I like the t-shirt idea. May I propose the "Holy Rolling Empire?"Then put broom bristles on our bike helmets like the Roman helmets of yore. Seriously, I don't think Paul Schlecht would be caught dead on a bicycle even if he had one. Rather, I would use a reverse argument and take him around and show him the billions of dollars wasted on the automobile infrastructure paid for by millions of cyclists.I don't mean just tax dollars for concrete, but tax dollars for police enforcement and maintenance, ambulance crews and training, fire department paramedics, storm sewer construction and maintenance, snow removal and side effects, signage, drivers ed through public schools, government and school liability coverage, right-of-way and easement payments, parking accessibility, parking fee collections, and some others I may have forgotten. I wonder what percentage of the local and state taxes are devoted to catering to the automotive constituency?Then there are non-tax costs like insurance, auto maintenance, fuel prices, fuel distribution networks, fuel spills, auto depreciation, recall downtime, and not to mention collisions with stationary objects, other vehicles, property, and wildlife. Then I would thank him for spending all of my money just so he can go 60 mph. Darryl(disclosure: I also drive but shouldn't change the gist of the argument.)
--- On Fri, 2/5/10, India Rose Viola <[email protected]> wrote: From: India Rose Viola <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [Bikies] Opportunity for comment or indigestion at WiSJ To: "Robbie Webber" <[email protected]> Cc: "Bikies" <[email protected]>, [email protected] Date: Friday, February 5, 2010, 2:34 PM I think we should invite Paul on a bike ride that includes streets and paths where bikes have been included in their plan and on ones where they haven't. That way he can see how utterly awesome it is to commute by bike during rush hour on a street that has been planned for cars and cars alone. Although I have to admit that I am ultra-proud to be part of the imaginary "bike reich". Might have to make up some T-shirts for that one. Bicyclists really are just like the "Holy Roman Empire". Really. That is what the helmets are all about. Well, at least someone thinks we're winning (as if that's what including ped & cycling infrastructure is all about). I'm off to celebrate our fabricated victory! -india ----- Original Message ----- From: Robbie Webber <[email protected]> Date: Friday, February 5, 2010 2:21 pm Subject: [Bikies] Opportunity for comment or indigestion at WiSJ To: Bikies <[email protected]> > Depending on how you feel about the usual, "Bicyclists have too much > power!" vs. "Bicyclists are the salvation of Earth!" back and forth - > some love the rough and tumble debate, and others just want the noise > to stop - you can either wade into the fray or avoid it. But you can > bet that the letter to the editor linked below will be generating lots > of comments. Here's your chance to be one of the first. > > Paul W. Schlecht: Madison bows to wishes of ‘bike reich' > http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/opinion/mailbag/article_c72ef932-1290-11df-bf53-001cc4c03286.html > > > > Robbie Webber > Bike Walk Madison Steering Committee > www.bikewalkmadison.org > Join our group on Facebook! > _______________________________________________ > Bikies mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [email protected] http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org
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