• After witnessing the continued decrease of involvement in the SpotterNetwork staff in serving SN members with troubleshooting issues recently, I have unilaterally decided to terminate the relationship between SpotterNetwork's support and Stormtrack. I have witnessed multiple users unable to receive support weeks after initiating help threads on the forum. I find this lack of response from SpotterNetwork officials disappointing and a failure to hold up their end of the agreement that was made years ago, before I took over management of this site. In my opinion, having Stormtrack users sit and wait for so long to receive help on SpotterNetwork issues on the Stormtrack forums reflects poorly not only on SpotterNetwork, but on Stormtrack and (by association) me as well. Since the issue has not been satisfactorily addressed, I no longer wish for the Stormtrack forum to be associated with SpotterNetwork.

    I apologize to those who continue to have issues with the service and continue to see their issues left unaddressed. Please understand that the connection between ST and SN was put in place long before I had any say over it. But now that I am the "captain of this ship," it is within my right (nay, duty) to make adjustments as I see necessary. Ending this relationship is such an adjustment.

    For those who continue to need help, I recommend navigating a web browswer to SpotterNetwork's About page, and seeking the individuals listed on that page for all further inquiries about SpotterNetwork.

    From this moment forward, the SpotterNetwork sub-forum has been hidden/deleted and there will be no assurance that any SpotterNetwork issues brought up in any of Stormtrack's other sub-forums will be addressed. Do not rely on Stormtrack for help with SpotterNetwork issues.

    Sincerely, Jeff D.

Firing of 800 NOAA Employees

Mike Smith said:
Hi Boris, just because I write something could be done doesn't mean I think it should be done.

With the exception of IDSS and similar NWS activities I'm perfectly content with the current public/private sector balance. IDSS, which was never a good idea, needs to go away in an era of scare resources.
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Correct on "could be" and "should be." I just think in these volatile times, it is easier to misinterpret or misread things on social media. That's why I asked for clarification.
 
Mike Smith said:
I appreciated your comment. But, as to the above, let the city or county pay for the private sector meteorologist.

However, it is absurd to believe NFL and other pro teams cannot afford private sector support.
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Same goes for MLB. How many times do we see them playing games with lightning in the area? And then one close strike, and they all run off the field! And then the ground crew comes out and starts laying the tarp? Not a wise thing to do. and they assume just b/c lightning is occurring it is going to rain. This is where a dedicated meteorologist for the team or park would really make a difference.
 
Mike Smith said:
While the British Meteorological Office and the French meteorological services have for-profit arms, there is nothing in the NWS enabling legislation which allows them to do so. There would be a collapse in support for the NWS if that were allowed.

I'm confused by your phrase, "much like other companies" The NWS is a government agency of the United States under the U.S. Department of Commerce. Under the U.S. Constitution, there must enabled legislation for the government to do something.
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I had the UKMO in mind when asking the question, as that seems like a good approach. It provides free to the public forecasts, videos, information, and even an app, while also providing revenue generating services to the private sector.

With budgets under such scrutiny in US politics, allowing the NWS to offer similar services to the private sector could bring in much needed financial support.
 
Jamie H said:
I had the UKMO in mind when asking the question, as that seems like a good approach. It provides free to the public forecasts, videos, information, and even an app, while also providing revenue generating services to the private sector.
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I don't understand. Why should the NWS provide duplicative services to private sector weather companies who have invested millions in their businesses? The USA is very different from Europe w/r/t the relation between the public and private sectors.

That said, if the safeguards I mentioned were part of it, I'd be for it.
 
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