Thursday, December 30, 2010

SNOW IN NEW YORK......who can we blame?

I've been sick and watching a LOT of news;   As I've watched the criticism of how the recent blizzard in NYC was handled, I keep wondering how much we can blame the city for some of the things that happened?  I heard a baby died and there were heart attack victims nobody could get to.    HORRID things happened!

I wonder how much we can blame the city when it's literally impossible to get through a blizzard and impossible to clear the amount of snow away as quickly as people would have liked?  Blizzards don't happen often and it seems tough to expect perfect precision, every call responded to as it comes in, etc etc..........maybe I'd feel differently if I wasn't a California girl who doesn't have much of a clue about snow.

Just how much can we blame the city?  What are your feelings on this?
z

42 comments:

Faith said...

I agree, I've been annoyed at all the complaints as I've read them, and I AM familiar with snow. There's only so much the people in charge can do when the snow is that overwhelming. The snowplows hardly ever get down the side streets where I am although you can hear them working hard on the major streets all around -- all through the night during a heavy snow. If they can't get to us we dig ourselves out -- or a kind neighbor will sometimes help. Sometimes we're just stuck for a while. That's life.

I sure hope you get over your shingles soon. What a miserable thing to have.

(((Thought Criminal))) said...

I blame the leftists.

Obviously their Lysenkoist urges to push their climate catastropism pseudoscience into political discourse has had the unintended consequence of making unionized city worker drones scoff at the idea that it could possibly snow during the winter.

And why wouldn't they be confused? Leftists believe rationalism is a food distribution scheme rather than a mode of critical thinking. They're the infra-stupid on the intellectual spectrum. Hitler thought he could magically fuel the epic failure Ardennes Offensive if he wrote "100,000 gallons of diesel fuel" on an inventory sheet. Mayor Nagin down in New Orleans thought pretending to have budgeted for disaster preparedness would magically fill the Superdome with stockpiled food and medical supplies in the event of a hurricane. Left-wingers adamantly refuse to allow rational people to find them competent at anything.

After all, Al Gore swore up and down that global warming has made it urgent that we fight to save the snow!

And let's not forget that gem of left-wing climate kookery that "predicted" that it will never snow in our lifetimes again, evah.

So what's going on in New York?

Look for the union label.

Z said...

thanks, Faith...my condition might have morphed into something else now....I'm never sick so this is really getting to me.

Beamish...thanks for all the links and thoughts; I'm hearing this AM that sanitation workers purposefully have gone slowly getting streets dug out, etc., because Bloomberg had cut some salaries and layed off some people because of the budget.
So, there are workers who'll put lives at risk to make their points.
"Look for the union label", indeed.......how horrid.

Always On Watch said...

Clearing streets after a snowmageddon is a Herculean task!

Cities have a worse time with their snow-plow crews than do the suburbs. All those parked cars, roadside benches, bus shelters, sidewalks, etc., contribute to making the task more difficult.

Of course, out here in the 'burbs, we don't have nearly as many union employees. The private contractors who come from out in the boonies do a good job in supplementing the county and state road crews.

Linda said...

We've had our share of blizzards, thankfully, not so far this year, and we know sometimes it just takes the sun to help.

I am sorry for the tragedies, but sometimes that just happens. Of course, that isn't going to stop the lawsuits!

Ducky's here said...

Tough not to blame Bloomberg.

It was a weekend storm so people were able to keep off the streets, the storm behaved exactly as forecast. The city should have been prepared.

Boston got 20 inches and everything was pretty much cleared by Monday night. Don't know why New York screwed up so badly. Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts all got nailed and it was cleared pretty quickly.

(((Thought Criminal))) said...

Tough not to blame Bloomberg.

Well, when you ban salt...

Karen Townsend said...

I saw a comment elsewhere that not only has Bloomburg banned salt on restaurant food menus, but on the streets, too.

Happy New Year to you!

If you land on Facebook, I'm there - Karen Townsend

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year Z!

New York got some snow? Where's FEMA? What is Obama doing? He's not on vacation again is he? Those poor people of New York, abandoned to their fate? By a heartless nation?
;-)

BTW, for a different slant on the weather, check out this video.

Z, your malady struck me a couple of years ago and I sympathise with you. I pray for your quick recovery. Here in Honduras, I only have the misery of mosquitos and dengue. So far no malaria.

Again, and to all, Happy New Year!

~ Will

FrogBurger said...

Nature is stronger than man.

However, if all the money wasn't going to union workers, welfare programs, maybe they would have more equipment to face such an issue. A symbol of what happens when gov focuses on areas where it's not supposed to focus: safety and security are both sacrificed.

I also heard about some union leader asking workers not do to their job properly in some areas b/c of budget cuts.

Ducky's here said...

Froggy, the rest of the Northeast is unionized and did just fine.

You see these kind of issues in Buffalo or Syracuse, places that get REAL snowfall?

Bloomberg screwed up. Probably had most of his equipment in Manhattan to make sure everything was tidy for New Year's Eve.

No complaints in Manhattan, hmmmm.

Ducky's here said...

Beamish, can you post something that indicates the nature of the supposed road salt ban?

It's not that you get most of your information from complete wackjobs, it's just that we need verification.

Z said...

Ducky, read the comments. Three workers have admitted to having withheld help, or slowed it down, in reaction to budget cuts. They don't know how many others aren't telling the truth.

I don't think there's a way to get every street in every burrough cleared of that much snow in the amount of time everyone would like. And I certainly don't see how, in a blizzard, with 800 people on hold for 911 (which I heard happened), they can get to everyone. Blame Bloomberg? Ya, for plenty of other stuff, not this.

FrogBurger said...

Ducky, NYC is a big city, needless to say. Gov is all about size and scalability in my books. At some point too big with inflexible and moronic unions become unmanageable.

Let's be honest. Boston compared to NYC or LA is a small provincial town.

And maybe you have smarter unions up there.

FrogBurger said...

Ducky, NYC is a big city, needless to say. Gov is all about size and scalability in my books. At some point too big with inflexible and moronic unions become unmanageable.

Let's be honest. Boston compared to NYC or LA is a small provincial town.

And maybe you have smarter unions up there.

(((Thought Criminal))) said...

Beamish, can you post something that indicates the nature of the supposed road salt ban?

It was a joke, Poindexter.

Ticker said...

Another example of "nanny state mentality". "Where's the gubermint?" "Do something for me."
Get off your ass and do something for yourself and your neighbor just as folks did 40 and 50 years ago.
The old "he had ample warning and time to do something" is the typical cry of the nanny staters who have to blame someone. Remember NO and the ample warning the fools there had? What happened? Oh that's right they failed and blamed Bush. No need for more on "nanny state victim mentality" It's self explanatory for those who still believe in get'er done.

Ducky's here said...

That may be true Froggy but we got a tidal surge that breached the sea wall in several locations, downed power lines and a load of snow. It was all dealt with within 24 hours.

If you think dealing with the narrow streets in Boston during a blizzard is a cinch then you are more sheltered than I imagined.

tha malcontent said...

Who could be blame?

The Unions, Bloomberg to start, plenty of people to blame here.

FrogBurger said...

If you think dealing with the narrow streets in Boston during a blizzard is a cinch then you are more sheltered than I imagined.

Me sheltered? WTF do you mean? Makes no sense at all.
Please precise.

Ducky's here said...

Froggy, get out in the world. Clinging to reflexive Libertarian utopianism is no way to understand the immensity of the world.

Anonymous said...

Faith nailed it.

Man cannot -- and should not -- control Nature. Much better that we try to work in harmony with Nature, instead of fighting it. (I'm not talking about "human nature" in case anyone wants to think so.)

Once upon time most of us were good sports, took what came and tried to make the best of it. Now, we feel obliged to look for someone -- or something -- to BLAME.

And where's the profit in that?

There ain't none.

KWITCHABITCHIN has made a great all-purpose motto since it first came out decades ago.

Deep in snow? First help the old and weak shovel out. Then relax. Build a fire. Make snowman. Have a snowball fight. Have neighbors in for mulled cider or hot buttered rum. ENJOY!

Happy New Year!

~ FreeThinke

Anonymous said...

unions put a stopper on the plowing-Drudge/Gateway---check them out...

Z said...

ducky, you can't see the difference between some very narrow streets and the city of NY with all its burroughs? Wow.

Also, wake up....the workers wouldn't do their work. GET IT?

FT...I'm with you..if you can, enjoy! Happy New Year to you, too.

Anonymous said...

Bless you, Z, and may the New Year bring you complete healing from the shingles very soon. I am so sorry you've had to deal with that. I've known several who've had it, and know it's pretty dreadful. The only good news is that it eventually it goes away.

~ FT

Ticker said...

Frogbuger, I totally agree. In the mean time I am LMAO with tears streaming down my face and my stomach hurting from laughing so hard.
Dang Duck won't ever learn will he or she or it, what ever the case maybe.

Ducky's here said...

z, clearing Boston of two feet of snow is a complicated logistic affair. It gets done.

New York, which is generally built on a grid pattern is pretty straightforward.

This isn't Bloomberg's first blizzard. New York knows how to dig out. But the transit department didn't declare an emergency until eight inches were down, major screwup. It was Bloomberg's error, no way he shouldn't have been able to handle it.

Ducky's here said...

... of course when you want to blame the unions nothing will stop you. The conservative mind just can't handle a thoughtful analysis.

* INCHES were down before Bloomberg got into action. Got it Cali girl?

FrogBurger said...

I'm glad you laughed Ticker.

In French I'd have used for Ducky "c'est l'hopital qui se moque de la charite."

FrogBurger said...

The conservative mind just can't handle a thoughtful analysis.

That from someone who admires the Communist Manifesto, a real piece of garbage with no depth besides ranting about the fact the human kind has always people on top, people in the middle and people at the bottom of the ladder. That's what you call thoughtful analysis?

In your world Ducky, what thoughtful analysis really means is intellectual masturbation.

For 2011, I wish you a lot of sex. Maybe that'll help.

Anonymous said...

We're going to have to get used to taking care of ourselves, as did my parents, and all those from that generation, and before them.

This administration and those of like minds are taking us down if they can.

We will have less, not more of what we need, to depend on help from government. As Reagan said, "government isn't the answer it's the problem".

Too many people sit and wait for help, and when they don't get it, they cry, moan, and sue.

This is what happens when we lose our instinct for survival. Helplessness!

It's neighbor helping neighbor, family being self sufficient, and accepting tragedy if it happens and learning what people in the past knew.

Government can't be all things to all people. It simply can't. Mother nature has a way of teaching us that, doesn't it?

Now, today, we can't afford to rely on govt. It's too big, and too unwieldly. We, the people are the answer. We always have been but have been led astray by snake oil salesmen called politicians who promise miracles, and deliver bromides.

Life has no guarantees, except one. Death. For the rest, it's up to us.

Pris

Z said...

Ducky, for someone who can't stand the Conservative mind "... of course when you want to blame the unions nothing will stop you. The conservative mind just can't handle a thoughtful analysis" why do you have my blog on speed dial?
Stop the insults, it makes you look stupid.

I have not heard a thing about a lateness in declaring an emergency but...anyway, why the hell do we have to wait for the gov't to declare one? this "cali girl" could see it was an emergency just watching the news.

Pris, I'm with Gov Rendell..we are wussified!

Z said...

to those of you with blogs:

I can't thank you enough for coming to comment though I've been sorely missing visiting your blogs the last 3 weeks.........the shingles are so terrible and now I have terrible fatigue.......I'll be back soon, but in the meantime, I'm forever grateful to you all for supporting GeeeZ in spite of my not coming around and I am loving your input here...it's all I can do but get a blog out every day and comment when I can drag myself up and to the desk!.

thanks, I have the best bunch of bloggers on the planet..I just know I do!

Layla said...

Good write-up again Z. What the heck is wrong with people? Who died and made them, any one of us God? It is one thing to assess a situation and discuss how one might handle this, that, or anything else better, but to always be critical, always criticize - it gets old. It seems that is all the people in this world know how to do nowadays - they love that big "C" word!

Hugs,Layla xo

Faith said...

What did they do before snowplows? There was such a time wasn't there? Did everything shut down completely? I remember deep snow in my small town as a child and I don't think there was a single snowplow. I think we just drove ON the snow, with chains on the tires I suppose -- but we managed to get around. Didn't see the ground until Spring. Or am I misremembering?

Anonymous said...

Ducky, until you've ridden out a 6.8 earthquake, you've got no room to talk, you little pea brained twerp.

Furthermore Z doesn't need your attempts at insults. We "Cali girls" don't need to experience a snowstorm to know it's unpleasant.

Nature has a way of covering all the bases when it comes to natural disasters.

Btw, the next time you're sick little boy, let us know so we can kick you while you're down.

Pris

Ticker said...

I have come to the conclusion, based on over 30 years as a professional in the field of psychiatry that Duck is indeed in need of mental help. He evidently has a problem with self esteem.
The emotionally immature person, symptoms often exhibited by Duck, has low levels of self-esteem and self-confidence and consequently feels insecure. To counter these feelings of insecurity they will spend a large proportion of their lives creating situations in which they become the center of attention.Example on the blogs.

It may be that the need for attention is inversely proportional to emotional maturity, therefore anyone indulging in attention-seeking behaviors is telling you how emotionally immature they are.

Attention-seeking behavior is surprisingly common. Being the center of attention alleviates feelings of insecurity and inadequacy but the relief is temporary as the underlying problem remains unaddressed: low self-confidence and low self-esteem, and consequent low levels of self-worth and self-love.

Insecure and emotionally immature people often exhibit bullying,(as displayed in his calling certain people "call girls"), behaviors, especially manipulation and deception.

These are necessary in order to obtain attention which would not otherwise be forthcoming.

The need for attention is paramount to the person with a narcissistic personality disorder and he or she will do anything to obtain that attention. Ducky displays many of the symptoms of this as well and of course it is linked with low self esteem and the need for attention. Those with NPR are never wrong as Duck has so often exhibited. It is also a trait that Duck and Obama share. Of course Duck would be proud of that fact.

Duck needs some serious help but as most of those with NPR he will deny such and seek to blame or find fault with the one pointing out his need for help.

GET HELP DUCK!

RedWood said...

Gawd...as much as I hate Blooooooomboig...the trans-sexual - transgender-libbie turned RINO / Repub - turned Independent so he could buy the last election as well as the hordes of city council members ( at least as many as both Houses...435? ) he bribed into allowing him to run for a 3rd term against the cities laws that had been on the books since the Tea Pot Dome scandal....Phew...

Trying to keep up with this pint sized kosher on rye ( unless there's too much salt, trans fat, sugar and calories! ) is tiring.

Even more so than following the trials and tribulations of Indiana Obama searching for the golden cow of the long lost tribe of Kenyans who have stolen his birth certificate along with the witnesses of his live birth in Nairobi who have been sacrificed to the Gods of Black Hawk Down...sorry wrong corrupt muslim sheet hole.

Anyway...a Baby died? Well...sad as it is but...is it the Magi Bloomie's fault? Hard to prove in a court of law, I'd say.

I wonder how much we can blame the city when it's literally impossible to get through a blizzard and impossible to clear the amount of snow away as quickly as people would have liked? "

Clear thinking Ms. Z. I mean what the hell? Is Bloomies money so big that he can order up a blizzard that eventually will kill some 8 MILLION residents of NYC?

Nah...He's one of the chosen people and he has more money in his back pocket that you or me....or close to Gates and the other ole fuddy duddy from Omaha, Nebraska, what's his name? Warren...errrr somebody, I think.

But...bizzard or not, people will die every day in NYC. These folks who decided to try to shovel out 10 blocks of their neighborhood streets...had enormous Chutzpah...but bad hearts that killed them.

I think Bloomie ought to make their survivors recipients of the "Perpetual Bloomie" award.

Free Bagels and coffee with 3 spoons of sugar and ( 1 ounce of coffee to milk ratio) for life. Each can wear a "chunker" around their necks like a MOH!!

Yes...chunkers and sugared coffee for life. / sarc off.

Seriously now...Bloomie got fooked by the lazy bastard union bosses and employees ( who retire at 150K per year after driving a damn bus or garbage truck - actually the same thing in NY - after 20 years ) who had an issue with...get this...Their upcoming UNION contracts with the city of NY.!!

Word....the lazy, parasites....union whores...sacrificed and killed NY'rs for...GREED.

I don't like Bloomie but he ain't Alan Grayson. Now there's a Dem to hate.

Period. END OF STORY.

Copyright....Redwood..all rights reserved.

Anonymous said...

"Gawd"

Redwood....a treasure. I was LMAO...not from the troubles but the "chunkers"...which is what my father-in-law used to call them.

Or something close to that since he had a thick German / Hebrew accent that I failed to understand most times.

But....for as long as I lived up North...."regular coffee" was an ounce of coffee with 8X's more milk / cream and at least 3 shovels of sugar!!

It was like telling an alcoholic not to mix too much blood with his booze!

Imp

Craig said...

Ticker "wrote",

Attention-seeking behavior is surprisingly common. Being the center of attention alleviates feelings of insecurity and inadequacy but the relief is temporary as the underlying problem remains unaddressed: low self-confidence and low self-esteem, and consequent low levels of self-worth and self-love.

Daniel Goleman wrote,

Attention-seeking behaviour is surprisingly common. Being the centre of attention alleviates feelings of insecurity and inadequacy but the relief is temporary as the underlying problem remains unaddressed: low self-confidence and low self-esteem, and consequent low levels of self-worth and self-love.

Ticker, What kind of person plagiarizes a not so respected psychologist to pass themselves off "as a professional in the field of psychiatry"?

Really, Ticker? Does that mean you're an MD? Who needs help?

Ticker said...

Craig, you're an idiot that can't read. I am a psychologist, not an MD. I have over 30 years experience and call em like I see em. Perhaps next I'll do a quick run down on you. I won't charge you for my service.

Plagiarize? It's common language and common description Craig but then you wouldn't know since you aren't in the field. I used these same words in an article in 1973. Perhaps Goleman copied my paper,doubtful, but then he could have copied dozens of others in the field since it is common usage of words and phraseology.

The only thing of Golemans that I have in my library is his book on Meditation written in 74 and then re-published as The Meditative Mind in the late 80's.

Know what you are talking about Craig before making accusations that you can't back up.

MathewK said...

I read the leftist unions are to blame for the deaths because they refused to work or purposely took too long to clear the roads.