The Washington Hospital Center has fired 11 nurses and 5 other administrative staffers in the wake of back-to-back snowstorms that made it all but impossible for some employees to reach the hospital — which is no excuse for absenteeism. The Washington Post reports that dozens more could be fired for missing work on days when streets went unplowed and District officials asked people to stay off the roads. Let it serve as a lesson to any other slackers out there: Shirley Ricks, a 57-year-old nurse who has worked at the hospital her entire career and had no way of navigating the unplowed roads between her home in Upper Marlboro and her job near Howard, will not be given any special treatment. The hospital’s zero-tolerance policy is in keeping with employee guidelines, except that it isn’t, because the employee guidelines say that “[u]nscheduled absences and late arrivals occurring during a declared weather emergency are not counted when addressing attendance issues”. And, no, Washington Hospital Center won’t be letting sterling employment records stand in the way of doing what is fair. Even if what is fair is totally, totally bonkers.