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This article was recently published in the calgary sun, and i know we have cyclists on here, not so sure about road bikers and that, but personally this guy is going to make a lot of people somewhat mad.
Although I do see some of the points he makes, being i do work at a bike shop.
None-the-less an article like this is just plain unnecessary.
What do you all think?
'Chain' reaction
Idea to crack down on cyclists a real Schwinner
By IAN ROBINSON
Prejudice alert.
Before I get started on the city's recent "crackdown" on bad behaviour by
bicyclists, I have a confession: I hate bicyclists.
Whenever I see somebody over the age of 12 riding a bike, I assume they're
one of four things:
1. A self-satisfied, sanctimonious environmentalist busy reducing his carbon footprint.
2. An irresponsible drunk who lost his driver's licence.
3. A moron who couldn't pass the written test to get a driver's licence in the first place.
4. A THC-addled bike courier still high from the previous night.
This, as has been pointed out to me numerous times by my friends who ride bikes, may be a trifle unfair.
While I have come to a grudging acknowledgement not all bicyclists are Mad-
Max morons bent on destroying the social contract, there are enough of them that my generalized loathing remains.
I am delighted when I read medical stories informing us male bicyclists suffer from reduced sperm counts because of the way their junk interacts with the
bike seat.
With luck, bicyclists will reproduce less frequently, eventually placing them on the endangered species list. Then we can go visit them at the zoo like
another reproductively challenged creature, the panda.
You see, I live near Fish Creek Park. Proximity to the park adds considerably
to the value of my house. I used to love to walk there, until the legions of bike-riding, road hooligans drove me out.
When I started walking in Fish Creek along paths that are officially multi-use -- as in bicyclists are supposed to play nicely with everybody from dog
walkers to little kids to old ladies on walkers -- there was little conflict.
Over the years, it changed.
Maybe bicyclists are the canary in the coal mine when it comes to the social contract. Maybe they're a bellweather animal whose behaviour heralds
serious and destructive changes in society.
Whatever the reason, things changed. Bicyclists would run over the dog's leash before I could get the hound reeled in. They passed without warning,
flashing past at ridiculous speed, a speed that could kill or maim if a collision
occured. They posed a serious and immediate threat to my children often
enough that it took all the fun out of hanging out with my kids in the park.
If challenged about their behaviour, the bicyclist's typical response was to flip you off and emit a string of curses as he rode away.
I started to think that I should maybe give up on places bicyclists gathered when I started carrying a walking stick on my strolls. Not because I needed it to get up the hills, but because I was harbouring dark thoughts about jamming it into some moron's spokes.
So the crackdown on bicyclists on the city's pathways is more than welcome,
although I'm a little resentful that the bylaw boys were only generally handing out warning tickets during the kick off.
It's also fascinating that there's a $50 fine for bicyclists exceeding the 20 km/h speed limit at a time when city council is mulling a $1,000 penalty for dropping a cigarette butt on the street.
Ald. Druh Farrell noted such littering bylaws are "a last resort when education and common courtesy fail."
Last time I looked, nobody's life was in danger from a cigarette butt in the gutter. They are in danger from the sizeable minority of bicyclists unable to muster common courtesy and sanity while riding.
But for a cadre of effete, limo-liberals on council, a serious crackdown on bicyclists would attack the very constituencies that helped elect them: Lycra-and-hemp-wearing enviro-loonies who figure because they're not
driving a car, they occupy a moral high ground that gives them a licence to speed and endanger others.
Council wants to make Calgary a better and safer place?
Forget the $1,000 littering fines. Start nailing the bicyclists with that kind of penalty.
Posted at:
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnis...f-6402111.html
Although I do see some of the points he makes, being i do work at a bike shop.
None-the-less an article like this is just plain unnecessary.
What do you all think?
'Chain' reaction
Idea to crack down on cyclists a real Schwinner
By IAN ROBINSON
Prejudice alert.
Before I get started on the city's recent "crackdown" on bad behaviour by
bicyclists, I have a confession: I hate bicyclists.
Whenever I see somebody over the age of 12 riding a bike, I assume they're
one of four things:
1. A self-satisfied, sanctimonious environmentalist busy reducing his carbon footprint.
2. An irresponsible drunk who lost his driver's licence.
3. A moron who couldn't pass the written test to get a driver's licence in the first place.
4. A THC-addled bike courier still high from the previous night.
This, as has been pointed out to me numerous times by my friends who ride bikes, may be a trifle unfair.
While I have come to a grudging acknowledgement not all bicyclists are Mad-
Max morons bent on destroying the social contract, there are enough of them that my generalized loathing remains.
I am delighted when I read medical stories informing us male bicyclists suffer from reduced sperm counts because of the way their junk interacts with the
bike seat.
With luck, bicyclists will reproduce less frequently, eventually placing them on the endangered species list. Then we can go visit them at the zoo like
another reproductively challenged creature, the panda.
You see, I live near Fish Creek Park. Proximity to the park adds considerably
to the value of my house. I used to love to walk there, until the legions of bike-riding, road hooligans drove me out.
When I started walking in Fish Creek along paths that are officially multi-use -- as in bicyclists are supposed to play nicely with everybody from dog
walkers to little kids to old ladies on walkers -- there was little conflict.
Over the years, it changed.
Maybe bicyclists are the canary in the coal mine when it comes to the social contract. Maybe they're a bellweather animal whose behaviour heralds
serious and destructive changes in society.
Whatever the reason, things changed. Bicyclists would run over the dog's leash before I could get the hound reeled in. They passed without warning,
flashing past at ridiculous speed, a speed that could kill or maim if a collision
occured. They posed a serious and immediate threat to my children often
enough that it took all the fun out of hanging out with my kids in the park.
If challenged about their behaviour, the bicyclist's typical response was to flip you off and emit a string of curses as he rode away.
I started to think that I should maybe give up on places bicyclists gathered when I started carrying a walking stick on my strolls. Not because I needed it to get up the hills, but because I was harbouring dark thoughts about jamming it into some moron's spokes.
So the crackdown on bicyclists on the city's pathways is more than welcome,
although I'm a little resentful that the bylaw boys were only generally handing out warning tickets during the kick off.
It's also fascinating that there's a $50 fine for bicyclists exceeding the 20 km/h speed limit at a time when city council is mulling a $1,000 penalty for dropping a cigarette butt on the street.
Ald. Druh Farrell noted such littering bylaws are "a last resort when education and common courtesy fail."
Last time I looked, nobody's life was in danger from a cigarette butt in the gutter. They are in danger from the sizeable minority of bicyclists unable to muster common courtesy and sanity while riding.
But for a cadre of effete, limo-liberals on council, a serious crackdown on bicyclists would attack the very constituencies that helped elect them: Lycra-and-hemp-wearing enviro-loonies who figure because they're not
driving a car, they occupy a moral high ground that gives them a licence to speed and endanger others.
Council wants to make Calgary a better and safer place?
Forget the $1,000 littering fines. Start nailing the bicyclists with that kind of penalty.
Posted at:
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Columnis...f-6402111.html
If it's smoken it ain't broken
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