Monday
Jul142008
Please don’t make the bicycle a political issue
Mon, July 14, 2008
When Dan Schleifer sent me a link to a site called Tree Hugger, running a story called “Why do Republicans Hate Bicycles,” my first reaction was, “I am not going to touch this with a ten foot pole.”
I am not a citizen of this country, therefore I cannot vote, and I usually stay as far away from politics as I can. My feeling is, I am a guest in the US, and as such it is not proper for me to voice an opinion on American politics.
However, I will say this much. I hate extreme politics on both sides, and here you have the two extremes. On the one side, a site called “Tree Hugger” with the subtitle, “Unchecked Environmentalism.” (The very epitome of Liberalism.)
On the other side, a video of a republican politician going off on an anti-bicycle rant, simply because the bicycle is seen as something “green” and left wing, and therefore is open to ridicule.
The two extremes cancel each other out; people on opposite ends of the political spectrum reading the article and viewing the video are not going to move an inch towards each other’s point of view. In fact, stuff like this drives the two sides further apart.
I hate that the bicycle is made out to be something political. I have stated here before, if automobiles ran on pixie dust and had zero carbon emissions, I would still ride a bicycle. I am a cyclist, and riding a bicycle is a love and a passion.
Forget the burning of fossil fuel for a moment, even if we overcome that issue; the bicycle is still a more civilized form of transport. It eases congestion; one person on a bike is taking far less space on the road than one person in a car who is taking up the space of four to six people.
It is less dangerous to other road users, and more bicycles on the road, with the resulting less cars would make it safer for everyone. It is a wonderful form of exercise, and it is fun. When is driving a car fun?
These are the real benefits of cycling. Riding a bicycle to ease the dependency on foreign oil is not what the majority of Americans want to hear. If we think, everyone in the US is going to dump their cars overnight and start riding a bike, either to save the planet or save America, think again. It is not going to happen.
Sell the idea that cycling is fun, and it is good for you, not keep cramming the green, environmentally friendly idea down people’s throats. All that does is it makes people feel guilty, and that makes them angry and sends them off on an anti-cycling rant like Representative Patrick McHenry.
I am sure all republicans don’t hate bicycles; even George Bush rides one. But if the Democrats make cycling a political issue, then naturally the Republicans are going to oppose and ridicule the idea, because that is what politicians do.
In the long run, is this going to help the cause of cycling?
I am not a citizen of this country, therefore I cannot vote, and I usually stay as far away from politics as I can. My feeling is, I am a guest in the US, and as such it is not proper for me to voice an opinion on American politics.
However, I will say this much. I hate extreme politics on both sides, and here you have the two extremes. On the one side, a site called “Tree Hugger” with the subtitle, “Unchecked Environmentalism.” (The very epitome of Liberalism.)
On the other side, a video of a republican politician going off on an anti-bicycle rant, simply because the bicycle is seen as something “green” and left wing, and therefore is open to ridicule.
The two extremes cancel each other out; people on opposite ends of the political spectrum reading the article and viewing the video are not going to move an inch towards each other’s point of view. In fact, stuff like this drives the two sides further apart.
I hate that the bicycle is made out to be something political. I have stated here before, if automobiles ran on pixie dust and had zero carbon emissions, I would still ride a bicycle. I am a cyclist, and riding a bicycle is a love and a passion.
Forget the burning of fossil fuel for a moment, even if we overcome that issue; the bicycle is still a more civilized form of transport. It eases congestion; one person on a bike is taking far less space on the road than one person in a car who is taking up the space of four to six people.
It is less dangerous to other road users, and more bicycles on the road, with the resulting less cars would make it safer for everyone. It is a wonderful form of exercise, and it is fun. When is driving a car fun?
These are the real benefits of cycling. Riding a bicycle to ease the dependency on foreign oil is not what the majority of Americans want to hear. If we think, everyone in the US is going to dump their cars overnight and start riding a bike, either to save the planet or save America, think again. It is not going to happen.
Sell the idea that cycling is fun, and it is good for you, not keep cramming the green, environmentally friendly idea down people’s throats. All that does is it makes people feel guilty, and that makes them angry and sends them off on an anti-cycling rant like Representative Patrick McHenry.
I am sure all republicans don’t hate bicycles; even George Bush rides one. But if the Democrats make cycling a political issue, then naturally the Republicans are going to oppose and ridicule the idea, because that is what politicians do.
In the long run, is this going to help the cause of cycling?
Reader Comments (24)
I consider myself both a cyclist and a motorist, though nowadays I do far more of the former due to working from home.
To a point I agree: here in the UK (and in congested places around the globe) the notion of care-free motor touring is becoming a time-lost fancy. However, on a recent holiday to Cornwall I did enjoy tooling around tight, twisty B-roads, even in our bland diesel-burning Renault Scenic!
The UK still has many roads that invite spirited, crafted and safe driving - though generally you have to go further to find them. More open and less populous countries (New Zealand?) would engage the driver fully.
I like cycling, I enjoy the compromise of pace between walking and driving. I can get to places quicker than walking, get exercise and still find time to take in the details of the passing environment.
I also enjoy driving, but I do have to work to find the correct environment.
But, surely, the same can be said for cycling? Performing both activities in smog-laden, congested environments is //not// fun for either the motorist or the cyclist.
1. The environmental advantages.
2. The social advantages - or how the car destroys our community by encouraging out of town shopping centres etc and the associated sprawl.
And then there are the sports&social aspects to cycling. But that could be seen as simialr to the sports&social side of motor vehicles unless you include the environment side of things.
What I should have said is, “When is commuting by car fun?”
Many of you may not catch that Nick who commented above is from the Netherlands, where I am sure cycling is non-political.
Makes one realize how ludicrous it is to make it a party issue.
Dave
P.S. I put a link to your blog in my blogroll.
Dave - thanks for this terrific blog. When Phil did the piece on Jacques Anquitel last night I knew of whom he was speaking because of my readings from your blog. Wonderful wonderful.
Kent Peterson
In New York City, the current Republican/Independent Bloomberg administration is at the forefront of making the City a much more bike-friendly place, with greenways and bike lanes.
This is truly a bipartisan issue - someone who believes in drilling in the Arctic nature preserves can still believe in biking as a sometimes alternative to motoring.
On the subject of politics, one thing I'm sure of...
No matter party is in power anywhere, cycling is going to take a beating if, given the current mini-bike boom, we don't find a way to teach or compell bozos on bikes to ride properly vehicular style, keep off sidewalks, and obey the laws of the road. It's going to get so bad that eventually, laws will be passed that will restrict not only the goofs, but the experienced roadies as well.
Of course the liberal interpretation is it is green, can be done in large groups, and symbolizes a counter culture in the USA.
Everything becomes political especially when collective societies are stressed by rising costs. I despise the extremes also but the bike will become a symbol for change... let's hope both sides see it the same way. Cycle for positive change!
Jack
It is already happening. The Washington Post reports that cycling in New York City has increased 75% since the year 2000, and the local authority wants to triple cycling by 2020. Chicago and Portland are also working to increase cycling.
NY Hopes to Ensure Smooth Pedaling for Bike Commuters
According to bicycle manuafcturer Trek, 40% of all car journeys in the USA are shorter than 2 miles, which takes about 10-13 minutes by bike. So there's a huge potential.
Gas prices knock bicycle sales, repairs into higher gear
"in order to KEEP his dependency on motor vehicles affordable."
At the same time as some people cut back or try to cut back on car use, cities everywhere are cutting back on transit costs for the same reason - fuel costs. It's counterintuative, but that's the reality. So I wouldn't expect significant change for at least a generation or two. Let's keep in mind that while it's getting more expensive, in terms of liquids we buy in our lives, gasoline is still cheaper than most.
Could you run for president?
Thanks for illustrating your post with the biggest example of political ignorance I've seen as demonstrated by US Rep. Patrick McHenry. It makes me wonder if someone like him really believes on what he is saying or he's just a party puppet wasting citizen's time and money. Has anyone contacted him or replied to his speech?
Sure, the issues of carbon emissions, fuel dependency and cost are great and complex. But all the benefits linked to cycling should bring more light to the folks making decisions on behalf of their constituents.
Seeing countries like China, which has a great cycling history, have their bike productions decreased and car manufacturing and sales increased shows that we, as a society, are still going in the wrong direction.
In Australia, bike sales are increasing but where I live, Brisbane, the council and state government are still putting great efforts on building more roads (and a huge tunnel now!) to resolve traffic issues and "encourage" people to commute to the city, and their jobs, by car.
I don't get it!!!!
In regards to driving for fun, sure it is fun. For some, it is also fun to go to fox hunting or “better not go there” type of activity, but they are things that we just have to look at with a contemporary view and tell ourselves that we must choose a different form of entertainment now.
Perhaps, it is time for people like us, who mainly uses a bike as a way to stay healthy, achieve personal goals, as a social vehicle and occasional way of transportation, to become a little more political and involved with bike advocacy groups.
Regards,
AMR
When I was very small (aged 5-weeks to 3 years old), I lived at Yaxley RAF in Peterborough ... of course, this was in the mid-to-late 1960s ... and it's an RAF base, instead of a USAF base, but hey ... it's Air Force and in England, right?
When is driving a car fun? Well, driving my old Porsche (which has since been sold) on the High Road to Taos on a quiet sunday morning is fun. Driving the same car to work in traffic was never fun, which was why I usually left it home and used my bike. Riding my bike to work on one of our side roads, quietly putting my thoughts in order, is fun.
An old friend of mine reminded me once: "when all you have is a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail". With so many Americans only using cars, its not suprising that our culture looks like a road.
Looks like we agree: see here.