Snow Scam

Photo Credit: Mendy Hechtman/FLASH90

I keep hearing all this hype about “major snow storm” or a “blizzard” that is expected here in the hilly, OK mountainous parts of Israel, like Jerusalem, Gush Etzion and Binyamin-Shomron where Shiloh is located.

Jerusalem and all of the regions surrounding it have canceled school long before even one snowflake has fallen from the heavens. And that’s long before any numbers have actually stuck to the ground. In order to guarantee that they stick, Jerusalem’s Mayor Barkat wants the roads emptied. Maybe he’s hoping to ski. Now, if you want clear roads, and only a couple of inches of snow, if any, are really going to fall, then keep the vehicles heating and melting the snow. With all the cars, buses and trucks around, we can probably save money and have clear roads for free.

For years I’ve been mocking these well organized media “snow panics.” It’s clear why they are being done. Someone is making money. The television media stars and cameramen, probably directors and producers, too, have been out for hours or more all bundled up ready to interview the first snowflake. They had better watch out with the lights, or the poor thing will melt before he or is it she or it can get a name out. That would be a shame, wouldn’t it?

And the other people/unions who/that make money from these snow scams are the “snow removal experts.” No doubt they’re the ones who have instructed Barkat on how to make sure the snow looks impressive by emptying the roads so the snow can pile to its maximum. They really want to show their prowess on the snowplows. Maybe I’m wrong, but I keep thinking of their trying to puff up the flurries on a flake version of Viagra. 

Nu, so I decided to do some independent research. Instead of reading the news headlines and interpretations of the forecast numbers. I’ve been going to the weather sites that give me simple to understand numbers. Remember that I’m a CPA’s daughter…

Let’s start with Arutz 7, which has me totally confused. I checked both Ariel and Jerusalem. The temperatures for both are almost identical, but the drash, the interpretation is different: Ariel

4-13°Today January 06 Windy

0-4°Wednesday January 07 Rain Mixed with Snow

0-5°Thursday January 08 Rain Mixed with Snow

0-4°Friday January 09 Rain Mixed with Snow

Jerusalem

3-12°Today January 06 Windy

0-4°Wednesday January 07 Heavy Snow

0-4°Thursday January 08 Heavy Snow

0-3°Friday January 09 Heavy Snow

And here’s another weather site that shows us Shiloh:

Tue. J. 6		Wednesday January 7								Thursday January 8								Friday January 9								Saturday January 10								Sunday January 11								Monday January 12
Local time	20		02		08		14		20		02		08		14		20		02		08		14		20		02		08		14		20		02		08		14		20		02		08		14
Cloudiness, %
Precipitation, mm
Temperature, °C	+9		+7		+8		+5		+5		+6		+8		+6		+6		+6		+6		+3		+4		+4		+5		+5		+5		+6		+7		+6		+5		+4		+6		+8
Feels like, °C	+5		+3		+4		+1		+1		+1		+5		+3		+3		+2		+4		-1		+1		+1		+3		+2		+2		+3				+5				+2
Pressure, mm	687		687		686		686		688		690		692		691		692		691		690		689		691		691		692		690		689		688		689		691		695		696		698		697
Humidity, %	40		57		60		84		70		65		68		78		77		77		78		85		66		66		69		79		85		81		83		85		83		80		81		75

Please look carefully at the numbers. Shiloh’s weather is between Ariel and Jerusalem. Even their “Feels like,” which would be considered “wind chill factor” isn’t as low as the temperatures on the Arutz 7 site.