Comment 34695

By LL (registered) - website | Posted October 09, 2009 at 16:39:22

Tammany said:>>"It's just a bald-faced attempt to pander to populist ignorance about "renegade" cyclists who dare to disrupt Joe Sixpack's sacrosanct right to drive down urban freeways at high speeds in a semi-conscious state."

I don't interpret this anti-cycling media wave in populist terms. Certainly not ground-up populism. I've said it before: this reeks like a top-down play. I'll bet the Province is planning some punitive legislation against cycling.

Don't blame the blue collars. Sure, the most dedicated cyclists are often yuppies. But so are the most crass motorists, in my experience. When I confront a yuppie about a violation of my safety, they usually roll up the window and speed off. In the same situation, a blue collar will either listen open-mindedly, then say "okay, buddy, I didn't know" or they will get ready to fight for their belief. Either way, there's honour.

I won't support sustainable transportation or new urbanism if it comes in that elitist way. You need the workers to support it (blue collar, white collar and service). You have to promote it as part of a package of green jobs and a reduction in the workweek.

Having said that, I don't know if the ruling class of this urban region are ready to accept the post-Fordist reality, unlike elites of New York or Bay Area. On-terrible. Yours to escape.

LL believes that the problems of the city reflect deeper social contradictions

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