OK, I'm going to try to interpret what Matt said, having had this conversation with him over the years.
"Know thine enemy." What he is trying to say is that, whatever perspective we have, or whatever we would like to change in the world (and we all want to change something), it is important to understand the perspective of those who disagree with us, especially if that other viewpoint represents the majority of the public. I happen to think there are better ways to gain this perspective than listening to the shock jocks and muckrakers on the radio, but at least you can clean your house or file paperwork while listening to the radio. Or maybe if it really raises your ire, it might be a good companion for working out at the gym or powering through a five-mile run. But I am a proponent of being able to at least argue both sides, even if you don't agree with that other side. You will never be able to change minds or win a debate unless you can understand the other side. As I said, Vicky McKenna is not my preferred method for gaining this knowledge. Robbie Webber On Tue, Sep 27, 2011 at 3:39 PM, Liz Zelandais <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi, > > I seek to understand. When I made a comment about henceforth choosing with > purpose not to listen to WIBA, Matt Logan sent me an email (thread below) > through this group seemingly taking me to task and advising me about the > "great mistake" of ignoring the voices expressing the Madison majority > opinion about cyclists. The point he seemed to make was that since Robbie > Webber had gotten ugly letters & email as an alder, she had paid her dues so > should get a pass. But apparently I should listen. And he knows Mitch Henck > personally. Huh? > > I'm not as seasoned as many of you, and I don't get it. What the heck am I > supposed to do? Listen to Mitch Henck to educate myself? And if you're going > to show a newbie the error of his/her ways, wouldn't you bother to inform, > educate, instruct--rather than ignore when asked for clarification? > > I really would appreciate if someone could explain this. > > Thank you. > > Liz Zélandais > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Hi Matt (and other Bikies), > > I agree with your stance, including that WIBA dialogue probably does > reflect the majority Madison view. I ask this sincerely, not with snark: > will my listening to WIBA diatribes that leave me feeling slightly sick be > of benefit somehow? My current thoughts are that choosing not to listen to > Mitch Henck, *et al *does not mean I'm closing my eyes and mind to the > realities. But I'm open to new understanding of why that would be a good > thing for me to do if that is what you're suggesting. I would love to call > in just to ask why they don't dish on the driver who blew a red light on > Monroe this morning and almost mowed me down, but 1) I doubt I would get on > and 2) even if I did, it doesn't seem productive. > > I am gradually doing more commuting by bike; and I'm one of those cyclists > who used to cross against the light if the way was clear. I don't do that > anymore. I try to be religiously observant of traffic laws and signs, even > more for the reflection it brings on the cycling community than for safety. > (Although being uber survival-centric, I focus on safety as well.) I try to > be courteous to autos--as well as to other cyclists & pedestrians. This is > to say that I am aware of the often-tarnished reputation cyclists have in > the eyes of the populace, and besides wanting to be a decent human being, I > also go out of my way to be a good representative of our ilk. > > In light of your opening statement, Matt, what would you propose I do? I am > here to learn. > > Thanks for your thoughtful remarks and input. I appreciate the dialogue. > > Liz > > > ------------------------------ > *From:* Matt Logan <[email protected]> > *To:* 'Liz Zelandais' <[email protected]>; 'Bikies' < > [email protected]> > *Sent:* Monday, September 26, 2011 12:04 PM > *Subject:* RE: [Bikies] WIBA carps on Ride The Drive: > > Liz, > > It is a great mistake to ignore the voices of what I believe to be the > majority of people in the Madison Area. > > Ignorance about bicycling issues is to be expected in our car-dominated > culture. Generalizations cannot be avoided when you are talking about human > beings. And hate? Actor-Observer bias is a well-documented tendency we all > have to attribute perceived differences in behavior as the fault of the > person’s inner nature, and ignore environmental factors, which often are > the true source of our differences. Many of the attitudes opinions you > heard on WIBA are widely held. Let me give you an example: > > After I attended the “Mayor’s Vision on Bicycling” event a couple weeks > ago, I headed to band practice at my Church – Lake Edge UCC. Lake Edge > prides itself on being inclusive, calling itself “open and affirming” of > different viewpoints and lifestyles. As I was helping set up, I mentioned > to one of the band members that I had just attended a city meeting on > bicycling. The band member’s first reaction was to ask when bicyclists were > going to obey all traffic controls. The band member then recited a number > of anecdotes similar to what I have heard on WIBA. In addition to that, I > have heard people complain about the wasted money on the Aberg overpass > (which kicks ass by the way), and there has been some skepticism about the > need for bike boxes. I have also been monitoring comments in the media on > bike stories for a number of years, and general ignorant opposition to > improving the bicycling experience is widespread. > > Maybe you already are connected to these voices somehow. I know Robbie > used to get a steady stream of anti-bicycle e-mail when she was an alder, so > I can understand that listening to WIBA would be redundant for some people. > > For what its worth: Mitch Henck has invited me to be on his show, and I > even spent ½ hour one day talking about some of the bad information out > there regarding the now-defunct RTA and the commuter rail proposal. I have > contacted him numerous times about the content of his bicycling shows. His > view seems to be that we should only build infrastructure for the majority, > and that whining about bicyclists is “fun”. > > > *From:* Liz Zelandais [mailto:[email protected]] > *Sent:* Saturday, September 24, 2011 6:35 PM > *To:* Matt Logan; Bikies > *Subject:* Re: [Bikies] WIBA carps on Ride The Drive: > > Those couple of "thoughtful callers" gave a tiny respite from the > ignorance, generalizations, and hate. I hadn't really listened to WIBA > before (although I once interviewed Henck for an Isthmus article), but now I > join Robbie in not listening to it on purpose. > > Liz > > ------------------------------ > *From:* Matt Logan <[email protected]> > *To:* Bikies <[email protected]> > *Sent:* Friday, September 23, 2011 3:03 PM > *Subject:* [Bikies] WIBA carps on Ride The Drive: > Mitch Henck trotted out the usual anti-bike talking points this morning – > but a couple thoughtful callers managed to get in: > http://bit.ly/pweA0t > > > > _______________________________________________ > 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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