You know, until today, I
You know, until today, I had never read IndyMedia. Now I know where to go whenever I want to find stupid ideas thriving. Their latest article today describes Critical Mass, a collosal, Greenpeace-esque attempt to inconvenience as many drivers as possible. Indymedia describes it this way:
Bicyclists in over 300 cities around the world are taking to the streets today to participate in Critical Mass, a monthly bike ride that allows people to briefly savor a post-automotive world.
*cough* Post-automotive? That's pre-automotive, IIRC. And, even if I don't, the car is obviously a faster, more efficient way of transporting yourself from one place to another, and you can even get places comfortably when it's raining.
Indypendent goes on:
Over a decade later, Critical Mass is a regular phenomenon that occurs on the last Friday of each month in 325 cities across the globe. To participate, one only needs to show up with a bicycle. As a result of this simple prerequisite, Critical Mass has drawn a myriad of races and ages, many of whom never cross paths during their daily lives. When this collective mass of people converges, an interesting transformation occurs; rather than bikers feeling isolated and vulnerable in urban traffic, they become a new kind of traffic. Abrasive horns are replaced by bells, noisy engines by the sound of rolling gears, city streets become significantly quieter, less disruptive, and suddenly, more human.
Meanwhile, they strangle the streets, cutting off the traffic of people who just want to go home or go to work in peace. Of course, actually doing something meaningful with their time is a foreign concept to them:
“We rode in the street and used the streets as a place to be, and socialize, and celebrate rather than just a place to pass through on your way to someplace,� says Joel Pomerantz, one of the original San Francisco riders
...
Co-founder Chris Carlsson says, “It remains an event that is more about happening, than getting anywhere. It is essentially goal-less.�
Look, socialize all you want. Great. Celebrate bike riding, wonderful. Just get out of the way of the people who have other important things to do.
Posted by Blog Jones at October 31, 2003 10:44 PM
Due to the proliferation of comment spam, I've had to close comments on this
entry. Sorry. Spammers ruin it for everybody. If you really,
me.