it's not a popular view, but i believe the fundamental difference between cars and bikes, when it comes to stopping at red lights, is the safety of other road users. a car running a red light is a danger to the occupant and pretty much ALL other road users. It's a heavy powerful machine, with a huge amount of momentum, and is capable of doing serious damage. The driver's senses are somewhat muted by the noise of the engine, tyres, radio, etc, so they are less likely to react to the unexpected.

The humble bicyclist on the other hand, when running a red light is arguably putting himself in danger, but is much less of a danger to other road users. And the potential dangers can be minimized by riding defensively - slowing down, looking and listening for potential danger, and being particularly considerate to vulnerable road users such as pedestrians and other cyclists.