even during the worst of the storms that I have lived through they had us up and running in a few days. But in those areas where heavy snowfall is not the norm I do understand some of the reaction.

It started to fall around 5 p.m. Accumulation up to 6 inches expected. Roads may get slick, but no serious problems expected in my area. Jackson could be a big mess, though.

Heavy snow? They act like that when the forecasters call for a couple of inches! People go crazy. I just don't understand it. It's not like we've never seen snow before. We usually get it every year. True, we rarely see this much in one shot, but I think the media plays a lot into people going into panic mode.

The Feds were shut down for four days. They are open today. My office follows the feds when it comes to inclement weather closings, so we've been closed since Friday. Metro stopped all bus service, and above ground train service at 7pm on Friday, so even if people wanted to go somewhere, they couldn't. I had local things to do on Monday, so I put my boots on and walked. Partial Metro and bus service resumed on Tuesday. It was shut down again on Tuesday night at 7pm and resumed today, Friday. Most school jurisdictions have been closed all week.

Now, I grew up in NYC. They rarely closed the schools for snow, and I can remember only one time when they shut down a subway line (and we're talking one line, not the whole system). And I'm not talking about Manhattan, I'm talking about out in the boroughs - Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx, and Staten Island; where you have to take buses and/or trains if you're not driving.

We were lucky growing up. We lived next door to this place that sold sand, gravel, and cement. Whenever it snowed heavily, they were part of the crew who cleared the runways at JFK, so before heading out to the airport, they'd make a pass or two on our block, and some of the neighboring blocks, with their big front end loader and dump truck and cleared the way for the neighbors.

Part of that is news media tend to feel like nannies when it comes to storms. There's a sense of obligation toward giving as much information as is known.
The other half is as soon as the media doesn't tell, the complaints start pouring in. Believe it or not, people want this stuff.
We've had an unusually high number of winter storm watches and warnings this season, but so far, our immediate coverage area hasn't been fazed. But every time there's a weather advisory, we get calls all day long. On the intercom: "Weather, line 1."
People want to know:
- Are the schools closing?
- Will the roads be okay?
- How much are we going to get?
- What time will it start?
Likewise, my assistant news director (and immediate supervisor) kicks into a near panic, scrambling trying to think of angles we need to cover.
Yesterday, about 2 hours before the snow started, I nearly had words with her. I was already following up on a body that was found in a field, believed to be a man who'd been missing nearly a month, and checking on a murder trial that was wrapping up. I'd received an e-mail from the county emergency management agency issuing a traveler's advisory. I mentioned that to her and the news director earlier in the afternoon, but neither indicated interest. Then an hour before we're supposed to have everything turned in for the 5 o'clock broadcast, she tells me to call the EMA director for an interview. And before I could do that, she told me to call the Salvation Army to see if they were going to open the shelter for people to get in out of the cold (it wasn't as cold as a couple of other deep-freeze periods we've had).
I suppose it could have been worse. She could have sent me to a supermarket to get something on people stocking up.

The report:
Man caught speeding tries to evade police. They chase on highway. He turns onto residential street. Police back off but continue to trail him. He comes to intersection where street doglegs, and is unable to adjust. Car rams into side of house. Police cite him for suspended license, no insurance, reckless driving, having an open container (beer, I think), and possession of marijuana.
The reaction:
Man's mother calls station, asks if we're doing a story about her son. Says crash wasn't his fault. Says accelerator got stuck.

It was a hectic day, and I had a lot to do, so I politely told her that we had to go with what was in the report. Ordinarily, I'd have told her we'd be happy to air her or her son's point of view if one of them were willing to say it on camera.
And that's not even considering that her son was:
- Speeding
- Drinking
- Possibly high
- Driving a 1986 Chevrolet Monte Carlo

Oh come now,Jazzwriter, a man of the media and you are not aware of the high rate of faulty gas pedals on 86 Monte Carlo's when they are being operated by drivers who are stoned, drunk and trying to avoid capture by members of the police! Everyone knows the failure rate is almost 100 percent. Well you do have to allow for the 2 percent who were too drunk to find the gas pedal.

And I'm in the process of learning about the high rate of mothers who know their sons have done wrong but think the news media, the police and the district attorneys are all wrong.

Years ago I worked as a news reporter for a station in Michigan City, which is the home to the Indiana State Prison. Did not take long in my stay there to come to understand that none of the 4,000 inmates were in fact guility. Well at least that is what they would have you believe. And yes, I ran into a few of those mothers, sisters and girl friends who could not possibily consider how their man could have done anything like what they were doing time for.