George Carlin was a funny man. For evidence
He did the same bit more than once but had he done only the same thing he would have been ungodly dull. Indeed, if he had only the one schtick he'd of been Sarah Palin. He had other jokes, for example:
So to all you dimbulbs out there who think that asking a cyclist if the bike has a heater or if it's cold enough for them, let me just say you are more like Sarah Plain and Dumb than you are like George. Just because it's the first time you told the joke doesn't mean it's the first time I've heard it.
Showing posts with label cycling rules. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cycling rules. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Friday, November 4, 2011
Two Videos and Some Questions
Most of us think of k.d. lang thusly:
Some of us remember her thusly:
Or perhaps:
Or even thusly:
Cf.
Okay that's five and it was almost six or possibly seven. Back in, what was it, 84? Cabach and I traveled to the wilds of western Canada for golf and the k d lang Truly Western Experience tape, back in the day of tapes and onions on one's belt. Really liked that tape. What, one wonders, ever happened to the Reclines?
Question one:
Why don't cyclists, which is to say students, use lights?
Question two:
What is wrong with motorists?
And as sub section, what's up with the sudden rash of chowder-headed cyclists passing me on the inboard side forcing or trying to force me into traffic? In other words, why are people assholes?
Question three:
Have any Conservatives and/or Republicans and/or Tea Party Patriots denounced Judge William Adams?
Question four
Why did my rear break stop working?
The last one is, I admit, a bit obscure.
Question five:
Was the Greek Prime Minister's decision to force the hand of his political opponents by threatening democracy the height of hypocrisy or just clever politics?
Question six:
How is at that not everyone finds the story of the Peace of God, as told through R.I. Moore's lens, not the most exciting story in the world?
Enjoy your weekend while you still have one.
Some of us remember her thusly:
Or perhaps:
Or even thusly:
Cf.
Okay that's five and it was almost six or possibly seven. Back in, what was it, 84? Cabach and I traveled to the wilds of western Canada for golf and the k d lang Truly Western Experience tape, back in the day of tapes and onions on one's belt. Really liked that tape. What, one wonders, ever happened to the Reclines?
Question one:
Why don't cyclists, which is to say students, use lights?
Question two:
What is wrong with motorists?
And as sub section, what's up with the sudden rash of chowder-headed cyclists passing me on the inboard side forcing or trying to force me into traffic? In other words, why are people assholes?
Question three:
Have any Conservatives and/or Republicans and/or Tea Party Patriots denounced Judge William Adams?
Question four
Why did my rear break stop working?
The last one is, I admit, a bit obscure.
Question five:
Was the Greek Prime Minister's decision to force the hand of his political opponents by threatening democracy the height of hypocrisy or just clever politics?
Question six:
How is at that not everyone finds the story of the Peace of God, as told through R.I. Moore's lens, not the most exciting story in the world?
Enjoy your weekend while you still have one.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
A Dark And Stormy Night
Second ride through the darkening gloom of a fall evening's rain sodden streets, cold but worth the effort. But for god's sake get some damn lights you damned kids with your hippity hoppity music, and you pedestrians if you are in black I can't see you and if you can see me, as you ought given the number of lights deployed, don't walk into my path.
Friday, October 28, 2011
First
First ride in the fall's dark through rain slick roads. Great time. All you kids, get some damn lights.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Quick Point, Grumpily Made
To the nitwit who nearly run into me on the multiuser path, it wasn't the pedestrian's fault that you crossed over and nearly ran into me; it was your fault for failing to be in control of your bike. Ride, why don't you, like you know what you're doing.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Nun So Blind as Those Who Will Not Look
Today we were working on the Reformation and part of the discussion dealt with the Catholic Church's structure, popes, monks, nuns, priests, and laity. At least one of the students was unclear if monks and nuns still existed. After straightening that out, I left to ride home and was about to cross a boulevard when I stopped because there was a car approaching. On the other side of the street was a kiddie wink, maybe 12 or thirteen, who bolted onto the street and was about to get herself run over. I took, I admit, one third of the Lord's name in vain, shortly after which both the car and the cyclist slammed on their brakes missing one another. I looked at the driver; she was a nun. Honest to goodness. The choice is yours look both ways before crossing or hope for divine intervention.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Smoke Signals
The other day a pal and I were at the grocery and we ended up in a discussion with two other cyclists about hand signals. Neither of the other two knew what they were. I ran through them and mentioned that the use of the left hand has to do with how easy it is for other vehicles, particularly motorists, to see the signals. As it happens for some time now I have used the point with the left hand for going left, point with the right hand for going right. About a block after the conversation, Ian pointed out that I had just said that motorists are unlikely to see my right hand and shouldn't I use the bent left arm instead? Um, er, ah, I argued. The fact is I hate the bent left arm signal, no real idea why but it's aesthetically unpleasing to me. However, having realized that I was wrong and condemned out of my own mouth, I have gone back to the bent left arm.
As the economy continues to morph into some kind of hellish neo-liberal dystoptia, I have become increasingly convinced that the proper response is to marry a rich widow, defraud her of a portion, but not all not even the majority, of her wealth and use to buy a food truck. I would then change my name, I am leaning toward Ish Kabbile and a bbq. In the service of this future easy street, I decided to make a smoked beef brisket. According to all and sundry smoking blogs and webpages it is the sine qua non of bbq. Indeed, according to all and sundry making bbqed beef brisket is slightly, but only slightly, less complicated that than the logistics of the Berlin Airlift. Not true. I went to the store bought a half pre-trimed brisket and seasoned it:
The next day I set up the grill for smoking:
I used two thirds of a chimney of lump charcoal in a little metal container, an aluminum pie tin filled with water and, in total, 1/2 bag of soaked apple wood chips added every half hour or so. And cooked it for about 5 hrs turning it over about half way. It looked like this when I flipped it:
And then, because everybody said to, I took it off the grill wrapped it twice in aluminum and stuffed it in oven at 220 until it was done, about 2 hrs more. After 1/2 hr of resting, it looked like this:
When I sliced it, it looked like this:
It was very, very, good and a lot less work then it sounds.
As the economy continues to morph into some kind of hellish neo-liberal dystoptia, I have become increasingly convinced that the proper response is to marry a rich widow, defraud her of a portion, but not all not even the majority, of her wealth and use to buy a food truck. I would then change my name, I am leaning toward Ish Kabbile and a bbq. In the service of this future easy street, I decided to make a smoked beef brisket. According to all and sundry smoking blogs and webpages it is the sine qua non of bbq. Indeed, according to all and sundry making bbqed beef brisket is slightly, but only slightly, less complicated that than the logistics of the Berlin Airlift. Not true. I went to the store bought a half pre-trimed brisket and seasoned it:
The next day I set up the grill for smoking:
I used two thirds of a chimney of lump charcoal in a little metal container, an aluminum pie tin filled with water and, in total, 1/2 bag of soaked apple wood chips added every half hour or so. And cooked it for about 5 hrs turning it over about half way. It looked like this when I flipped it:
And then, because everybody said to, I took it off the grill wrapped it twice in aluminum and stuffed it in oven at 220 until it was done, about 2 hrs more. After 1/2 hr of resting, it looked like this:
When I sliced it, it looked like this:
It was very, very, good and a lot less work then it sounds.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Bicycle Miscreants
Recently, a city bus struck and killed a pedestrian here in the city by the lakes' weeds. The story isn't over but by all accounts the bus drive was in the wrong. One would think that the various responsible officials would have been drilling it into the bus drivers' heads that they need to be more vigilant in pursuit of not killing people. Indeed, you might think that motorists in general might become more introspective in terms of their need to be more vigilant in not killing people. And yet, events, as they often do, prove your, which is to say my, expectations wrong. Last Sunday not one but two buses tried to get me, one forcing me to slam on the bike's brakes. And when I had a civil discussion with motorist later that same day, he ridiculed the notion that he ought not pass with six inches to spare. Today, two more, actually three now that I think about, tried to get me by ignoring my and several pedestrians existence and legal right of way and just now a car tried to roll slowly through the cross walk while I and some random kid on a bike were crossing, again with the right of way.
During my civil discussion with the motorist concerning proper passing distance, he used the non sequitur of the lack of law abidingness of all or nearly all cyclists, while I denied the universality of cyclists as malefactors of great lycra, I did point out that motorists drive equally like maniacs.
Today, however, I ran across an example of the stupid cyclist to whom, I assume, the motorist referred. First example: a busyish road with a t crossing and three stop signs. The bike lane is on the right, I was turning to the left and signaled then moved across and stopped as a car was already stopped. Just before the car moved off and I got ready to turn left, some crazy person on a semi-commuter bike swerved behind me took a left turn into the wrong lane and proceeded to ride wrong way for over a block. I was laughing and trying not to shout out some kind of invective in hopes forestalling more of the same. Eventually, the rider got back on the right side of the road but did the exact same thing at the end of the street, that is cut across into the wrong lane 100 feet or more prior to a stop sign and turn left without paying the slightest attention to traffic. Crikey, I said, a crazy person on a bike. After a bit more normal riding, the cyclist did the same thing only this time riding the wrong way up a hill on a well traveled road approximately in the middle.
So, I can see where some motorists get the idea that we're all a bunch of maniacs and it would have been nice had I decided to heap abuse on the miscreant, or at least to try and engage in some civil conversation about the mental unbalancedness of thinking that the rest of the world cares if you live or die, hint: it doesn't, but at the same time the only life, we'll leave aside psychological scarring, the cyclist risked was her own. Later that same ride, two cars attempted to sneak across a counterflow bike lane green and mosey through a crosswalk filled with pedestrians just down the street from where the bus hit the pedestrian. Had the first motorist not slammed on her brakes, causing the second in line to toot angrily his horn, they total could have been two cyclists and four pedestrians killed or wounded.
In short, while the world would be a better place if all of us played by the rules of the road, the motorists amongst are more likely to kill and/or maim and to the powerful goes the need to build hedges, as E.P. Thompson put it, to limit the dangers of their greater power.
During my civil discussion with the motorist concerning proper passing distance, he used the non sequitur of the lack of law abidingness of all or nearly all cyclists, while I denied the universality of cyclists as malefactors of great lycra, I did point out that motorists drive equally like maniacs.
Today, however, I ran across an example of the stupid cyclist to whom, I assume, the motorist referred. First example: a busyish road with a t crossing and three stop signs. The bike lane is on the right, I was turning to the left and signaled then moved across and stopped as a car was already stopped. Just before the car moved off and I got ready to turn left, some crazy person on a semi-commuter bike swerved behind me took a left turn into the wrong lane and proceeded to ride wrong way for over a block. I was laughing and trying not to shout out some kind of invective in hopes forestalling more of the same. Eventually, the rider got back on the right side of the road but did the exact same thing at the end of the street, that is cut across into the wrong lane 100 feet or more prior to a stop sign and turn left without paying the slightest attention to traffic. Crikey, I said, a crazy person on a bike. After a bit more normal riding, the cyclist did the same thing only this time riding the wrong way up a hill on a well traveled road approximately in the middle.
So, I can see where some motorists get the idea that we're all a bunch of maniacs and it would have been nice had I decided to heap abuse on the miscreant, or at least to try and engage in some civil conversation about the mental unbalancedness of thinking that the rest of the world cares if you live or die, hint: it doesn't, but at the same time the only life, we'll leave aside psychological scarring, the cyclist risked was her own. Later that same ride, two cars attempted to sneak across a counterflow bike lane green and mosey through a crosswalk filled with pedestrians just down the street from where the bus hit the pedestrian. Had the first motorist not slammed on her brakes, causing the second in line to toot angrily his horn, they total could have been two cyclists and four pedestrians killed or wounded.
In short, while the world would be a better place if all of us played by the rules of the road, the motorists amongst are more likely to kill and/or maim and to the powerful goes the need to build hedges, as E.P. Thompson put it, to limit the dangers of their greater power.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Stop Telling Lies About My Bicycle
P.J. O'Rourke in a particularly silly and lazy anti-bicycle rant inadvertently, I suspect, revealed why Conservatives and fools more generally hate bicycling. And, in so doing, once again revealed that if your ideas are sound lying ought to be unnecessary. His "argument," in part is that
Think about the absolute independence of anyone on a bike, able to whiz here and there unconcerned with the fuel or oil levels; moving freely from the paved to the unpaved and back again. Finding parking with no trouble; no need for pipelines, gas stations, or tow trucks. Think about the misery of car ownership, with its constant and continuous need for gas, oil, new tires, brakes, trained mechanics, costly electronic parts, road repair, highway construction, parking garages, limited parking spaces, and the equal misery of a car-centric universe in which all the stores are over there and "good" parking is hard to find and the traffic to work is terrible and etc.
Which would you rather? The child-like joy and independence of moving yourself from point A to point B or the childish dependence of pasty-faced, self-limiting and expensive following of routes laid out by face-less bureacrats [1]?
One last point, in the course of being wrong about everything having to do with the independence of cyclist and the dependency of motorists, O'Rouke calls the bike, derisively, a donkey car without a donkey. Unknowingly, I assume, he's right. The basic idea behind the creation of a bicycle or, really, all the early human powered vehicles was to replace the expensive, filthy, and unreliable horse, donkey, and oxen with a clean and reliable machine that translated human power into motion. The bike is, in fact, one of the pinnacles of industrial design and techniques.
[1] I kid, road systems are great, although the constant pandering to motorists isn't, because of expert commitment to getting things right.
maybe there's a darker side to bike-lane advocacy. Political activists of a certain ideological stripe want citizens to have a child-like dependence on government. And it's impossible to feel like a grown-up when you're on a bicycle if you aren't in the Tour de France.How, one wonders, is a mode of transportation that hinges on individual effort like the bicycle able to create a sense of dependence? Remember the day when you first learned to ride a bike without training wheels? Or the time you helped a kid learn to ride a bike without training wheels? Remember the pure exhilaration and sense of freedom? How often, when you ride the bike to work or the store, does the feeling come back? For me it's often.
Think about the absolute independence of anyone on a bike, able to whiz here and there unconcerned with the fuel or oil levels; moving freely from the paved to the unpaved and back again. Finding parking with no trouble; no need for pipelines, gas stations, or tow trucks. Think about the misery of car ownership, with its constant and continuous need for gas, oil, new tires, brakes, trained mechanics, costly electronic parts, road repair, highway construction, parking garages, limited parking spaces, and the equal misery of a car-centric universe in which all the stores are over there and "good" parking is hard to find and the traffic to work is terrible and etc.
Which would you rather? The child-like joy and independence of moving yourself from point A to point B or the childish dependence of pasty-faced, self-limiting and expensive following of routes laid out by face-less bureacrats [1]?
One last point, in the course of being wrong about everything having to do with the independence of cyclist and the dependency of motorists, O'Rouke calls the bike, derisively, a donkey car without a donkey. Unknowingly, I assume, he's right. The basic idea behind the creation of a bicycle or, really, all the early human powered vehicles was to replace the expensive, filthy, and unreliable horse, donkey, and oxen with a clean and reliable machine that translated human power into motion. The bike is, in fact, one of the pinnacles of industrial design and techniques.
[1] I kid, road systems are great, although the constant pandering to motorists isn't, because of expert commitment to getting things right.
Friday, March 25, 2011
Why I decide
In today's Wisconsin State Journal on page A4 there is a report of pedestrian injured when she allowed a motorist to decide that it was safe for her to cross the street. The motorists, alas, could only control his or her behavior and not that of the motorist behind him or her who raced round and struck the pedestrian.
That's why I decided when it's safe to cross the street.
That's why I decided when it's safe to cross the street.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Stop Doing That
Seqway riding guy, please stay off the multiuser path you are going too fast and taking up way too much space. Woman driving your car with no hands so that you could read the paper, stop doing that.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
How Not to Walk on a Multiuser Path
Hey two guys walking one on either side of the yellow line with large shopping bags filling most of the rest of the path. I dinged the bell and you didn't respond, you were lost, no doubt, in contented contemplation of the contents of your really large bags. I had to say something to get your attention so lost in thought were you. Next time, you might stop and think about the multi aspect of the multiuser path before you begin to amble contentedly while taking up 80% of the space.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Tit for Tat
Hey older guy on the bike path, I didn't cut you off and what were you sorry for? Line jumping? If you knew it was wrong, why do it? And, for the record, if you think the world is a giant game of tit for tat, which it isn't, if you don't tit no one else will tat; however, if someone tats because of your tit, you really can't complain, can you?
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Bicycling Behavior Explained
Felix Salmon has an interesting post up on why bicyclists fail to follow the rules of the road. By and large it makes a lot of sense except for this:
Beyond everyday rule breaking, motorists become increasingly selfish when they drive and look on everyone else as a barrier to their forward motion and, consequently, they are becoming ever ruder.
But in stark contrast to motorists, nearly all of whom follow nearly all the rules, most cyclists seem to treat the rules of the road as strictly optional.It hasn't been my experience that the majority of cyclist, which is what I take "most" to mean, don't follow the rules. There is, to be sure, a significant minority who do. On the other hand, it has been my experience that a super majority of motorist treat certain important rules as if they are optional. Speed limits are nearly never follow whether in neighborhoods or on the highways. Stop signs are treated like yield signs and yield signs are ignored. Pedestrians' and cyclists' right of way are seen as annoyances to be gotten round.
Beyond everyday rule breaking, motorists become increasingly selfish when they drive and look on everyone else as a barrier to their forward motion and, consequently, they are becoming ever ruder.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
De rit, de ruiters, en de maaltijd
Press briefing:
Q: How was the epic ride this past weekend?
A: Great
Q: Any funny getting lost or the like stories?
A: Nope
Q: Was it of an impressive distance?
A: Not really.
Q: Did you go really, really, fast?
A: Not particularly.
Q: So what makes it so epic?
A: Epic in the sense of not being epic, which is to say ironically epic.
Q: Oy
A: That's not a question.
Q: Did you have any run ins with psychos in vehicles
A: Yes, yes we did.
Q: Was one of the drivers certifiable?
A: Yes, yes he was.
Q: Interested in giving details?
A: No, no I am not. See below.
Q:Did everyone make it okay?
A: More or less, one ritter suffered a bit.
Q: Are all the pictures below yours?
A: No, no they are not.
Executive summary
We left on time, had coffee in Cross Plains, didn't get lost, put up with a mildly annoying motorist and totally insane motorist, ate a bunch of food and drank a bunch of what have you. I rode both ways.
The ride was really nice there was enough wind to keep the temperature down, the roads are in great shape, lots of cyclists out and about on Old Sauk, and the hill as well as on Stage Coach, KP is newly paved, nearly all the motorists were sane and careful (see below). The one cyclist riding up the hill while talking on his cell gets the prize for weirdest behavior of the day. It seemed as though he and the others were on some kind of a race-like situation and he was certainly giving it his all, but he just really needed to take that call. Got a little sunburned and Ando suffered from something, the current theory, unsupported by any facts and -- in fact contradicted by his own testimony, is an excess of bacon ice cream for breakfast. Opinions differed on the mustard effect and on the difference between medium rare and medium well by the two distinguished judges. Surprisingly, Damon Runyon's theory of betting proved to not predict the outcome. On the whole, however, a good time was had by all.
Incident reports:
Sad old guy in Illinois plated truck got the law wrong:
He generally behaved like a sad old guy riding an Illinois-plated truck would, which is to say like Schlecht. His dog seemed nice though.
We had stopped at the gas station in Arena and were just getting back underway. We were in a single line when a maniac in a gold pickup with some kind of logo on the side turned the corner began honking his horn and screaming and then swerved missing us by a couple of inches. He stopped up the road screamed some more and ran away in fear and trembling when Ben offered to discuss things in the open air.
Photos
Q: How was the epic ride this past weekend?
A: Great
Q: Any funny getting lost or the like stories?
A: Nope
Q: Was it of an impressive distance?
A: Not really.
Q: Did you go really, really, fast?
A: Not particularly.
Q: So what makes it so epic?
A: Epic in the sense of not being epic, which is to say ironically epic.
Q: Oy
A: That's not a question.
Q: Did you have any run ins with psychos in vehicles
A: Yes, yes we did.
Q: Was one of the drivers certifiable?
A: Yes, yes he was.
Q: Interested in giving details?
A: No, no I am not. See below.
Q:Did everyone make it okay?
A: More or less, one ritter suffered a bit.
Q: Are all the pictures below yours?
A: No, no they are not.
Executive summary
We left on time, had coffee in Cross Plains, didn't get lost, put up with a mildly annoying motorist and totally insane motorist, ate a bunch of food and drank a bunch of what have you. I rode both ways.
The ride was really nice there was enough wind to keep the temperature down, the roads are in great shape, lots of cyclists out and about on Old Sauk, and the hill as well as on Stage Coach, KP is newly paved, nearly all the motorists were sane and careful (see below). The one cyclist riding up the hill while talking on his cell gets the prize for weirdest behavior of the day. It seemed as though he and the others were on some kind of a race-like situation and he was certainly giving it his all, but he just really needed to take that call. Got a little sunburned and Ando suffered from something, the current theory, unsupported by any facts and -- in fact contradicted by his own testimony, is an excess of bacon ice cream for breakfast. Opinions differed on the mustard effect and on the difference between medium rare and medium well by the two distinguished judges. Surprisingly, Damon Runyon's theory of betting proved to not predict the outcome. On the whole, however, a good time was had by all.
Incident reports:
Sad old guy in Illinois plated truck got the law wrong:
346.80(3)(a)
(a) Persons riding bicycles or electric personal assistive mobility devices upon a roadway may ride 2 abreast if such operation does not impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic. Bicycle or electric personal assistive mobility device operators riding 2 abreast on a 2-lane or more roadway shall ride within a single lane.
He generally behaved like a sad old guy riding an Illinois-plated truck would, which is to say like Schlecht. His dog seemed nice though.
We had stopped at the gas station in Arena and were just getting back underway. We were in a single line when a maniac in a gold pickup with some kind of logo on the side turned the corner began honking his horn and screaming and then swerved missing us by a couple of inches. He stopped up the road screamed some more and ran away in fear and trembling when Ben offered to discuss things in the open air.
Photos
 |
| Ready to Go |
 |
| Pensive Participant |
 |
| Last minute prep and kibbitzing |
 |
| They look silly in lycra |
 |
| Late entrant |
 |
| Happy to be there |
 |
| Wheee |
 |
| Restricted Park |
 |
| Cooling off |
 |
| Made it |
 |
| Fresh meat |
 |
| Not quite enough burgers |
 |
| Grill 'em |
 |
| Full House |
 |
| The kids today |
 |
 |
| Distinguished Judges |
 |
| Wait, what? |
 |
| Missed it by that much |
Friday, August 27, 2010
Multi Users
By the way, it was really nice day today and as a sign that the rules I posted recently are having a positive effect, with one glaring exception every single person on the path regardless of mode of use was a peach. Even the joggers.
The one exception was Seqway riding guy who is a jackass not just because he bought one, I mean really, but because he rides it down the pathway way to fast. The rules are clear on motors and this case is also covered under and by Paragraph 12 section 8 subsection 22, which clearly states that no idiotic means of transportation are allowed on the pathway. Segways are idiotic q.e.d..
The one exception was Seqway riding guy who is a jackass not just because he bought one, I mean really, but because he rides it down the pathway way to fast. The rules are clear on motors and this case is also covered under and by Paragraph 12 section 8 subsection 22, which clearly states that no idiotic means of transportation are allowed on the pathway. Segways are idiotic q.e.d..
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Multi Use Path Update
From today on the Capital city. If you squint you can see the mythic Land of Lincoln. This is the lower branch
This is the upper branch.
This is were I stood when I took the lower picture.
I was off the path for the other picture as well. Why do I include this? Neither picture took longer than 2 mins to take and, I'd guess, considerable less time than that. I got off the path, even though there were no other users around and the only reason there might be is because lots of other people use the path and, it is just possible that if, say, four users came one way and six came the other, my standing on the path would have inconvenienced them all. Consequently, I reasoned, the extra 10 seconds it took to exit, unclip and then clip and reenter was insufficient grounds to cause some potential irritation to some potential number of people.
When I had completed the task and started to ride onward, I ran into two people with two bikes each towing a baby buggy. They were stopped on the path blocking the whole of my lane. Coming the other direction were four cyclists, unrelated as far as I could tell, in longish line in the middle of their lane. I had to stop. The two in my lane weren't there for a quick stop. They had taken one kid out of the buggy and were talking about something or another. Just off to their right there was a shady spot. Leaving aside the moral and ethical considerations, it was in their own self interest to move into the shady spot's cool.
At first I thought that this was an example of failing to think about the world around you in Kantian fashion and was an intentionally selfish act. However, I have recently learned that
It seems pretty obvious that "thick questions" lead to more satisfying answers. Although I couldn't find the giant book of why people act like jackasses, I did, like the kid in the poster, let my mind wonder.[1] It occurred to me that the problem was thinking or more precisely unthought. The two people engaged in unthought. No thinking being is going to stop his or her car in the middle of a road, for example, to get the kid out of the child seat. The two weren't consciously jackasses. They were jackasses because they had never thought about what a bike path is and is not designed for. I am pretty certain that it was not designed so that you can pause in your travels and block other users from using the path.[2] It also seems to be the case that because no law intervenes, the police might give a cyclist a ticket for running a stop sign or a red light, while letting cars stop in the crosswalk, they are scarce on the ground off campus and it is unlikely that they are going to bother folks who stop for a quick chat. In short, you get to break the law and be a jackass and no one is going to legally punish you.
In the interest of limiting unthought, I offer some simple rules. The easiest to follow, because it is valid in cases, is Kant's but that really is asking to much for people to think of other people as people instead of props in some Randian distopia, it would seem.
Over arching rule:
[1] Heyoh
[2]You may be saying "Oh good gracious me oh my, shut up already." But consider this, this was the only time the two, so far as I know, impeded anyone so from their perspective it was no big thing. For me it was the fourth or fifth time today and the twelfth of the last seven days. Or something like that. Straws and camels backs, in other words.
[3] Obviously it is never go to happen but take out the damn earbuds and take off the damn headphones. I mean really, its bad enough that 10% of everyone doing anything on the path is clearly incapable of thought but why should those of you blasting Helen Reddy or rockin' on to the driving beat of Olivia Newton John's latest hit want to make yourself even less alert. Goodness knows what the combination of the rocktastic rockatude and exercise created dopamine might do.
This is the upper branch.
This is were I stood when I took the lower picture.
I was off the path for the other picture as well. Why do I include this? Neither picture took longer than 2 mins to take and, I'd guess, considerable less time than that. I got off the path, even though there were no other users around and the only reason there might be is because lots of other people use the path and, it is just possible that if, say, four users came one way and six came the other, my standing on the path would have inconvenienced them all. Consequently, I reasoned, the extra 10 seconds it took to exit, unclip and then clip and reenter was insufficient grounds to cause some potential irritation to some potential number of people.
When I had completed the task and started to ride onward, I ran into two people with two bikes each towing a baby buggy. They were stopped on the path blocking the whole of my lane. Coming the other direction were four cyclists, unrelated as far as I could tell, in longish line in the middle of their lane. I had to stop. The two in my lane weren't there for a quick stop. They had taken one kid out of the buggy and were talking about something or another. Just off to their right there was a shady spot. Leaving aside the moral and ethical considerations, it was in their own self interest to move into the shady spot's cool.
At first I thought that this was an example of failing to think about the world around you in Kantian fashion and was an intentionally selfish act. However, I have recently learned that
It seems pretty obvious that "thick questions" lead to more satisfying answers. Although I couldn't find the giant book of why people act like jackasses, I did, like the kid in the poster, let my mind wonder.[1] It occurred to me that the problem was thinking or more precisely unthought. The two people engaged in unthought. No thinking being is going to stop his or her car in the middle of a road, for example, to get the kid out of the child seat. The two weren't consciously jackasses. They were jackasses because they had never thought about what a bike path is and is not designed for. I am pretty certain that it was not designed so that you can pause in your travels and block other users from using the path.[2] It also seems to be the case that because no law intervenes, the police might give a cyclist a ticket for running a stop sign or a red light, while letting cars stop in the crosswalk, they are scarce on the ground off campus and it is unlikely that they are going to bother folks who stop for a quick chat. In short, you get to break the law and be a jackass and no one is going to legally punish you.
In the interest of limiting unthought, I offer some simple rules. The easiest to follow, because it is valid in cases, is Kant's but that really is asking to much for people to think of other people as people instead of props in some Randian distopia, it would seem.
Over arching rule:
Most people don't know you and consequently most people don't particularly care if you live or die. So for god's sake stop acting like the opposite were case.Five simple rules[3]:
1) Be marginally aware of what is going on around you.Feel free to add your own in the comments; but I think this may pretty much have saved Western Civilization.
2) If alone ride/run/walk/rollerblade/etc as far to the right as in practicable. If there are more than one of you, never ride outside the yellow line; if there is no yellow line pretend that there is.
3) Never do anything requires that people follow or assumes that anyone follows rules 1 and 2.
4) Consequently be in control of your mode of transportation.
5) Get off the path if you have to stop.
[1] Heyoh
[2]You may be saying "Oh good gracious me oh my, shut up already." But consider this, this was the only time the two, so far as I know, impeded anyone so from their perspective it was no big thing. For me it was the fourth or fifth time today and the twelfth of the last seven days. Or something like that. Straws and camels backs, in other words.
[3] Obviously it is never go to happen but take out the damn earbuds and take off the damn headphones. I mean really, its bad enough that 10% of everyone doing anything on the path is clearly incapable of thought but why should those of you blasting Helen Reddy or rockin' on to the driving beat of Olivia Newton John's latest hit want to make yourself even less alert. Goodness knows what the combination of the rocktastic rockatude and exercise created dopamine might do.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Nice Guy Eddies and Kantian Idiots Part I
In one or another of Tarantino's films, he named a character Nice Guy Eddie, Eddie wasn't particularly nice but I think he was supposed to be. People who do the right thing are Nice Guy Eddies. After all, Eddie was concerned not so much with who did what to whom but who it was that was pointing a gun at his dad, which -- if you think family matters-- is pretty nice. Kant argued somewhere or another that it is wrong and immoral to treat others as means to an end instead of ends in and of themselves. He meant, more or less, that you ought not ever do/will something happening someone else that you wouldn't do/will as happening to yourself in the same circumstances; this means, I think, that you ought respect other bodies as being as important to themselves as you are to yourself and, consequently, recognizing that no desire or end you might have is any more important that a desire or end that the other bodies might have. This position is, ultimately, the basis of western liberalism's constant insistence that, as Jesus put it, we respect the least amongst us.
Well every day, as cyclists and as bodies moving through the world, we find others fucking with us in ways the fuckers wouldn't want to be fucked with and, if we're honest, we fuck with those other fuckers in ways we wouldn't want to be fucked with, which -- taken all in all -- makes the whole bunch of us a bunch of fucked fuckers. I propose that as we move forward we seek to be idealized Nice Guy Eddies, which means avoiding his penchant for robbing and murdering, and avoid being Kantian Idiots, where the meaning of the last noun is Grecian.
Today I run through the various and sundry interactions with others and divide the world between Nice Guy Eddies and Kantian Idiots.
Adult dad guy on the bike path thanks for telling your kid to get back inside the yellow line, seriously.
Jogging woman with dog, thanks for pulling him/her and keeping him/her inside the line with a complicated behind the back leash system.
Putz training your dog on the path, wtf. The damn thing was all over the place.
Three guy pace line belling guys, thanks for bellling; you belled I belled back, we laughed, we cried, it became part of us. Bells are much better than on your left, which often sounds suspiciously like on guard.
Three guy pace line belling guys, for shame on the passing the comfort bike woman on a blind curve and almost crashing into fully team-kitted hard racing bike woman and for riding in both lanes and belling the pedestrians who didn't need belling because you guys were useing 100% of the path when you should have been using 50%.
Jogging woman who started on the far right and then listed to the far left, returned to the far right and began the whole process all over again while ignoring my belling and, when that failed to elicit a response, my on your lefting .
Jogging guy with headphones kudos for running the right way, i.e., toward on coming traffic; for shame for not paying any attention to what was in front of you; although, when your eyes bulged out in panic when you moved from the grass onto the path directly in front of me was worthy of Cantiflas when he was forced to work in English.
.
Doctor/Nurse/Person who likes to wear scrubs, for shame for stopping in the middle of the path and staring and turning round and about consequently making it nearly impossible to pass you on either side and for the professional level of frowning my belling received..
Adult dad SUV guy with the two kids in the back, wtf with the stopping on the crosswalk when you were at a right turn light on the busiest part of the multiuse multiuser path. Did you think that by making it impossible for peds, runners, bikers, etc. to get safely across would cause the light would change quicker?
SUV guy who stopped to let me cross when I was stopped when the SUV behind you shifted lanes and sped up. If I am stopped you get to go. When you control all the other cars on the road, either through some kind of ESP or whathave you and when you and yours stop every single time, stop. Until then let me decide when to cross the street, I've been doing it for decades. This kind of behavior is known as false Nice Guy Eddieism.
Finally, me for not stopping when my getting across was bit on the dicey side.
Well every day, as cyclists and as bodies moving through the world, we find others fucking with us in ways the fuckers wouldn't want to be fucked with and, if we're honest, we fuck with those other fuckers in ways we wouldn't want to be fucked with, which -- taken all in all -- makes the whole bunch of us a bunch of fucked fuckers. I propose that as we move forward we seek to be idealized Nice Guy Eddies, which means avoiding his penchant for robbing and murdering, and avoid being Kantian Idiots, where the meaning of the last noun is Grecian.
Today I run through the various and sundry interactions with others and divide the world between Nice Guy Eddies and Kantian Idiots.
Adult dad guy on the bike path thanks for telling your kid to get back inside the yellow line, seriously.
Jogging woman with dog, thanks for pulling him/her and keeping him/her inside the line with a complicated behind the back leash system.
Putz training your dog on the path, wtf. The damn thing was all over the place.
Three guy pace line belling guys, thanks for bellling; you belled I belled back, we laughed, we cried, it became part of us. Bells are much better than on your left, which often sounds suspiciously like on guard.
Three guy pace line belling guys, for shame on the passing the comfort bike woman on a blind curve and almost crashing into fully team-kitted hard racing bike woman and for riding in both lanes and belling the pedestrians who didn't need belling because you guys were useing 100% of the path when you should have been using 50%.
Jogging woman who started on the far right and then listed to the far left, returned to the far right and began the whole process all over again while ignoring my belling and, when that failed to elicit a response, my on your lefting .
Jogging guy with headphones kudos for running the right way, i.e., toward on coming traffic; for shame for not paying any attention to what was in front of you; although, when your eyes bulged out in panic when you moved from the grass onto the path directly in front of me was worthy of Cantiflas when he was forced to work in English.
.
Doctor/Nurse/Person who likes to wear scrubs, for shame for stopping in the middle of the path and staring and turning round and about consequently making it nearly impossible to pass you on either side and for the professional level of frowning my belling received..
Adult dad SUV guy with the two kids in the back, wtf with the stopping on the crosswalk when you were at a right turn light on the busiest part of the multiuse multiuser path. Did you think that by making it impossible for peds, runners, bikers, etc. to get safely across would cause the light would change quicker?
SUV guy who stopped to let me cross when I was stopped when the SUV behind you shifted lanes and sped up. If I am stopped you get to go. When you control all the other cars on the road, either through some kind of ESP or whathave you and when you and yours stop every single time, stop. Until then let me decide when to cross the street, I've been doing it for decades. This kind of behavior is known as false Nice Guy Eddieism.
Finally, me for not stopping when my getting across was bit on the dicey side.
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