Matt, Thank you for your research on this. I wonder, though, if BFW should not push for vulnerable user legislation simply because "[t]here is a powerful and ignorant group that goes ballistic at the mere mention of improving the transportation experience for non-drivers." For one thing, the often shrill, irrational arguments of Agenda 21 opponents lessen their credibility to elected officials and the public. I've seen a local conservative commentator and a State official publicly dismiss them, although the latter with coded, tactful language. And opposition, even if it's formidable, is insufficient reason by itself to not try. A favorite quote of mine: "If there is no struggle, there is no progress." ~ Frederick Douglass Charlie
--- On Tue, 12/11/12, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: From: [email protected] <[email protected]> Subject: [Bikies] Wisconsin Bicyclists, meet your adversary! To: [email protected] Date: Tuesday, December 11, 2012, 10:06 AM Bikies, As an example of what we are dealing with at the state level, I'd like to introduce you to Kirsten Lombard, leader of the Wisconsin 9/12 group based in Madison. In the first two links, Kirsten discusses tea party plans for opposing Obamacare via a mechanism called "Nullification". While they don't talk directly about transportation, if you look at their chalk board in the background, you can clearly see "Agenda 21" as one of their priorities for 2014. Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CcoTLzAewFs Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3v1TGP8ff5Y If you watch the whole thing, you will see how organized and focused this group is. They have taken classes from national leaders on how to influence state government - the primary means being providing state leaders with a credible threat to stifle grassroots political support during elections if a politician fails to bend to their will. You can see this quite clearly in an open letter to Scott Walker opposing the creation of a statewide exchange, which I would note makes the threat of withholding support and is signed by Kirsten Lombard. http://bit.ly/SOlP1u Our Wisconsin tea party groups have been holding monthly meetings on "Agenda 21", which they view as a plan to force them to live in Smart Growth. Here is a recent Wisconsin Show on Agenda 21 - listen at 11:50 to hear them tie bike lanes into the conspiracy: http://bit.ly/W2OQr5 About two years ago, I tried to engage Kirsten's group in a discussion about transportation issues. I tried to make the case that bicyclists and transit riders are taxpayers, and we are entitled to have our money spent on infrastructure that supports our chosen mode. The most frequent response I got was "I'm not going to let you force me out of my car", to which I replied "I'm not going to let you force me INTO a car". None of my efforts at communication produced any acknowledgement that I as a bicyclist am entitled to be considered in transportation planning. Even when I educated them on how local roads get 83% of their funding from non-user fees like property taxes, they gave no quarter. I hope this gives you some background on why I am concerned about the low success potential of BFW pushing vulnerable user legislation. There is a powerful and ignorant group that goes ballistic at the mere mention of improving the transportation experience for non-drivers. =Matt _______________________________________________ Bikies mailing list [email protected] http://lists.danenet.org/listinfo.cgi/bikies-danenet.org
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