Advocacy & Safety - Critical Tits Bike Ride

To: "Critical Mass" <critical-mass@yahoogroups.com>
From: "Jym Dyer" <jym@econet.org> Add to Address BookAdd to Address Book
Yahoo! DomainKeys has confirmed that this message was sent by yahoogroups.com. Learn more
Date: Thu, 11 Aug 2005 19:30:16 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [critical-mass] NYC: "CRITICAL TITS" Ride (I am not making this up)
Subject: Critical Movement

In the wake of the false arrest of our sister,
Who after refusing to cover her chest was hauled off to jail
And to protest the physical misconduct she endured
As she practiced Civil Disobedience
By the ones we pay to protect and serve
The very body they harmed.
Let us come together...

Boy, girl, man, woman, and "hu-person"...
Come one, come all...
Come topless and have a ball
At Central Park
On Sunday, August 14th 2005
We will be biking (or blading)
Beginning at 2 p.m. at Tavern on the Green
And ending where and when we feel like it.
So please bring all your CRITICAL TITS
And the rest of you too...
In order to demonstrate our rights
To bare our chest
Boy, girl, man, woman, and "hu-person".

Please let everyone know and encourage all to attend so we can
collectively heighten the awareness that it is a man's as well as a
woman's right to bare her chest in NYC.
This will empower women to bare their breast if and when they feel
like it by allowing those who are presently unaware to become
conscious of their "hu-person's" rights.
Let us also hope it will further educate NYC cops on the laws we pay
them to enforce so that the number of brothers and sisters whom every
day face falsle arrest will decline.
So there will never be another Republican Convention where a massive
group of our fellow "hu-persons" were falsly arrested and where many
faced physical misconduct by police officials.
Let us ride for those arrested that day, 90% of who have already been
aquitted and for the remainder who await their acquittal.
Let us ride topless to demonstrate to other states that it is every
"hu-person's" legal right to go shirtless in NYC and should be every
"hu-person's" legal right everywhere.
Let us begin...
This symbol of inequality between the sexes has been accepted as the
social norm for too long.
It will no longer go unnoticed.
Women have been restricted physically everyday in most cultures, and
it is up to us to take our power back.
Take it back.
We have been shamed for nursing in public and criticised for
exercising the same rights as a man.

Let us begin to manifest our equality on all levels including our
physical right to expose our chests.
Let us end this symbol of INEQUALITY BETWEEN THE SEXES.
Let us begin again...

If you will:
Bring permanant markers so we can write on our bodies the law (penal
code 245.1). The cops are obviously unaware that the right for a
woman to go topless in NYC was recently passed and need to be schooled
by us this Sunday. We will also write over eachother's bodies words
like Legal Rights, Equality, and any other phrases that work, like
FREE 'DEM.

We have also contacted the National Lawyers Guild and requested legal
observers.

Let us ride...
Beauties on Bikes Exposing their Breast for all of "Hu-Personity"!!!

hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????

hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????

Yes. No self-respecting organization concerned with cycling advocacy would EVER consider baring their breasts. Hmmmm.....breasts on bikes or organization concerned with cycling advocacy? You decide.

TITS on my Excel spreadsheet stands for Time In The Saddle.

sounds like fun if not for the cops...

hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????


What many consider? You sound like an O'Rielly bot.

Fringe??? God bless the fringe, the mainstream is driving into a ditch.

Moonbat??? Freep much do you?

Organization???? You don't have a clue do you?

Would definitely be there if I could. Good luck.

What many consider? You sound like an O'Rielly bot.

Fringe??? God bless the fringe, the mainstream is driving into a ditch.

Moonbat??? Freep much do you?

Organization???? You don't have a clue do you?


1. Don't watch tv or care for O'reilly. Don't care for fascists or commies. Not many people i know owuld spend tem and effort trying to get people to ride a bike with bare chests.

2. At least they are doing it clothed.

3. I stick with moonbat

4. Yes despite your "we arent a club, club" there is some structure as evidenced by the original post.

Oh come on, people! Good grief. Why do we have to get into another heated debate about whether Critical Mass is good for bicycle advocacy? Why don't we just accept CM for what it is? Just some creative fun on bikes.

Why don't we just accept CM for what it is? Just some creative fun on bikes.

Because in a lot of ways, CM gives cyclists a bad name.

For what its worth, at Burning Man every year there is a mighty women-only ride called Critical Tits. Some 8 to 10 thousand women all ride around Black Rock City topless, then all go to a party to celebrate. Men are allowed as servers for the first part of the party, then other men are allowed to come, as long as they are nice. Its been going on for a number of years.

I also participate in Critical Stilts, where a bunch of people get together, parade around on stilts, and then get drunk. Life's more fun when you're high. ;)

I think we should have Critical Everything, where people just parade around doing whatever they like to do, in a big mass. There will be 1000 different agendas, activists, rebels, ordinary folk, and everyone in between, all just doing whatever they feel like in the street. Rock the block, Critical Everything. :D

peace,
sam

I think we should have Critical Everything, where people just parade around doing whatever they like to do, in a big mass. There will be 1000 different agendas, activists, rebels, ordinary folk, and everyone in between, all just doing whatever they feel like in the street. Rock the block, Critical Everything.

They already do that.
It's called Mardi Gras.

I don't know anything about New York CM politics, but a couple things strike me about this e-mail.

First, why does anybody even think this has anything to do with CM? I do not know the individuals named in the header, but the e-mail (which could easily be forged) is addressed TO someone from CM, not FROM them.

Also, CM does not advocate any position on issues, so anyone is free to use their name (or part of their name) to promote any event whatsoever. The fact that people imitate CM is probably a sign of the impact it is having.

And why does CM give cycling a bad name? They seem to be doing some good for cycling, even though that is not their goal, necessarily.

So take a deep breath.....

Also, as a child of the 60s and 70s, I think it's a damn shame that my peers have become so jaded and so . . . . old. We need to "grow down" or whatever the opposite of growing up is. Remember also, a bicycle is really just a big toy, so have fun!

TITS on my Excel spreadsheet stands for Time In The Saddle.
Some people keep track of "time in the saddle" with notches on their bedpost.

Oh, are you referring to cycling?

Never mind.

Geeze ..... I mean it's nice that NYC has decided a woman can go topless, I guess that prevents harassment for breastfeeding, or I can imagine getting injured or someone getting injured and I need to use my shirt for a bandage or something, but gosh CM just seems to tick ppl off and be designed to do that.

It's a matter of impedence mismatch, it's just spinning its wheels, not getting any power transfer, any traction, with the average person.

Doesn't it strike anyone else that bare breasts and cycling might not be the safest combination? How many traffic accidents is that gonna cause? :)

Doesn't it strike anyone else that bare breasts and cycling might not be the safest combination? How many traffic accidents is that gonna cause? :)
Mandatory Styrofoam Bras! Yeah, that's the ticket.

i can dig it.

Some people keep track of "time in the saddle" with notches on their bedpost.




For that I use "pie" charts.

...

hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????

Excellent insight, I think you have nailed the critical mass gang. From most accounts I read they do more harm than good in promoting cycling. Mostly a bunch of malcontents out to cause trouble.

Al

For what its worth, at Burning Man every year there is a mighty women-only ride called Critical Tits. Some 8 to 10 thousand women all ride around Black Rock City topless, then all go to a party to celebrate. Men are allowed as servers for the first part of the party, then other men are allowed to come, as long as they are nice. Its been going on for a number of years.

I also participate in Critical Stilts, where a bunch of people get together, parade around on stilts, and then get drunk. Life's more fun when you're high. ;)

I think we should have Critical Everything, where people just parade around doing whatever they like to do, in a big mass. There will be 1000 different agendas, activists, rebels, ordinary folk, and everyone in between, all just doing whatever they feel like in the street. Rock the block, Critical Everything. :D

peace,
sam


I believe Burning Man is held out in the desert, not in a city or town. One of the guys on my mail route made a giant foot around his ATV for that. It sounds from the OP that the woman was arrested in NYC. My guess is they would have arrested her just for being out in public, no matter what she was doing, not that the rest of us would not have appreciated her "candor".

I believe Burning Man is held out in the desert, not in a city or town

It is in the desert, but it is a town! 35,000 people make quite a city. Black Rock even has its own post office, department of public works, fire department, EPA, and department of mutant vehicles. But yes, not a 'regular' city by any stretch.

I work at a museum that attracts a lot of families. Women are always flipping out their boobs to nurse a baby. I do free science demonstrations during the day, and the other day a woman was nursing a baby while sitting in the front row. I could barely concentrate. But the point is, I don't really care. A boob is a boob.

On my ride home from work I always get a drink at this fountain, and there is always this one gentleman sitting there resting from his ride. He is really big, and always topless. I guarantee you, his breasts are bigger than most women's! Very big, and fleshy, with large nipples. Plus, they are covered in hair. But since he is a guy, it is fine with everyone. But if it was a woman, with smaller breasts, it wouldn't be fine. But to me, its all the same, so I support the cause.

peace,
sam

They already do that.
It's called Mardi Gras.

Heh, thats true! Of course, Mardi Gras only happens once a year, instead of once a month, and tends to involve more vomit and urine than my imaginary Critical Everything would involve...

peace,
sam

God bless the fringe, the mainstream is driving into a ditch.

I love it!

Jeez, what a bunch of no-fun people here. I can visualize many of you chasing kids of your lawn and writing stern letters to the TV station because someone said a naughty word. I think that it sounds like a lot of fun and a good reminder that there are laws that are supposed to guide police behavior, even in NY.

*Warning:link contains nudity!*

Just FYI folks,here's a link to when the Cellar had pics of the Naked Bike Ride in Madrid:
http://www.cellar.org/iotd.php?threadid=8545

If you read through the postings,you'll see that most of the people thought of it as a joke. I can see CM promoting cycling,when done properly,but things like this really just make us look like a fringe group. We aren't a fringe group. We're doctors,military,scientists,engineers,and just plain regular people who choose to ride for many reasons.

Yawn.

"Yawn" is right. CM discussions are almost all the same. This thread at least has some humor in the e-mail quoted in the original post.



Oh come on, people! Good grief. Why do we have to get into another heated debate about whether Critical Mass is good for bicycle advocacy?
Why?

Because Critical Mass is all about heated debate. Heated debate is CM's reason for being. Good Grief your own self. You started the thread. You can't have it both ways.

You post an e-mail that begins, "In the wake of the false arrest of our sister," and contains the word "hu-person".

And you don't think anyone is going to comment on the stupidity of it? For one thing, "hu-person" is just a naturally absurd word but, then, maybe that was the point - stupidity for its own sake (oh, wait, I think we've just defined CM).

CM's main function is to stir up controversy. Any controversy will do.



Why don't we just accept CM for what it is? Just some creative fun on bikes.

Because that's not what Critical Mass is. Why don't you just accept some of the things CM is.

One of the things CM is a bunch of would-be revolutionaries looking for something to protest. CM is also a bunch of people doing stupid stuff for the sake of doing stupid stuff and making cyclists look like a bunch of wackos. CM gives cycling a bad name.

If giving cycling a bad image is what you want to do, fine, but don't pretend it's cycling advocacy. And don't expect all cyclists to just say, "Oh, how wonderful. We love CM", pat you on the back and say, "well done".

As an example of mass stupidity, CM is great but it's too disorganized and too easily taken over by fringe groups. And its message is too strident. It's not cycling advocacy.



Normally I avoid CM discussions because they're all the same. They go something like this:

CMer: Wha, wha, wha! We went looking for trouble and we got it. The police acted like police and over-reacted. Come, help us stir up more trouble. If we're lucky, the police will act like police and arrest and/or beat us and we'll have more to whine about next time.

Hu-cyclist: CM is counter-productive.

CMer: Is not.

Hu-cyclist: Is too.

CMer: Is not.

Hu-cyclist: Is too.

CMer: Cars suck.

Hu-cyclist: CM sucks.

CMer: Does not.

Hu-cyclist: Does too.


Yes, police brutality and false arrest are real things but they are not new, and protesting those things has nothing whatsoever to do with cycling advocacy.



hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????

Gee, ya think?

fringe moonbat protest group - an excellent definition of CM.


"And still we ride"

I guarantee you, his breasts are bigger than most women's! Very big, and fleshy, with large nipples. Plus, they are covered in hair. But since he is a guy, it is fine with everyone. But if it was a woman, with smaller breasts, it wouldn't be fine. But to me, its all the same.

You don't know the difference? That's your problem.

hmmmm. i'm gonna go out on a limb here--- but could this at all be why many consider CM to be a fringe moonbat protest group rather than an organization concerned with cycling advocacy????


...Because some people are trying to encourage the police department to follow the actual LAW as written, rather than making up rules as they go?

Yep, obviously "moonbats". You can always spot the loony left, because they're the ones out for law and order.

...(snip)... Remember also, a bicycle is really just a big toy, so have fun!

Careful, Roody, or you'll get the a-bike-is-not-a-toy maniacs going on top of the CM-pro-or-con maniacs, and this will become the most amusing (and longest) thread ever!

Actually, so long as I've got your attention, what's the best chain lube? And should I be using it on a Campy or a Shimano drivetrain??

Because in a lot of ways, CM gives cyclists a bad name.

So what?

Causes lose inertia when they try too hard not to offend. And they lose focus when they are not organised. So CM has it half right.

Imagine pushing the Civil Rights Act while trying to cater to the delicate sensibilities of the racist bigots who voted in the 1960s.

When people are wrong, they're wrong. Why *****foot around it? **** 'em.

I think the civil rights movement is a far cry from cycling advocacy, but I agree w/ the principle. If you are pissing people off you are probably doing something right. Advocacy may not be the best term to describe it though.

Jeez, what a bunch of no-fun people here. I can visualize many of you chasing kids of your lawn and writing stern letters to the TV station because someone said a naughty word. I think that it sounds like a lot of fun and a good reminder that there are laws that are supposed to guide police behavior, even in NY.


remember grouches of the world:

chasing kids off your lawn: legal

chasing kids off your lawn while baring your tits: possibly mentally stimulating, but illegal.


thank you.

Heh, thats true! Of course, Mardi Gras only happens once a year, instead of once a month, and tends to involve more vomit and urine than my imaginary Critical Everything would involve...

peace,
sam
Bikers gone wild. I can see the DVD now.

Bikers gone wild. I can see the DVD now.


Or...Wild and Crazy Biking Guy.

In NYC women are allowed to go topless anywhere men are allowed to go topless.

The cops are making up their own rules, and until people make a strong enough stand, the rules will become harsher and more lopsided.

In NYC women are allowed to go topless anywhere men are allowed to go topless.

The cops are making up their own rules, and until people make a strong enough stand, the rules will become harsher and more lopsided.
I wish some men would put their tops back on. They're scaring the children!

In NYC women are allowed to go topless anywhere men are allowed to go topless.

The cops are making up their own rules, and until people make a strong enough stand, the rules will become harsher and more lopsided.

Where's a laugh track when you need it???

Help someone less fortunate than you. That is what makes a real difference in this world.

Where's a laugh track when you need it???

Help someone less fortunate than you. That is what makes a real difference in this world.

A police force on a short leash is a boon to the less forutnate, just as an out-of-control police force (like the NYPD) is a burden to them.

Where's a laugh track when you need it???

Help someone less fortunate than you. That is what makes a real difference in this world.I see and appreciate the humor in this situation, and both viewpoints are vulnerable to sarcastic jokes. Also, it is not the most pressing issue facing the nation, or even that important to most cyclists.

But are you saying that charity is all that matters, and civil justice is irrelevant or unimportant? I'm glad that your view was not shared by Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, or Ghandi and Dr. King.

Portland naked bike ride report.
Cool, but nothing worse than a flat on a naked bike ride.
http://www.news4neighbors.net/article.pl?sid=05/07/04/1831215

In NYC women are allowed to go topless anywhere men are allowed to go topless.

The cops are making up their own rules, and until people make a strong enough stand, the rules will become harsher and more lopsided.



So, like, if I wanna live on a beach and walk around naked . . . . .

Muppets not bikes.


WTF does nudity have to do w/ getting more people to bike?

Why did you quote what I said, and then mention you walking on a beach naked? What have Muppets got to do with it?

In the first muppet movie the hippie muppet said something about walking on a beach naked.

Did someone say TITS? Got pictures?

Did someone say TITS? Got pictures?


Google is your friend.
http://pic.templetons.com/cgi-bin/imget?d=brad/photo/bm02/scenes/&fn=img_0378.jpg

Thanks scarry. Those are some nice looking tits.