I was lucky in learning to drive. Two uncles, one a state cop, the other a busdriver, took over the training. They insisted on classes only when the roads were in bad shape. They figured--correctly--that any moron could drive on sunny days and dry roads. It took learning to drive on black ice in fog.

Living in Florida now, I can absolutely vouch for the "any moron" part....

For the record, When I grew up in Havertown in the 80's, when it snowed we didn't get the "snow panic" that happens today.

In fact, unless it was 2 inches of ice on the ground; school was rarely canceled becuase of a couple inches.

(Given the results of the Eagles game, I wish we'd had a 2-foot blizzard...)

Fiancé and I were in Niagara Falls/Buffalo for Thanksgiving and, that Friday, it snowed about a foot. The local news desk report, basically, went like this….

“It snowed a foot…..now to sports”

Compare that to DC, with its 20 minutes snow doom and gloom stories lead by the “Storm Tracker Team!” “Snow Stoppers!” “Snow Stacker!”. Hype, be thy name.

For this transplant (from suburban Philly), it’s almost comical, because when I grew up (not so long ago), what we got today in DC would not even be worthy of a local press report.

While fading, if not completely overwhelmed by outsiders, there's a "trogolodytic" Washington remaining. This is the Southern city, complete with its accoutrements like the Chevy Chase, Metropolitan, and Sulgrave Clubs. Even these, though are being taken over by the new power structures, mostly involving lobbyists.

There's also Black Washington. Far Anacostia is very different from most of the rest of the city--it's also the area with the highest crime rates. But it's also different from upper 16th St, traditionally the home of the Black middle class professionals, though they, too, have fled the city. And the ganstas aren't the same as the church ladies, even if they live in the same neighborhoods.

Then there is the migratory Washington, people who are there on government assignments, or working with the "support systems" that feed the gov't, like think-tanks, lobbyists, and the various associations. These folks are around for two-ten years, then move off to other assignments or jobs. They, too, are the loony drivers, the die-hard liberals, the urban "elite/effete".

Just have to specify which Washingtonians you've in mind...

In Denver, snow is unremarkable. So if you miss the latest forecast, you can wake up surprised (8 inches Saturday, and I don't think it was forecast at all). Yesterday we had -- seriously -- 98 mph winds, blowing snow all over the place. Seven degrees this morning. Five below forecast for tonight. And more snow.

GET ME OUT OF HERE!

In terms of DC Metro's "Northern" culture I cite mostly its leftist politics and snobbishness in terms of dress, restaurant dining, and the like. Partly, this is a function of being "urban" more than "Northern" but has much more in common with New York or Boston than, say, Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Charlotte, Memphis, Birmingham, or other big cities further South.

My wife's family has lived in DC since before it was DC, i.e., when it was still part of Maryland. Its native culture is very much Southern, in almost every way.

I believe it was JFK who joked about it as combining "Northern hospitality" with "Southern efficiency".

And, since I seem to be on a contrarian toot, I suspect the bad driving results more from not knowing just which regional bad-driving habit the next guy is practicing. If you live in one place for a while, you get used to the strange crap the local drivers pull... like right turns from the middle lane, or pulling out of parking places directly into traffic.

I learned to drive in western New England, so bad roads were no stranger to me. But in DC, I don't know if the guy next to me knows how to deal with that skid he's sliding into and (appropriately, I believe) give him a lot of extra time and space to make his mistake without taking me out in the process.

This analysis, however, does not explain panic at 1/4" of rain.