Missing Mount Hood Climbers Rescued: Yawn

In December, three climbers died on Mount Hood after getting trapped by a blinding snowstorm. More than 35 climbers have died on Mount Hood in the last quarter of a century.

At that time I wrote:

I’m sick of hearing about the missing climbers; I’m sick of watching the relatives of the missing men on TV praise the courage of the climbers, and I’m sick at the thought that taxpayers are paying for the rescue efforts.”

Surprisingly more than a few of the emails I received shared my view, but many emotionally-infantile Americans were glued to the cable news outlets, captivated by the plight of the missing idiots.

Once again three climbers were missing on Mount Hood, once again they received tons of media attention, but this time I didn’t detect so much saccharine sympathy.

In fact, a few of the stories seemed to be more concerned with the plight of the black Lab the climbers took with them. I’ll be honest, the mountaineers made a choice to undertake a foolhardy expedition and I wasn’t concerned with their plight. But the poor dog didn’t have a choice in the matter, his negligent owner needlessly brought him along.

Oh, but some say, one reason the climbers survived is because the dog’s body heat helped keep them alive. A dog is creature who feels pain from the frigid elements — he isn’t a damn blanket.

The rescued climbers are now safe and snug at home, and I hope they aren’t too dense to realize that a lot of Americans were more concerned about the dog.