The groundhog somehow manages to see spring: Can we trust Punxsutawney Phil?

The video: The (extremely mild) suspense is over. Punxsutawney Phil, Pennsylvania's marmot meterologist, has emerged from his hole to give his annual Groundhog Day prediction to winter-weary Americans. This year, Phil failed to see his shadow, which traditionally means that spring is just around the corner. The groundhog's suspect forecast may (or may not) reassure Americans, as a huge storm continues to blanket two-thirds of the country with snow, ice, and freezing rain.

The reaction: "We all want to believe, but how good is Phil's word?" asks Aaron Couch at the Christian Science Monitor. Not good, unfortunately. A look at Punxsutawney's historical records finds that "the rodent weatherman was right only about 39 percent of the time." He'd be better off tossing a coin (if anatomically capable of doing so). With a record like that, he should just give up, says Chris Menning at Buzzfeed. "You're a groundhog," Phil. "You didn't even go to meteorology school," and what's more, "your top hat looks ridiculous." See Punxsutawney Phil make his widely dismissed prediction:

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up