Snowball Effect

An opinion piece on weather hysteria

‘Weather bomb’

‘Red alert’

‘Multi hazard event’

These are some of the phrases I’ve heard over the last few days in conjunction with what appears to be bog standard January weather in the UK.

Whilst I understand a few areas might be subject to severe conditions, why is a handful of local issues turned into national hysteria?

How they have the snowballs to turn ‘winter’ into a news story, I’ll never know.

Fear is whipped into unprecedented, pavlovic peaks of panic.

As I write this, my son’s school transport is cancelled. Yet all I can find in the local forecasts is ‘rain and a gentle breeze’.

Is it fair the rest of us suffer the inconveniences that appear to stem from nothing but an out of hand game of ‘Chinese Whispers’?

Alas, we all have to buy into the devastation ‘Storm Bullshitti’ *might* unleash.

It’s barely tickled us where I live, yet a child loses a day’s education……for what?

‘Safety’

‘The Safety Dance’ is no longer a song by ‘Men without Hats’ but men without morals.

Everyone must participate in the anxiety Hokey-Cokey, wondering if they should be in or out because there ‘could be’ snow, ice or strong wind.

In winter.

Really.

It’s not even about what’s happening but rather what has ‘potential’ to happen.

Well I’ve got potential to be a pink haired millionaire called ‘Lucky’ with the right lottery ticket, a name change and a wig.

What happened to the British Bulldog traits of tenacity, innovation and employing a sense of humour?

Blitz spirit has been replaced by klutz pride.

We no longer ‘keep calm and carry on’ but keep bleating on.

Baltic countries must piss themselves laughing the way everything grinds to a halt (or threatens to) at the mere prospect of a snowflake - stuff they deal with daily.

Why is the UK never prepared for winter just being winter?

Instead of spending money preaching about how we can all ‘stay safe’ and text alert systems, why not divert that money to more gritters, modernising trains and train tracks?

So much is made of ‘locally sourced’ food but winter weather highlights the importance of locally sourced STAFF in schools and other key services to ensure communities continue to function as normal.

If you are over 40 you will remember that anything you now see reported as headline news, was once dismissed as the norm. Even the odd power-cut wasn’t deemed that big a deal.

We grew up optimistic technology would enhance our capabilities as a nation. Instead, the modern ‘solution’ always seems to be to ‘stay home’.

Like folk lining up for ‘The Ghost Train’, people wait to be told what to fear and when it ‘might’ arrive.

Download the app, turn on the news and get the alert sent to your phone so you know when to be extra, extra scared as opposed to just scared.

But as with the NHS beds circus, it’s never about resolution, is it? Never about how infrastructure can better cope, just as it’s never about providing more hospital beds.

Why? Because solutions don’t fit in with the overall agenda of fear.

• Be afraid of ‘bad’ weather

• Be afraid of getting sick.

• Be afraid of leaving your house.

This isn’t inspiring Boy Scout preparedness, but for the most part gaslighting nonsense that evokes feelings of helplessness and victimhood.

No!

We have lives to live!

Refuse to buy in to the modern epidemics of stupidity and exaggeration.

The real thing to be afraid of is, fear itself.

It stops us making rational decisions and applying inventiveness. It hampers us way more than inclement weather.

So, what to do?

Trust your instincts, look at the sky, pay attention to what animals are doing. That’s how your ancestors navigated the seasons - and the rest of life. It’s a system that has served humanity rather well.

Take a look around at your own immediate surroundings right now. What is actually happening, both in your house and outside it? Contrast this with the level of batshit propaganda you have been subjected to on the news.

Ask yourself “Am I safe and dry right now?”

Ask yourself “If particularly bad weather hit, would I be prepared? Do I have candles, blankets, food supply. Would I be able to lend a hand to those without such things?”

And then?

Just get on with your life.

It’s a blizzard of bollocks.

And as such, it will all blow over.

Until the next shit storm of stupidity, obviously.

In terms of the chaos induced, the image of a snow globe comes to mind. Something deliberately shaken and agitated for maximum effect.

Refuse to be the grinning idiot trapped inside it.

PS: Thanks for reading. I now have more than 400 pieces on substack. If this rant resonates, you can find more opinion pieces under the heading ‘opinion piece’ on my home page.

You can also share, leave a thoughtful comment, ‘buy me a coffee’ or take out a paid subscription to support my writing.