I don't mind people enforcing the laws, but selective justice has always seemed pretty much terrible to me. If you're gonna stop bicyclists for running reds, stop cars running late yellows that turn red. If you're gonna stop bikes for not having reflectors, stop cabs for not signaling during lane changes. If you're gonna ticket bicyclists for not riding in the bike, ticket jaywalkers too. Bicyclists are no more dangerous than any other form of transportation but have been receiving the brunt of aggression by motorists, pedestrians and police. Why?? Probably because, on a whole, we disregard the law as we deem neccessary. The law was designed to protect motorists and pedestrians, leaving bicyclists out of the equation. The motor-vehicular-centric laws, when followed by bicyclists do not offer any advantage of safety, and in a city that panders to the offensive needs and illegal maneuvers of motorized transportation, the laws for bicyclists do more harm than good.

Unfortunately, the dynamics of how a bicycle interacts with traffic when the majority of drivers are not obeying the laws is a thought that rarely, if ever, crosses the mind of drivers. Because we are expected to follow laws that are written to cater to the idiotic moves of motor-vehicular drivers, we will always look bad. The lady, this morning, who yelled "red light" at me did not understand that the twenty feet between us was more than sufficient room to get through safely (I had seen her crossing before she knew I was coming and positioned myself to avoid any collision) and that my running the red got me another block ahead of the cars that would eventually accellerate to 40mph (in a 30) and overtake me. Those few blocks give me a chance to not worry about being hit, but to anyone who does not understand, it only looks like I'm disobeying the law because I think its some sort of game, which is far from the truth.

I do not seek the approval of motorists or pedestrians. My main focus is safe travel, and for me this means running reds when clear, getting to the front line of traffic and taking a lane when I have to, as well as refusing to travel in bike lanes that are filled with double parked cars, taxi drivers letting out fares and numerous other hazards. They will not understand until they are put into our shoes that our actions, while seemingly disrespectful to them, are for our own safety and not their comfort.