This past Friday, BU had a delayed opening (the University opened at 11am instead of 9am) because of an early morning snowstorm. The week before, BU and other colleges and universities closed down for a day because of another snowstorm. Snow days are supposed to be fun, but they can sometimes cause great problems. As an undergraduate, snow days were great because I got to miss class. As a law student, snow days are great because I get to miss class but annoying because I have to make up the classes that I miss.
As law students, I fear that we are the only people who are punished on snow days. Do regular working folk have to come into work an extra day because of snow day? I guess employers don’t give as many snow days as other universities and schools, but still. The only exception I can think of is professional sports games. In December, for example, the Eagles-Vikings football game was postponed two days because of a snowstorm. The governor of Pennsylvania said that the game shouldn’t have been canceled and lamented that America had become “a nation of wusses.”
Has America become a nation of wusses? Maybe. As an undergraduate at BU, I can recall only one or two snow days. As a law student, I can recall at least 4 so far. This may not mean anything…perhaps it’s just been snowier lately. I have noticed that people in America do get very hysterical and excited when it comes to the weather, much more so than in other countries. Local TV news stations all have “storm centers” or “severe weather alerts.” Ominous warnings abound all over the Internet and there are tons of articles on new snowstorms and bad weather. Weather.com has all sorts of over the top reporting, charts, maps and articles on weather conditions around the world. Do people even understand what they’re reading? I certainly don’t. Perhaps people have always been extra-sensitive to the weather but today’s technology has created an information overload regarding weather conditions.
