DOUCHEBAG OF THE WEEK :HURRICANE EARL

With little doubt, hurricane Earl was the big bad of this week, ruining Labor Day weekend for many a traveler. Thankfully not as bad as it could have been by luckily passing further off shore, Earl still did a number on the east coast this week. Hitting the Barrier Islands in North Carolina this week, tourists and residents were forced to flee the monster storm. Likewise in Nantucket and Cape Cod, though the latter was to a lesser degree. Residents of the Cape proved more resilient to leaving mainly because hurricanes hitting there are usually less severe tha predicted, almost certainly due to the cold water off the coast. Global warming or not, it's still pretty fricking cold year round in Massachusetts and Rhode Island in the ocean.
While some will regard the fizzle of Earl a cynical attempt by news casts to pad their broadcasts, it is more to due with our aging weather system equipment that is becoming more and more outdated. Satellite systems are aging badly and need replacement, something we are having a great deal of difficulty due to economic problems and the loss of our space shuttle program. However, better forecasting due to advances in technology have increased out predictability of hurricanes from one day to three. The forecasts I saw were remarkably accurate from about that time period. There was always a chance for it move closer to the coast but those were always slim. True it helps gain ratings reporting a possible direct hit from a storm but it is also needs to be said that any storm could hit and people need to take steps should it. Better safe than sorry. What sucked though was the timing of this storm. Labor Day weekend? Really? While the physical damage was limited, the economic toll, one that I feel is actually worse, will be in the millions. These dollars will all be felt 100% by the locals trying to make money for the last weekend of a rather crappy summer under today's bad economic conditions, ones that are going to get worse I feel. So all the money they might have made on places like the Barrier Islands or Nantucket went up in smoke and most probably didn't even return after the storm had passed. Both places had mandatory evacuations and huge economic liabilities. So way to go Earl. You are indeed douchebag of the week.

Post Script: September 11th arrives soon. Beware of possible real or false flag attacks.