Charlie Bird's car accident report on 6.1 last night

IrishRover

gyppo wrote:

I think your point is irrelevant. What is relevant is his attempt to show that current (not some time in the future) speed limits are being broken. Whether you personally agree/comply with the current limit is your own choice - the fact is that the current legal limit is in force, and if a driver gets penalty points by breaking it, then tuff sh1t paddy.

I haven't seen the programme yet as I get an error when I click on the link saying there has been a streaming error.
So anyway, you are saying the relevant thing is that he was attempting to show that speed limits are being broken. Was that really the point he was trying to get across? It seems a bit of a facile point.

Anyway, even if it was, I accept that his intention most likely wasn't to demonstrate that the speed limits are too low, but what I'm saying is that he may have accidentally demonstrated something he didn't set out to.

I'm saying I think it would be ironic if what he actually intended to do was some hand-wringing at the impending deaths of all these "speeders" and it turned out that he ended up getting the speed limit raised to 75mph all the way along the M50 and sparked a redesign of the interchange at Kilmacanogue

BTW your point about penalty points being tuff sh1t paddy is highly irrelevant!

gyppo

IrishRover wrote:

I haven't seen the programme yet as I get an error when I click on the link saying there has been a streaming error.
So anyway, you are saying the relevant thing is that he was attempting to show that speed limits are being broken. Was that really the point he was trying to get across? It seems a bit of a facile point.

You do appear to be at a disadvantage, having not seen the report. Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. Breaking the law is not a facile point. Perhaps you should look at the program at your earliest convenience.

IrishRover wrote:

BTW your point about penalty points being tuff sh1t paddy is highly irrelevant!

Sorry, cant agree with you there either. I think breaking the speed limit (offence) means that the person must be prepared to be penalised (penalty points):D

Also, he does actually mention penalty points in the clip, albeit to do with mobile phones. He could just as easily have mentioned penalty points wrt speeding.

Calibos

I'd like to see the statistics that show Motorway speeders are more likely to speed on 'country roads' as a few posters said. Very sceptical of that tbh.

Personally I only break the limits on motorways/dualcarriageways and never anywhere else. Why? Because I know the limits for normal roads are in the main sensible. 70mph on the M50 is a joke and that is why I have no problem breaking the limits there and nowhere else. In saying that, on average I would cruise at about 70 on the M50 but have no problem doing 80 if thats what speed the rest of the traffic is doing.

TBH I think the opposite is true. The majority who speed on smaller roads are more likely to speed on the motorway but the majority who speed on the motorway are not more likely to speed on the smaller roads if you get my drift.

IrishRover

Yeah, I see what you're saying there alright Calibos. Sure we're always saying how 80km/hr limits on tiny backroads near concealed entrances and whatever else are far too high in lots of cases.

Gyppo, no need to be getting all formal on my ass, I'm not saying breaking the law is a facile point, I'm saying if the point was to demonstrate that people exceed the speed limit on the M50, well sure of course they do - everyone knows that Re the whole calling whatever each of us say is "irrelevant", just trying to have a laugh with you to lighten the mood a bit you know

gyppo

Irishrover, I'm a cheery git most of the time --- c'mon, giz a kiss:D

IrishRover

mike65

Steady!!!!

Mike.

Blitzkrieger

Charlie Bird's a ****wit. He always misses the point.

I'm sure gay byrne will sort out the deaths on the road though :rolleyes:

testicle

Surely it's illegal to drive and speak into a camera at the same time!

mike65

Those fecking wimmin speeders! And did you spot the BMW 5 series actually drifting backwards from Charlie Fittapaldi in the outside lane! Also The Birdmans driving posture was'nt quite as it should be - he seemed too near the wheel.

More seriously that was piss-poor timing filling summer news.

Mike.

Anan1

Has anyone a link to this that works?

gyppo

http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/228-2161887.smil

worked for me at 3.00pm today

Supercell

That was funny, Charlie haunched over the steering wheel on the overtaking lane talking to the camera about a BMW being close behind him..move over Charlie!!
Surely playing up to a camera at 100kph is at least as dangerious as talking on a mobile - at least your eye is on the road on the mobile!!(mobile twitterers are idiots also, not condoning it at all).

Anan1

gyppo wrote:

http://dynamic.rte.ie/av/228-2161887.smil

worked for me at 3.00pm today

Maybe I'm doing something stupid, but that link just saves a small file to my desktop which I can't open?

Alun

Plus, did you see where he was standing doing his piece to camera towards the end of that clip? Yes, leaning on the railings overlooking the M50/M11 junction on the flyover that brings the M11 over the top of the M50 ... yes, that's still technically a motorway! So much for road safety

jayok

Anan1 wrote:

Maybe I'm doing something stupid, but that link just saves a small file to my desktop which I can't open?

I think you need to install Real Player onto your system.

IrishRover

Anan, you have to use realplayer with that link or if you saved it as a file, it's just a pointer to the streaming video. But I get a streaming error. Maybe something to do with proxy servers or something...

Really want to see this thing now to see what other dangerous things he gets up to while doing this shock report!

Töpher

Just saw it there now, terrible stuff altogether!

Vegeta

IrishRover wrote:

You qualified your own assertion by saying "in my opinion" and then in your second sentence you seem to imply that you disagree with what seems like a reasonable assertion because it is "opinion".

you see me saying "people who speed on motorways are speeders and will speed if they think they can" is opinion and i am open to discussion/debate on that

the people who say it is ok to speed on the motorway because it is safe are wrong. It is reasonable yes, but that doesn't change the law. The limit is the limt, end of conversation. Sure some of them are too high in palces and some are too low but they are the law and should be followed.

If you think the limits are too high then drive slower at a speed you deem safe, if you think the limits are too low, well then there is no danger to yourself or others in obeying them

maidhc

Vegeta wrote:

If you think the limits are too high then drive slower at a speed you deem safe, if you think the limits are too low, well then there is no danger to yourself or others in obeying them

Mighty high horse there. Don't lose your balance.

The law only consists of guidelines enforced by a supreme power. I am a conscientious objector to ridiculously low speed limits in silly places.

unkel

Saw it on the news yesterday and was disgusted. It went on for minute after minute and not a single vehicle passed Bird doing more than 120km/h

Vegeta wrote:

In my opinion if you speed on a motorway or dual carriageway, you'll speed whenever given the chance on other roads aswell

In my experience on Irish roads it seems the exact opposite. People drive very slowly on motorways and drive at outrageous speeds on country lanes. I have never seen this in other countries. Here is a simple example:

Car overtaking me (doing 80km/h, which is the max speed, on a twisty narrow country R-road) and proceeding at 120km/h. A while later, same car is doing 90km/h on a motorway and I pass it doing 130km/h myself

unkel

maidhc wrote:

I am a conscientious objector

I like the way you put that. I consider myself to be part of the same species in some circumstances

mloc123

Drive in to RTE from there must be about an hour or more? and they showed 3/4 cars passing him in a 3 and a half minute report....wow real news worthy.

IrishRover

Vegeta wrote:

the people who say it is ok to speed on the motorway because it is safe are wrong. It is reasonable yes, but that doesn't change the law. The limit is the limt, end of conversation. Sure some of them are too high in palces and some are too low but they are the law and should be followed.

You seem to be saying the main reason it's wrong to break the speed limit is because it's against the law. I wonder would you be so vehement about adhering strictly to the letter of the law with regard to all those crazy ancient ones that have never been recinded but aren't actually enforced. You know the ones along the lines of "it is illegal to buy a bag of peanuts after sunset"

More here http://www.cyberis.net/~kn1ght/jokes/crazy_laws.phtml

Alun

unkel wrote:

In my experience on Irish roads it seems the exact opposite. People drive very slowly on motorways and drive at outrageous speeds on country lanes. I have never seen this in other countries.

Strangely enough that's the same comment we always get when we have people visiting from 'abroad', i.e. that people actually drive quite slowly on motorways, often well below the limit.

babybundy

read this one about chalie bird the fifth frpm the bottom http://www.rte.ie/news/webchat/bird_c.html

ismynametoolong

Anybody got an e mail address for the Bird we could ask him to come on and defend his report !!!

el tel

babybundy wrote:

read this one about chalie bird the fifth frpm the bottom http://www.rte.ie/news/webchat/bird_c.html

I liked this question:
TOMOGOTCHEE: What is your favourite type of movie*?
Charlie Bird: Blue



*colour

IrishRover

babybundy wrote:

read this one about chalie bird the fifth frpm the bottom http://www.rte.ie/news/webchat/bird_c.html

Is that this one?

Louise: Is there any case where a certain amount of epo is permissible given under vetinary supervision to greyhounds who are racing?
Charlie Bird: Ask a vet!

Maybe what was 5th from the bottom is different now than when you read it?

Meant to say FPMSL at the Charlie Fittipaldi thing btw

Also, any chance anyone can somehow put this vid up somewhere else for download, as I keep getting "A general error has occurred" from rtsp://streaming2.rte.ie/2006/0731/9news-126012-200.rm so it doesn't look like it's going to work for me here.

bbability

Ok the report and the camera work was terrible. Now I have no experience in Television Broadcasting but if I had the resources of CB and RTE, I would have done two things. Firslty put small fixed camera's in Charlies car. and done a sort of an introduction on bad driving (that most of us see every day). He wouldn't have had to go far or onto a motorway for that. Secondly I would have gone on a trip to the UK or Holland or somewhere to a police organisation who have proper cars with proper equipment. Charlie would have been better reporting how the cops here should have a full AV kit in each traffic car just like in other EU Countries to ensure that BAD Driving is dealt with correctly by the law and that hiding behind bus shelters on a Saturday morning increasing the stats is not the way to go. His report was a waste of time imo. And just for refrence check out BBC1 on Thursday night at 9.30pm for a programme called Traffic Cops. Cops fully equipped and fully trained. I'm sure our guys here only wish they had half the equipment they are using. Everthing from Bimers' to Volvo's, and no sign of a family saloon:rolleyes: