rhdy
Little Ring
Posts:86
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| 07/29/2008 9:31 PM |
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Check this sh!+ out:
http://gothamist.com/2008/07/28/cop_caught_on_video_assaulting_cycl.php
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GeraldZ
Granny Gear
Posts:45
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| 07/29/2008 10:02 PM |
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Good seeing you out at the race Rob. I saw that video today. The cop said the cyclist came at him after he was told to stop and since the cyclist refused he was taken down.
The video sure doesn't seem to go that way, in fact it looks as if the cyclist was trying to go around him. |
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Rowbear
Big Ring
Posts:378
Registered Users
Lexington, KY
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| 07/31/2008 9:50 AM |
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| the cop isn't a cop anymore, his badge was taken. Good thing there were tourists with cameras around. |
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creeping death
Big Ring
Posts:244
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| 07/31/2008 12:09 PM |
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| That cop must have played football. He looked like a linebacker knocking a running back out of bounds. |
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s0ckeyeus
Big Ring
Posts:168
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| 07/31/2008 3:08 PM |
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The whole Critical Mass thing seems rather counterproductive.
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nick
Little Ring
Posts:66
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| 07/31/2008 4:47 PM |
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not so much. the purpose of a critical mass was to get attention the attention of motorist....congress....or who ever to notice cyclist. Yeah some of the more recent stuff is more of the shananagan type but they can still be organized.
A guy running for mayor in Owensboro has said that the only people that ride bikes are drunks and drug addicts that have lost their license, so why do we need bike lanes. So what better way to teach that guy a leason than to hold up traffic that he is in when leaving his public political meeting every month. :) yeah it doesn't get huge here or anything but cyclist have been going to the public hearings and riding to and from there. |
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Jeff Viniard
Granny Gear
Posts:46
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Murray/Crestwood, KY
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| 07/31/2008 9:26 PM |
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| The problem with CM, in my somewhat ill-informed opinion, is that it's jumped the shark pretty whole-heartedly. CM rides were (and can still be) a fantastic tool for advocating cyclists' rights, mostly due to the sheer force of numbers that show up for some of the larger rides. But since the ride in NYC has moved away from its roots in nonviolent protest and civil disobedience, it's not only lost whatever tenuous credence it may have had in the mind of Joe Sixpack in the nearby car, but opened itself up for the sort of enforcement the NYC brings to bear. |
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OCguy
Big Ring
Posts:217
Registered Users
Oldham
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| 07/31/2008 9:56 PM |
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| I prefer Inertial or Gravitational Mass myself...but who's countnin'? |
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Rowbear
Big Ring
Posts:378
Registered Users
Lexington, KY
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| 07/31/2008 10:18 PM |
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Posted By Jeff Viniard on 07/31/2008 9:26 PM
But since the ride in NYC has moved away from its roots in nonviolent protest and civil disobedience, how has it done that?
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Jeff Viniard
Granny Gear
Posts:46
Registered Users
Murray/Crestwood, KY
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| 07/31/2008 11:20 PM |
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Well I wish I could find the news clip, but wasn't there a news story a few weeks ago about CM riders surrounding a car, forcing it to a stop, and punching out some windows or somesuch? Yeah, I think the riders were antagonized by the motorist, but that still qualifies as violent escalation in my book.
When talking about cyclists' rights, I'll come down on the side of the riders every time. But there's gotta be a better way to make a statement for it than the way CM's are going right now. Yeah, you could make a valid argument that Critical Mass isn't about protesting, or about anything for that matter. But when there's that many people riding bikes in that visible of a fashion, they've gotta give some consideration to whether they're trashing cyclists' reputations as a whole. |
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OCguy
Big Ring
Posts:217
Registered Users
Oldham
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| 08/01/2008 4:03 AM |
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| CM had "problem" written all over it from the start. If you look at the studies on human behavior in "crowds" it is pretty amazing what happens. |
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s0ckeyeus
Big Ring
Posts:168
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| 08/01/2008 9:39 AM |
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*** Deleted...the post appeared twice...see below ***
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s0ckeyeus
Big Ring
Posts:168
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| 08/01/2008 9:40 AM |
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I'm not sure how anyone could expect a positive response to a mass of bikers clogging an intersection. People get angry when that crap happens.
It reminds me of a video one of my college professors showed in class about Al Sharpton's protest in Bensonhurst, NY. Basically, an African-American kid was killed and a few others were beaten up by a gang of white kids. A few days later, Sharpton led multi-day marches through the predominantly white neighborhood. While protests like this can be effective in the proper context, this particular march just fueled the flames, evoking a racist response from the white residents resulting in more disparity than had been there in the first place. Even when practicing "civil disobedience" for a just cause, the execution may be counter-productive.
All of us want a safer relationship with cars, but organizing huge rides to intentionally clog the system is not a good thing. Be visible. Ride your bike. Abide by the rules. Earn respect.
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OCguy
Big Ring
Posts:217
Registered Users
Oldham
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| 08/02/2008 6:06 PM |
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| That's all doublespeak. |
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