Hg - Excellent statement!! We should also call 911 to report parked cars on the street, after all it is an emergency.

According to another ariticle posted here on the GazetteExtra, 911 is still the go to number for emergencies. So what that is saying is if the city declares a "snow emergency" we should all call 911 and report that it is snowing. Since we are discussing how politically correct the statement is, then perhaps we should act accordingly when we are in a snow emergency. Hmmmm.

I'm with you, Frank. Before adulthood I wondered what a Snow Emergency was. Talk about anticlimactic!

I like the point previously made (before the million tangents) to call it what it is. It is JUST a matter of parking, so keep it at that. Parking Ban, etc makes sense.

"fewer deseases, fewer drunk drivers"?
hg - What planet are you living on? Plagues, world-wide flu epidemics, 40 year lifespans? No comparison. And, we do have a lot fewer drunk drivers...we just have lots more headlines and newspaper hype!

Frank

I think you have way too much time on your hand if this is the way an accomplished journalist has too spend his time!

Good article ! And spot on too.
Let's see....we now have "Undocumented Aliens", so maybe we should change these NORMAL Wisconsin snows to "Undocumented Flurries" !!! Bahahaha...
Good gracious, this is Wisconsin folks...and it snows in winter here...

Hey Sigma40, perhaps if we did live in huts, ride horses, and using candles for lights, the world would be a better place to live. Just think, back then there were fewer deseases, fewer drunk drivers, fewer side effects from medications that are supposed to help us but in fact cause even more problems, less polution, less deaths on the highways, better family and personal morals, I could go on and on. Have we really advanced for the better? It really does not seem like it. Oh and lets not forget there was a Government that was for the people and by the people instead of against the people and by the rich. Welll, okay, except for the Native Americans. They truely suffered the brunt of Americas dream didn't they?

"It's Wisconsin and it's going to snow"

ohmygosh1000 - If everyone used your logic of "because we did it like that before means we should continue doing it still"... we would all be living in huts using candles for light and riding horses. Times change. The word "emergency" means exactly that... Is a snowfall an emergency? No, its normal. If the snowfall creates a situation such as knocks power out to the whole city, then an "emergency" can be declared because that would require immediate action.

The term "snow emergency" has been used for decades and decades and a reasonable person understands what that means. Does it matter what you call it? Really?
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Sigma: if your employer canceled work based on the calling of snow emergency by the city, they are incompetent. If they canceled work based on the forecast, that seems prudent.

I remember when these events were simply identified as winter weather.

Dont worry people-Noted climatologist AL Gore and I are predicting abrupt climate change-in the next 150-170 days janesville, its city govt, the good citizens of Rock county, heck most of southern Wisconsin will experience dramatic warming-I am not sure if a "heat emergency" is in order-but few people outside of news rooms will be thinking about a snow emergency-but likely some will call this abrupt change a heat "crisis"

Who will save us from this crisis?

Have people actually complained about the wording of this directive? Has this really ever been an issue? Just wondering....

There is always a certain percentage of people who do not read any news, use the internet, or watch news on TV.
No amount of posted hype will affect these people...unless ticket writing and towing of violators is strictly enforced.
My sister in Chi-town is very careful about where and when she parks on the street, as they ridgidly enforce the parking laws there.

I'm pretty confident that whatever Sigma40 thinks is a good indicator that the opposite is common sense.
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The phrase "snow emergency" has been used for a long time, and from what I can tell, it is NOT SUFFICIENT to warn people to move their cars or shovel their sidewalks or, if you like, to stay off the roads. The word only means "a situation out of the ordinary" or "serious, unexpected, and often dangerous situation requiring immediate action", which sounds like what it is. It doesn't mean "you will lose your life" or "someone is currently losing their life" but it surely does mean "people who do not respect the situation are at risk of losing their lives (or at least injury)". Remember, the whole point of plowing the streets isn't so they look pretty, it is for the SAFETY of the people USING the roads.
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Some of the people who think "Oh, I'll just dig out" really don't give a fig if the rest of us have to come over a hill and swerve around their snow pile -- for WEEKS.
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If we decide that for reasons of esthetics, all I can tell, the word "emergency" is TOO imperative, I'm not sure how we make sure that people respect the new language like "alert" or "caution". After all, we have years of knowing that too many people basically ignore the words TORNADO WARNING because they only think it means there MIGHT be a tornado.

My place of employment closed early because the administration was all concerned about the "snow emergency" that was declared. This is getting ridiculous. Are they over dramatizing the weather to stimulate the economy or something? All these places shut down and the interstate looks to be flowing great, the roads are fairly good....like a average moderate snow fall. 10-20 years ago people wouldnt have batted an eye and went on as normal. Today its like Armageddon. Pathetic.

hg- about the south and 1 inch. No I haven't and WE in WI are not living in the south. This is relevant.

I'm not sure how common this is in Wisconsin communities, but most cities in Michigan have a street parking ban during the winter between 12am and 6am (or some variant of this).

It makes parking for people who live in densely populated areas more difficult, but it sidesteps this "snow emergency" nonsense, and it clarifies when people are going to get ticketed.

Years ago, I was in charge of a facility and had a number of people who worked for me. Here's what I used for a definition:
"Emergency" is "fire or impending death".
Nothing else is an emergency.

Hey frogger, have you ever lived in the South where everything does close down for an inch of snow? An inch of snow designates the closing of schools, employed people being sent home from work and told not to come in until it melts. Grocery stores running out of anything you can eat or drink because of hording. Three inches of snow means if you drive your car on a public road you will get a ticket if you get caught by the police. I've seen it and lived it. And I think it is a little extreme being originally from Wisconsin but I guess when you live where there are mountains and no plows you must do what you have to do.

Snowpocalypse

A "snow evacuation order"?
A "snow clearance alert"?
A "snow removal order"?
A "snow hits the fan alert"?
A "winter weather alert"?
A "It's Wisconsin alert"?
What are some other creative responses?

"ordinance"!!!
emergency sounds like you shouldn't come outside. Oh but we close everything down if the precip starts falling from the sky- OH NO!! I see neighbors to lazy to get their car off the road and park in their own driveway. I saw them go from driveway to street and they didn't even plow yet. DUH- moron

Sigma 40's got it right; "snow alert" - being alert is the best way to deal with the situation and it doesn't cause a panic.

Snowzilla

Have a house fire or heart attack during a snow emergency, and you'll understand why they call it a snow emergency.
I'm just sayin'...

How about "common sense"

How about, " The sky is falling, the sky is falling " . Good grief , just say the magic word, "Snow". Most people know what that is and what goes with it.

The day has come where words will not do it. So many can't read or if they can, what language should the alerts be written in ? Perhaps a symbol would be best. A nice snowflake with a shovel next to it would work.

All it does is strike panic and fear into the public. Look at where we are... we get a flurry and its treated like armagedon.
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An Emergency is a sudden, urgent, usually unexpected occurrence or occasion requiring immediate action. So this is not something that you schedule...lol.
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"Snow Alert" is more appropriate, but they will never change it because they are afraid of change.

I like saxcat70's phrase. Instead of saying, "A snow emergency goes into effect at noon", it should be stated, "The Janesville weather ordinance goes into effect at noon." Becasue basically isn't that what it is? An ordinance the city has enacted to allow plows to clear the streets? So call it what it is, an ordinance. To simple I guess.

Enact a "weather ordinance".
maybe the "snow emergency" , limiting parking, is associated with the "emergency brake"???

How about calling it "Dont park your cars on the street until plowed, even if they dont get plowed for days". Happend to us MANY times at the old house. Other streets around our were plowed but by time they got around to plowing ours, the snow was hard packed and the plows wouldnt get that up and there would be 2" of iced up snow pack on the road until it thawed.

Snowmageddon

A snow threat? Parking ordenance alert? Snow situation? Parking alert?Geez there"s so many variations. Lol.