when 10 people on bikes surround a car with people in it, the people in the car are going to get a bit freaked out and do something stupid

if you left the part about bikes out, it would be more socially relevent.

i don't think the reprecussions would be as blown out if a motorist drove into a parade route, and people in the parade swarmed the car. In fact, the motorist would be arrested, and everyone would say, "what kind of idiot drives into a parade?"

old scared and confused yes but running over four bicycles as people dismount them and run in fear is another thing

Is critical mass an act of subtle mob aggression at heart, similar to the orangemen parade in Ireland? When I did it i certainly enjoyed sticking it to the car drivers with imputiny. It's fun but I think it may not be for me anymore.

that's the point i was making.

it's true...

maybe i should go on a CM sometime and bring a ghettoblaster to play bodycount

The Winner Loses?

True. Seen it happen many times. I tend to lean towards leaving adults with kids out of things.

I was thinking today, about this post, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized how true it is.

Do you people in the US drive into parades??? It's a simple yes/no question.
If the answer is, as I expect, NO, then it's clear these people in the van had no moral justification to crumple 4 bikes (and potentially, the cyclists they belonged to).

And EVEN IN THE CASE OF UNAUTHORIZED PARADES, it's a crime and clearly morally wrong to drive over people in a parade! So knock down that argument already.

EDIT: I would even suggestthat CM should be modified so that cyclists actually WALK with their bikes, see if THAT is going to make the motorists happier. See how "quickly" that is going to go down. I bet at the end of it, motorists will be WISHING for the cyclists to ride!

that seems like more of an argument for the elderly having to go through regular re-testing to keep their license than anything. gram and gramps look pretty clueless.

but that guy with the kids was definitely grandstanding. lame.

those old foggies should have to pay for the kids therapy

and mine too

having seen first hand how quickly an old persons mental and physical state can diminish(from watching my grandparents), they should be retested at minimum every six months to have the right to drive.

Granted, most people that drive are idiots. I've almost been hit hundreds of times while driving or while riding by idiots, and that's the way it goes. But seriously, old people are notoriously bad drivers.

Also, it seems that the insurance companies standpoint of having higher premiums for males than females should be reinvestigated thoroughly, as (to sound like a terrible misogynist) i know i'm a better driver than most females of my age bracket are (which I would mostly attribute to cellular phone use, and as we are speaking in that instince of gender roles, a female is more likely to have a prolonged phone conversation whilst driving than a male, which I would mandate would equal the former belief that a male is more likely to be involved in an accident.)

regardless, those are arguments for a different day, and I'm glad at least someone got my point on the parade issue.

i believe the stats indicating males are involved in and cause more serious accidents

it could be a vast feminists conspiracy though

young drivers should receive tests every 6 months too

they suck

agreed

I'm curious where this thing actually happened supposedly Post and Gough--can you verify this because I feel like CM got unfairly tagged with this even though it wasn't during the actual ride (?). I was at that ride and the ride went from Justin Herman Plaza up Market then south through the Mission out and around the southeastern part of the City then back along the water past the stadium to the plaza. Japantown is on the north side of Market unless my sense of geography is way off. Post and Gough is about 14 blocks up Gough from Market--Gough intersects Market at an acute angle--and runs north-ish to Post--the actual ride never traversed this intersection. I'm not saying there wasn't a band of riders heading up Gough but it wasn't part of the ride as such. Someone needs to submit a piece to a paper in the Bay Area clarifying this point to take the heat off of CM . . .this was about some aggro characters who had a run in with some hapless minivan driver.

social expectations also put males behind the wheel more often, girls 16-24 drive far fewer miles and therefore make up for fewer crashes...

Was anyone else who was at this ride witness to this chicanery? Sorry but the gendered politics of why the attackers did what they did seems kinda beside the larger point (though I admit many dudes drive like a********)
like why CM is taking the heat for this--the attack didn't take place during the ride--see my post above.

Now CM is under suspicion. My buddy who lives in SF said at the next ride there were choppers buzzing the whole event--waaay too much drama. I went to engage in a peaceful and fun event that asserts the rights of cyclists to the road and to enjoy camaraderie.