Advocacy & Safety - nice car-free lifestyle article in today's San Diego Union-Tribune

Carfree in "car country" ...

Good article. It always encourages me to read about carfree people. As a carfree person myself, I often get discouraged (especially this time of the year) and an article likes this gives me the extra boost I need to keep going.

Agreed; great article. I won't be carless just yet (although owning a bicycle really has changed my attitude about cars in general), but I plan on being so in about two years.

My wife and I bought our first car when we were 26 years old, at the same time we bought our first house and got involved in refurbishing and hauling of building materials. I still do some driving on weekends, but rarely during the workweek, unless I am teaching an evening class. Although I'm not prepared to be car-free again, I do buy 4-cylinder cars and keep them about 20 years, and I greatly respect anyone who is car-free.

Osama bin Laden's wealth came from American purchases of Saudi oil; true patriots ride bicycles. Every Chevy Suburban or Ford Excursion needs a bumper sticker saying, "I'm changing the climate and financing global terrorism! Ask me how."

The neat thing about this article is how it strikes so close to home.
Lately, I've been shortening my 30 mile round trip commute to 20 miles by jumping on the MARTA train (with my bike.) It's kinda fun.

I ride 4.7 miles to the nearest train station, ride the train about 9 miles, then jump off about a mile from work, flying on my bike on a 5 lane one-way street (Piedmont Ave.) from Georgia State University to my job.

The endorphins make me totally unconcerned about what others think as I partially undress and fiddle with my gear on the train.
I feel kind of good being "one of the few" who are seen with their bike on the train.

Then I ride home about 15 miles by bike.

Well, it's a neat alternative! :)

(Thanks for the neat thread, guy.)

Originally posted by John E
Osama bin Laden's wealth came from American purchases of Saudi oil

Sorry to go OT here, but I must call a point of order: Didn't Bin Laden make his money in the construction industry? Not every wealthy Arab is an oil baron.

That said, the oil industry are very much corporate terrorists, so your point still stands.

Spot-on, Allister. I'm afraid I'm overly charged up on this topic right now because my wife just finished reading the first book in Jean Sasson's "Princess" trilogy [www.jeansasson.com], about the abhorrent treatment of women in "modern" Saudi Arabia. The most effective way to influence the OPEC nations is to reduce our dependence on them.

"A nation that runs on oil cannot afford to run."

Where do you think Bin Laden's family construction business gets financing?

Originally posted by Pete Clark
Where do you think Bin Laden's family construction business gets financing?

I'm not sure that's relevant. I think that bank are inherently evil institutions these days, but I financed my house with a bank. Does that make me evil?

Originally posted by Allister




I'm not sure that's relevant. I think that bank are inherently evil institutions these days, but I financed my house with a bank. Does that make me evil?

Only the Diet Coke of Evil, as you are supporting the bank.

Originally posted by Matadon


Only the Diet Coke of Evil, as you are supporting the bank.

Maybe, but only in the same way a young girl supports the vampire sucking her blood.

It's curious how we've gone from Bin Laden getting support (financing) from Big Oil to me supporting a bank by getting financing from them. Are you saying that Bin Laden is supporting Big Oil by taking their money (which is a fact I haven't as yet confirmed to be true of not).

Sorry, now we've really gone OT. What were we talking about?

I'm often wondering why people, because I'm car free, automatically assume that I want to buy their second-hand lump of crap. I mean, I couldn't even support a car that was given to me on my current income anyway. As far as I'm concerned, there is no conceivable benefit of owning a car that is greater than the known cost of acquiring one.

Originally posted by Allister


Sorry to go OT here, but I must call a point of order: Didn't Bin Laden make his money in the construction industry? Not every wealthy Arab is an oil baron.

That said, the oil industry are very much corporate terrorists, so your point still stands.

Its not that simple. No oil money, no construction.

Remember, Osama got his money from his rich daddy who was in construction.

A lot of terrorist money comes from oil sources.

Ride a bike, put a terrorist out of work.