State of Emergency?

On September 11, 2001 you could not find a single channel other the TSN that was showing anything but the attacks on the World Trade Centre. The world sat and watched as emergency crews ran around like chickens with their heads cut off trying to save the victims, help the people from becoming victims, and generally do the best they could. News crews sat like vultures trying to find the latest survivor.

Fast to a month ago, and a very large earthquake hits the tiny country of Haiti. We sat and watched as the same vultures reported on the victims, the hero's and the villains that tried to exploit even more victims. In both cases this was news, and you could see why this was the only major news reports. You could almost understand why the world's news would be crippled in comparison to these major events.

Fast forward to today. And I am stuck in my hotel room with nowhere to go. There is a mild storm outside with whiteouts happening and the State of Pennsylvania is shut down. I get it, they don't get the snow we do. I really do understand. What I don't get is why is this major news? Why are news crews running around, talking to busy tow truck drivers about accidents, bothering the "turnpike" association (not sure what that is, but the media asked them a lot of questions) or my personal favorite. The reports from FEMA(you remember those guys... they dropped the ball huge in that whole New Orleans disaster) on what the latest developments are.

So, let me get this straight. The entire state is cooped up in a house, nothing to do, and you can't even enjoy television and why? OH that's right, lets make mountains out of molehills. This explains the United States right down to its fiscal irresponsibility, foreign policy and international vision.

The theory is, keep your countrymen scared. And the media does its part to scare them to death. Everyday here on the multitude of news service channels, you get inundated with the latest foreign threat. "Terrorist Attack inevitable in the next (get this, cause it was a real headline) in up to 3 years"..... 3 fucking years. Who is the genius that made that prediction. Here is one that I can give about Canada. The CBC will do its best to discredit Canada's military and make our soldiers take refuge and hide in the next 12 months.

The media here doesn't just make mountains out of molehills, they then build a space program on the mountain and send the fear into space. I have had to endure lectures on "The world needs to Thank the GOOD OLE U.S. OF A.", why don't ya'all just listen to us? These are my favorites. And believe it or not, the members of the media not only mimic this statement, they promote it. And with that comes fear, lots and lots of fear. And fear, like any other virus, is catchy. The worst part is that there is no booster that can fix this kind of fear. The people here are not prepared to educate themselves enough to rise above the fear.

I have done what I do and socialized to the point to make some good friends. Not great Friends, but good friends none the less. The first question asked each time is about our national health care program. I understand, if you don't have it, you want to know. They want to hear about the reported wait times, and reported lack of facilities. I educate them as gingerly as I can so as not to offend, but I do educate. Then they have a stroke when they find out how well we are educated on North American history and not just Canadian history. They are shocked at the difference it perception of battles, economics and world relations. Then they ask about our infrastructure.

That is when they have a stroke. I even use snow storms as a reference. When I explain that the money is set aside for our snow removal and that we bank on an evaluation over the past 5 years, that we don't close schools until the day of, in order to know exactly what the weather is going to be like. That we make sure that we have all the facts before we lodge our complaint or make our decision. Trucks ready to go at all times, but not manned until snow hits the ground. Enough snow equipment to clear the entire city in one week. Civil responsibility for your own driveway and your sidewalks(they don't have to clear the walk in front of the house here, which would save the cities millions in costs) and only valuable information, not a steady stream of the same crap. But most of all? A warning not to panic, because its all under control

Long and short? A snowstorm has just summed up everything that drives me, my family and friend's nuts about our neighbor to the south. That and the fact that they don't understand that in Canada? Its not called Canadian Bacon, its called bacon. Now I can't wait to come back here in the spring and watch the news when they don't get rain for a month.... oh dear gawd I need a new outlook.