Originally Posted by
chewybrian
It seemed appropriate to give a short nod to Critical Mass, among the many groups that intersect in the 'movement'. But, they should not mention it without adding that CM is controversial among cyclists. Explain that a big chunk of cyclists, car-free included, disagree with their tactics, and don't feel CM represents them.
(I rode one CM in Orlando. The cyclists were courteous, the public was smiling, waving, taking cell pictures. I'd go again. However, I gather not every ride in every town goes this way every time.)
I thought the article was bland and choppy, but did provide many interesting links. I would like to see more info on the economic impact of the car, both micro and macro. For example, what percentage of their income have Americans spent on autos over time, and what do they spend today? And, I was shocked that there was almost no mention of environmental concerns. Judging by the threads in here, green concerns rank high for many car-free folks. I give it a C-.
Insightful. I am one of those cyclists that would rather not be associated with CM at all. When they leave an area those of us that ride that same area are left to deal with the attitude some drivers develop during one of their rides. I am glad you had a good experience but the very idea of corking comes from CM and so does buzzing malls. San Francisco comes to mind. The moved the San Diego rides to late night I believe so that might be ok for them but I am not interested in what they have to say and don't want them saying it for me. And yes there is a lot of work that needs to be done to polish up the article.
I guess I shouldn't have let that one point get to me but I really dislike almost everything CM stands for so I won't move the topic to CM but say at least it is good to see Car Free mentioned even if it "seemed" like a political movement rather that one of personal choice. It will be interesting to see how they define it as they go along. We couldn't in this forum and I wonder how they will deal with the issue as additional pieces are added?