we get it - washington does not do snow removal

here's a preemptive post about what is sure to be tomorrow's topic of conversation across the nation - how can it be that, more than 5 days after the passing of snopocalypse, the streets in and around the district of columbia still are not properly plowed and, as such, the commute was an utter disaster. we've heard it from pundits. we've heard it from policy makers. we've even heard it from the president. truth be told - i used to be one of those people that laughed and laughed at the ineptitude of those tasked with removing the snow in washington. i mean (and this is the same justification that you'll hear from the aforementioned pundits, policy makers and presidents) i come from where they average about 200 inches of snow a year and school was rarely closed.

but then i began to think logically about what happened last week - something that often escapes those within the beltway and those who live in places where winter lasts from september to may. on average, the district receives about 17 inches of snow in an entire season. last week we got close to 40" in a span of five days. so we more than doubled our average in less than a week. that would be like syracuse getting more than 400" of snow in less time than there is between nascar races (had to put it in terms that the average 315'er would understand). i guarantee that school would be closed. okay, maybe only a 2 hour delay, but there would still be an impact!!!