No Sirens In Dension

Last Monday, the sirens in Denison didn’t sound when a severe storm with tornadoes in it approached. A little research showed that the equipment was malfunctioning. I have to wonder about a few things:
1.) How long had it been known that the equipment wasn’t working?
2.) What measures had been put in place to get the equipment repaired?
3.) Why wasn’t it common knowledge that the equipment wasn’t working?
4.) Why are people so reliant on the sirens?

I guess that my biggest question is why WERE the people so reliant on these storm sirens. First of all, no matter where I’ve lived, I’ve been told that these sirens aren’t designed to be heard while one is indoors and their windows closed. So, any person worried about storms have a few options:

1.) Watch the TV for the local weather
2.) Have a weather alert radio.
3.) Use their internet to monitor incoming storms.

While I don’t own a weather alert radio now, I have in the past. They work pretty well. They do get annoying to some extent because many times one will get a warning they’re not exactly wanting. It all depends on how one programs their weather radio. They really don’t cost very much in respect to what they do. After all, isn’t a little personal safety worth a lot? What I DID was I watched the local TV for the incoming weather. The TV stations, KXII and KTEN had VERY good coverage. I will say the KXII “froze” up for several minutes, during the peak of the storm. I tuned to KTEN. I also monitored the incoming weather from my computer. I do realize that some people haven’t jumped into the 21st Century and don’t own computers. OK. I don’t know of ANYBODY that doesn’t have one or more TVs. There may be a few out there. That’s when neighbors come in handy. If I knew that my neighbor didn’t have a TV or a weather radio, I’m pretty sure that I would be knocking on their door, alerting them. However, that doesn’t seem to be the thing to do any more.

The one thing that perturbs me is the attitude that the Government needs to “baby-sit” everybody. Why is everybody up in arms about the lack of a siren that they may or may not be able to hear? It seems to me that people are far too reliant on the Government for far too many things. It’s almost as if ADULTS need baby-sitting. I’m sorry, but this is one of those ideologies that has been preached to me since I was old enough to comprehend, fend for yourself!! I’m an adult now. I have been for many years. The people complaining about the lack of the sirens are also “adults”. I’m sorry, but people need to suck it up and come to the realization that the Government can’t do EVERYTHING!! Just remember, “If the government is big enough to give you everything you want, it is big enough to take away everything you have." (Gerald R Ford) I guess some folks just don’t grasp this. Our taxes are extremely high as it is. Pretty soon, we’ll be giving most of what we have back to the Government, be it Federal, State, or Local. In today’s world, I’d like to see a smaller Government. Wouldn’t you?