Remember in 2016 when the McResistance told us that fighting for progressive causes was getting put on hold while all effort would be focused on blocking Trump? Then, predictably, Democrats ended up confirming virtually all of Trump’s nominations and cabinet picks. Alleged maverick and new liberal darling John McCain voted for every one of them,… Continue reading Our Cities Need Socialism
Category: Bike Riot
Pitting Cyclists Against the Homeless Is Peak Neoliberalism
If you read blogs about bikes you likely saw how Seattle’s DOT installed a dozen and a half bike racks in a place nobody would lock a single bike, let alone dozens of bikes. SDOT did this, quite obviously, to block homeless people from camping in the location, as everyone figured out pretty quickly. Condemnation… Continue reading Pitting Cyclists Against the Homeless Is Peak Neoliberalism
If You Can’t Bike On It, It Doesn’t Belong In the City
Last week a critical mass of mostly black kids on BMX bikes swarmed the Cross-Bronx expressway in a glorious reclamation of space from the monopoly of the automobile. Predictably the mass ride quickly caught the attention of media and the NYPD, who arrested 16 of the teenagers, prompting outcry of a disproportionate response by law… Continue reading If You Can’t Bike On It, It Doesn’t Belong In the City
The Debut of Open Streets Owosso: PHOTO ESSAY
This weekend saw the launch of yet another Open Streets event modeled on the successes of similar car-free street events in cities like Bogotá, Portland, Los Angeles, and Detroit. But what was slightly different this time was the size of the town involved. Owosso sits in the middle of Michigan agricultural land and has a… Continue reading The Debut of Open Streets Owosso: PHOTO ESSAY
Should City Driving Be Considered Terrorism?
[UPDATES: See below] When an allegedly intoxicated driver plowed into crowds of pedestrians in the heart of Times Square today, you’d be forgiven for thinking this isn’t something that happens all the time in New York. Alas, you’d be wrong. Even in the densest city in America cars are allowed to race around at lethal… Continue reading Should City Driving Be Considered Terrorism?
Melbourne Rides Against Anti-Cycling Helmet Laws
This weekend a mass of bicyclists took to the streets of Melbourne to protest Australia’s regressive bike helmet mandate. They were, of course, riding helmet-free. The fine for doing so is an absurd $200.00 AU. Organized by the group Freestyle Cyclists, the protest ride drew immediate media local media attention, which was then magnified across the globe.… Continue reading Melbourne Rides Against Anti-Cycling Helmet Laws
Car-Free Cities Need to be a Goal of Climate Justice
The prospect of car-free cities, or at the very least car-free streets in dense downtowns has been a goal of livable street advocates for decades. Their reasons revolve around safety and social connectivity, citing the envelope of harm and loss of humanity created in places overrun with automobile traffic. Rarely do such advocates talk about getting… Continue reading Car-Free Cities Need to be a Goal of Climate Justice
In Defense of Detroit’s Slow Roll
Imagine the absurdity of somebody saying, “Detroit can’t handle 6,000 Tigers fans flooding downtown with their cars anymore, this has to be put to a stop!” You’d be laughed out of town. But say the same thing about people on bicycles and somehow many nod approval. That’s essentially the hack job Model D shat upon the… Continue reading In Defense of Detroit’s Slow Roll
Why Do Bicyclists Fear Bicycle Enthusiasm?
“Don’t call me a cyclist!” How many times have you heard that demand from dudes who want utilitarian urban biking to share no similarity with bros in spandex zipping through stop lights? “We’re people on bikes, we’re NOT cyclists!” Okay, whatever. Recently I saw an even more confounding preamble in a StrongTowns article. The author declares, “I don’t ride a… Continue reading Why Do Bicyclists Fear Bicycle Enthusiasm?
Bowie and Prince are Dead, Long Live the Bowie vs Prince Ride!
Unless your heart’s made of Duke coal, you’ve been mourning a fast growing list of dead rock stars in this current year of our Lord 2016. Perhaps they saw a shit storm a’ comin’ by way of our ever-more depressing political prospects this election and decided it was time to migrate to that VIP section… Continue reading Bowie and Prince are Dead, Long Live the Bowie vs Prince Ride!