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Mohawk Mountain Ski Death
By Jamie MacKenzie, Cornwall
When a child was killed recently at Mohawk Mountain Ski Area, business continued on as usual without so much as a nod of respect for the tragedy that occurred there, regardless of where responsibility lay. The mountain's multiple snow machines—one of which was the resting place, only hours before, for a dead and battered girl, an out-of-town visitor to our community—droned on into the night, insultingly dismissing any concern with their glistening spectacle.
Many will argue that larger ski resorts never close when a death takes place on their slopes. Does this, then, make it the right thing to do? Is this how Cornwall would like to be represented?
People will also say that closing—even for half a day—could traumatize children, making them fearful of "getting back out on the slopes." To many it seems more important to have the illusion that all is well—unbroken and intact—than to have even an hour or two of reflection and respect. If a break in pure recreation had happened, how would parents have explained it to their children? Perhaps a temporary closing would have given parents the opportunity so many miss in reflecting with their children about difficult issues such as death.
Some have commented that Mohawk's lawyers may have advised them that any closing could signal a degree of culpability. Although culpability and respect for a dead child and her family have nothing to do with each other, it is easier in a crisis to remember to protect one's dollar investment than it is to show emotion. And, in the end, there are finances to be considered: closing for a day, or even an evening or morning, would have caused loss of revenue in an already disastrous winter season.
Finally, it has been said that Mohawk's president, Carol Lugar, is devastated by the tragedy last week. But this cannot be true. To be "devastated," one must feel "laid waste, ravaged, overwhelmed, very affected." If she or her partners had been truly devastated, they would have had the courage to close Mohawk, immediately, for simply a brief while—instead of choosing to protect themselves and their commerce.
Have we learned so little from events in September, and forgotten so quickly, that our priorities should, and can, be different?
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