Land of Oz

It's Hot, but...

Heat taxes utilities, human endurance By DON BABWIN, Associated Press Writer CHICAGO - Elderly residents were evacuated ...

Yeah, it's hot. And yeah, I hate it when it's hot. But it's always been hot. Global warming? Maybe, but the high temperature record for Saginaw is 111 degrees back in July 13, 1936. While I know it's dangerous and nasty and just plain uncomfortable, why make such a big deal out of it? "Taxes... human endurance?"

It wasn't really that long ago when there wasn't air conditioning. If you were lucky you had a fan - and really, fans don't go back that far either. Basically when it was hot, you just lived with it. Think back to the way the early settlers dressed - both men and women, but especially women. Most wore more clothes at one time than I could figure out how to wear. No short sleeves, no short light dresses. Heck, most of the time you didn't even see people without ties and jackets.

Now while I would give up my TV before I'd give up my A/C, it isn't something that's been around all that long. In fact, there's still a lot of folks (almost 50% I read somewhere) that still don't have A/C, and probably won't any time soon. So, while yes it's really hot and really uncomfortable, I don't hardly see it as taxing human endurance. Taxing human comfort maybe, and taxing some especially old or young humans maybe, but not really taxing human endurance.

I guess I'm one of those odd ones however since I'd much rather be looking over a snow covered driveway with blowing drifts and a shovel in my hand right now, than at a clear, lush green lawn where it's 98 in the shade and sweat is soaking my shirt and mosquitoes biting my ass.

// posted by Jim-of-oz @ 8/01/2006 02:19:00 PM