Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m.../05/do0501.xml

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

One cannot help but be amused by all the excitement caused by a
dusting of snow this week. The one day of slight, non-freezing cold
was forecast to be "Siberian", though it was in fact about as Siberian
as Monte Carlo.

Few things depress me more than the BBC weather forecasts, which now
seem obliged to exaggerate any bad weather just in case something
horrid actually does turn up and cause inconvenience. This seems to
stem from the famous failure to predict the 1987 hurricane, not to
mention the unforeseen M11 whiteout of a few years back, when people
were trapped in their cars for hours on a motorway.

If we had a clutch of far less theatrical weather forecasters to start
with, that might help, as a bit of dullness and unexcitement would be
of huge benefit. Even worse, the usually non-existent snow they talk
of is always predicted in centimetres, which is either offensive or
incomprehensible to most of us. When it comes, let in come in inches."


Of course he absolutely correct I think what he doesn’t quite get that
it's not only the BBC but it's generic source the Mett Office and in
turn the Labour Party Spin -their actual bosses.

On their website UKMO congratulated Al Gore winning the Nobel Prize.
UKMO are now known as
"Met Office Weather amd Climate Change"

So the debate is over the world is tobogganing (one with wheels of
course) towards climate catastrophe, it's indisputable, the arctic is
melting, Polar Bears now have a representative at the United Nations
and one may run for presidency, in essence the world is heating up
pretty damn quick.

Okay then I get their point, but how goes that square with the
increasingly shrill warnings of dangerously cold/freezing conditions
they seem to constantly exaggerate? Yet the scenarios for such extreme
events are becoming fewer and further between. When we look back at
the severe winters of our youths we never got all this ‘WARNING’
twaddle, and if anything those winters make so called current severe
spells look pathetic by comparison. So we have less and less chances
of severe cold spells yet increasingly louder warnings of danger.

Now the press overdoing any story is something we come to expect
purely for sales, bit UKMO and the BBC?

Well as I've always said the BBC lives on state backed license fees
and is run by a minority who want to impose their left wing views(all
on generous incomes of course ) over the majority.

As for UKMO-well they once upon a time just got on with predicting the
weather now they seem increasingly a propaganda tool for a corrupt,
minority spin obsessed bunch of left wing opportunist professional
politicians who also want to impose their views over the majority
(let’s call that England)as well. Also to make a poppy show of look
how the government is protecting us from fictitious severe weather via
UKMO and BBC news output, it covers up for the fact that major cities
and town are riddled with violent crimes, the NHS is useless ( I speak
from personal experience) and the economy is unsustainable . That's
the only way I can make senses out of the constant hyperbole coming
from UKMO and BBC yet both aggree that winres are becoming less
severe.

Smoke and Mirror’s I say

In article
,
writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m.../05/do0501.xml

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?
snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
"Honest criticism is hard to take,
particularly from a relative, a friend,
an acquaintance, or a stranger." Franklin P Jones

On 5 Jan, 16:46, John Hall wrote:
In article
, writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m...d=WMCK1TXAYI3D...

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
"Honest criticism is hard to take,
particularly from a relative, a friend,
an acquaintance, or a stranger." Franklin P Jones

The Met Office is terrified of the 'why weren't we warned'
accusations. It now makes them experts at crying wolf. The net result
is that people pay little or no attention to any warnings. The
councils don't mind gritting the roads as they must have a huge
surplus of grit that has been unused for the last maybe ten winters.
Where I do get very annoyed is the result of this not getting caught
out attitude is that forecasts are always OTT. Rain is nearly always
heavy in places with local flooding. Snow is heavy with perhaps 1-3cm
in places. Fog is extremely dangerous and one should think twice
before venturing out. Winds can cause structural damage. I'm just
waiting for the warning of being struck by lightening in thundery
showers!

By the way - there used to be a stroppy left winger called Eric Heffer
- Simon is the exact opposite politically wise!

On Jan 5, 12:18*pm, Pete L wrote:
On 5 Jan, 16:46, John Hall wrote:





In article
, writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m...d=WMCK1TXAYI3D....

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
* * * * * * *"Honest criticism is hard to take,
* * * * * * * *particularly from a relative, a friend,
* * * * * * * *an acquaintance, or a stranger." * * * *Franklin P Jones

The Met Office is terrified of the 'why weren't we warned'
accusations. It now makes them experts at crying wolf. The net result
is that people pay little or no attention to any warnings. The
councils don't mind gritting the roads as they must have a huge
surplus of grit that has been unused for the last maybe ten winters.
Where I do get very annoyed is the result of this not getting caught
out attitude is that forecasts are always OTT. Rain is nearly always
heavy in places with local flooding. Snow is heavy with perhaps 1-3cm
in places. Fog is extremely dangerous and one should think twice
before venturing out. Winds can cause structural damage. I'm just
waiting for the warning of being struck by lightening in thundery
showers!

By the way - there used to be a stroppy left winger called Eric Heffer
- Simon is the exact opposite politically wise!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Over here in Canada and the northeast US, I've noticed that the TV
weather forecasters make a bigger deal out of cold snaps and storms
than I remember as a child. This probably parallels what is happening
in the UK. I guess that weather has become entertainment.

Over here the city governments are always bellyaching that they don't
have enough money budgeted for snowplowing and salting roads when they
know that we will get several 15cm+ snowfalls from November thru
April.

Bob in southern Ontario

On Jan 5, 5:37 pm, mittens wrote:
On Jan 5, 12:18 pm, Pete L wrote:



On 5 Jan, 16:46, John Hall wrote:

In article
, writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m...d=WMCK1TXAYI3D...

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
"Honest criticism is hard to take,
particularly from a relative, a friend,
an acquaintance, or a stranger." Franklin P Jones

The Met Office is terrified of the 'why weren't we warned'
accusations. It now makes them experts at crying wolf. The net result
is that people pay little or no attention to any warnings. The
councils don't mind gritting the roads as they must have a huge
surplus of grit that has been unused for the last maybe ten winters.
Where I do get very annoyed is the result of this not getting caught
out attitude is that forecasts are always OTT. Rain is nearly always
heavy in places with local flooding. Snow is heavy with perhaps 1-3cm
in places. Fog is extremely dangerous and one should think twice
before venturing out. Winds can cause structural damage. I'm just
waiting for the warning of being struck by lightening in thundery
showers!

By the way - there used to be a stroppy left winger called Eric Heffer
- Simon is the exact opposite politically wise!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Over here in Canada and the northeast US, I've noticed that the TV
weather forecasters make a bigger deal out of cold snaps and storms
than I remember as a child. This probably parallels what is happening
in the UK. I guess that weather has become entertainment.

Over here the city governments are always bellyaching that they don't
have enough money budgeted for snowplowing and salting roads when they
know that we will get several 15cm+ snowfalls from November thru
April.

I'd imagine there were always moans in a tiered system such as local
government. In the good old days that wouldn't have made it into the
hallowed circus of television.

But theses days anything goes.

On Jan 5, 4:46*pm, John Hall wrote:
In article
,*lawrenc writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m...d=WMCK1TXAYI3D....

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
* * * * * * *"Honest criticism is hard to take,
* * * * * * * *particularly from a relative, a friend,
* * * * * * * *an acquaintance, or a stranger." * * * *Franklin P Jones

Hands up, yes I made a mistake, I can still vividly remember Eric
Heffer from my left wing days. However that is a silly petty remark.

On Jan 5, 5:18*pm, Pete L wrote:
On 5 Jan, 16:46, John Hall wrote:





In article
, writes:
Eric Heffer in todays Telegraph
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/m...d=WMCK1TXAYI3D....

"What's wrong with a few inches of snow?

snip

It seems that you weren't impressed enough to get his name right. The
article's author was Simon Heffer.
--
John Hall
* * * * * * *"Honest criticism is hard to take,
* * * * * * * *particularly from a relative, a friend,
* * * * * * * *an acquaintance, or a stranger." * * * *Franklin P Jones

The Met Office is terrified of the 'why weren't we warned'
accusations. It now makes them experts at crying wolf. The net result
is that people pay little or no attention to any warnings. The
councils don't mind gritting the roads as they must have a huge
surplus of grit that has been unused for the last maybe ten winters.
Where I do get very annoyed is the result of this not getting caught
out attitude is that forecasts are always OTT. Rain is nearly always
heavy in places with local flooding. Snow is heavy with perhaps 1-3cm
in places. Fog is extremely dangerous and one should think twice
before venturing out. Winds can cause structural damage. I'm just
waiting for the warning of being struck by lightening in thundery
showers!

By the way - there used to be a stroppy left winger called Eric Heffer
- Simon is the exact opposite politically wise!- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Yes you are correct I've got Eric still deeply ingrained in sub
consciousness from my lefty days.