New Yorkers Can't Take Eight Inches?
Snow Days No More! Back to the Bad Old Days Of Zoom School
New York City used to be known as "the city that never sleeps," but the constant fear-mongering by the media over the past four years has put too many citizens of New York in a perpetual state of slumber. Today, the city's leaders are back to enjoying the good old times when they could do pretty much whatever they wanted, thanks to emergency powers. It's like a throwback to when they could come up with any plan, no matter how odd, and everyone would just go along with it without asking questions.
The term 'woke' referred initially to awareness of the injustices marginalized groups face. However, since the pandemic hit, it seems as though the city has lost its fighting spirit. Even though the worst of the pandemic is now over, the city still struggles to shake off its lethargy. It's as if the city has forgotten how to be 'woke' and fight for what is right and just.
New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has proposed a plan to encourage drivers in New York City to use public transportation instead of driving their cars below 60th Street in Manhattan. The plan will charge motor vehicles a significant fee to drive in that zone and encourage drivers to use the "world-class" subway and bus system instead. The effectiveness of this supposed world-class public transportation system is challenged daily, but on a day like today, it casts doubt on its ability to handle large numbers of commuters at times when it might make more sense to use the public transportation system instead.
Schools in New York City are closed today due to a winter storm that has caused a few inches of snow, making driving slower and riskier. City officials claim that the roads are too dangerous to travel on, forcing the Department of Education to keep kids home from school, but these children don't have a snow day because those in power want them to revert back to virtual learning on Zoom.
The powers that be, seem too eager to drag us back to online school circa 2020/2021. My house is now doubling as a classroom again, with my 16-year-old stuck in the weird world of Zoom classes. The highlight today? Two classes that lasted all of 30 seconds because, apparently, teaching over the Internet was below his teachers’ standards. And just when you think it can't get any more odd, the education department's computers have given up and crashed.
He's got a sculpture class later – no idea how that's going to work out. Part of me wants to crash the Zoom-style class, stir things up a bit, and make everyone's day more interesting, but I'll probably end up writing a fiery email to the Department of Education asking for a proper snow day in the future instead of this nonsense.
And what's the next act in this farce? Should I station him before my computer, force him to "mask up" and administer a vaccine cocktail, à la Travis Kelce? Maybe then, he can be "fully vaccinated" (whatever that was supposed to mean). By the end of the day, we both bask in the full splendor of pandemic hysteria once more! Because clearly, New Yorkers still need to have their fill of that drama.
It's as if the city is experiencing a collective memory loss, completely overlooking the turmoil and upheaval that marked our recent history. Have people forgotten how terrible online school was for most students?
I haven't. I remember everything:
Clayton Craddock is a devoted father of two, an accomplished musician, and a thought-provoker dedicated to Socratic questioning, challenging the status quo, and encouraging a deeper contemplation on a range of issues. Subscribe to Think Things Through HERE, and for inquiries and to connect, email him here: Clayton@claytoncraddock.com
Risk aversion giving way to.... liability aversion?
Maybe it's time for me to, now nearly a quarter of the way through this Century of Stupid which began with a hoax about confused clocks bringing on the end of the world, update its title to...
The Century of Stupid Litigiousness?
Or would this be too hard to pronounce?