Screwed Up Denver 2
 

Instead of seeing the opportunity and taking a constructive approach, Denver attempts to cite the entire Critical Mass ride for violating trivial city ordinances that are virtually unenforced against anyone else:

http://cbs4denver.com/video/?cid=103 (search for "bicyclist")

To speed up the discussion, let me add the expected responses:

1. It has never happened to me, therefore it doesn't happen.
2. It has never happened to me, therefore it isn't a problem.
3. Denver is a great city to bike in, why are you complaining?
4. They deserve it, because . . . .
5. Denver's bike planners are wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Why do you hate them so much?
6. Other television stations have better news, and Denver's news is really good.

For the convenience of all, if your response falls into one of these categories, kindly indicate which one early in the post.

Think they'll take the same approach on Bike To Work Day?

I have never regarded B-to-W Day as a Critical Mass event.

Is there a metropolitain area that actually welcomes CM rides?

That is the nub of the enforcement problem, isn't it. The government agrees with one message but not with the other.

Police stated the tickets were for running traffic lights, and blocking traffic...

Clearly running traffic lights is a ticketable offense... "blocking traffic" can and should be examined for what it is... if the police think cyclists riding down the road are "blocking traffic," then those police need to understand that cyclists are traffic too.

Cyclist states: "its just a bunch of kids having fun... but the police are acting all adult and handing out tickets."

Yeah, sounds like great representation of and for the cycling community.

As far as Bike to Work day... don't run stop lights and there should be no problems.

You forgot one (or several)

7. If you can't do the time, don't do the crime!

One message (Bike-to-Work Day): Let's ride our bikes to work.

Other message (CM): Let's ride our bikes and see what kind of jerks we can be. "Don't enforce the law on me, Copper! I'm making a statement here! So what if I run lights and get in peoples' way. So what if I piss them off so that they go and take it out on some lone cyclists riding home! I'm makin' a statement!"

[Edit: Just to be fair, I think people who speed and run lights and signs in their cars need to be busted for it too.]

I think the "coppers" need to focus on that majority group before they even think about us lowly bikers.

45,000 motorists killed on the roads annually... I don't think it is due to cyclists running traffic lights.

From the other bit of bait trolled by chennai, you should know that the police tend to ignore cyclist in Denver, except the ones that go out of their way to cause trouble. But then again, Denver is cracking down on street racing also, which is just about the same as CM except faster and far more dangerous to other people. And if you look at the number of traffic citations in Denver, you'd probably find that the number given to motorist far, far out numbers those given to cyclists - even when you count the ones give to the CAs.