Journalism and Cycling 2: the difficult second album

zell12

Opinion piece in Indo by Martina Devlin
It's time to get on our bikes and accept the personal and societal benefits of cycling

zell12

FineGael TD for Galway East
https://twitter.com/FineGael/status/1314551253779787776?s=20

Seth Brundle

zell12 wrote: »

FineGael TD for Galway East
https://twitter.com/FineGael/status/1314551253779787776?s=20

So many of the replies are the usual anti-cycling crap. It's funny how some people react to a safety plea.

Idleater

Seth Brundle wrote: »

So many of the replies are the usual anti-cycling crap. It's funny how some people react to a safety plea.

I was wondering the same, the tweet tags fine Gael and road safety week. Are these people actively seeking out cycling promotion using sentiment analysis?

Duckjob

Seth Brundle wrote: »

So many of the replies are the usual anti-cycling crap. It's funny how some people react to a safety plea.

Any degree of logic and rational thinking should inform people that "cyclists" are as diverse a group of people as "motorists" are.

But then, logic and rational thinking simply doesn't enter into the mindset with these people.

micar

Seth Brundle wrote: »

So many of the replies are the usual anti-cycling crap. It's funny how some people react to a safety plea.

Is he trolling or totally serious

https://twitter.com/djpr1000/status/1314577403512004608?s=19

CramCycle

micar wrote: »

Is he trolling or totally serious

https://twitter.com/djpr1000/status/1314577403512004608?s=19

He probably is, and like that dim wit in the pub after a few pints, no matter of logical explaining will get through to him. I wouldn't bother.
On a related, somewhat, note. I really think they need to expand the reg check for NCTs to have one that you can check insurance and Motor Tax. On a few occasions I noticed cars stuck at lights who had been aggressive with clearly out of date discs. I imagine it would get more interest from the Gardai (if only for the reason its simpler than a you said/they said discussion) to get some sort of fine against the driver.

Seth Brundle

How ‘Feierabend’ helps Germans disconnect from the workday

micar

CramCycle wrote: »

He probably is, and like that dim wit in the pub after a few pints, no matter of logical explaining will get through to him. I wouldn't bother.

Was in a bar getting a bit to eat after doing an adventure race...this was around 2pm on a Saturday afternoon.

Group of lads close by and this one guy had an issue with the number of cyclists on the road which slowed him down. Came out with something like that he should be able to hit them for being in his way. He definately knew he was within earshot of peole who had done or travelled to support people doing the race.

A few others laughed and agreed with him....I was fu(king livid but said nothing.

I recognised one of the guys in the group as being in the same triathlon club I was in. Only knew him to see. This same guy never said a word......probably afraid to pipe up to say he (and his wife) were cyclists and to challenge him.

breezy1985

micar wrote: »

Was in a bar getting a bit to eat after doing an adventure race...this was around 2pm on a Saturday afternoon.

Group of lads close by and this one guy had an issue with the number of cyclists on the road which slowed him down. Came out with something like that he should be able to hit them for being in his way. He definately knew he was within earshot of peole who had done or travelled to support people doing the race.

A few others laughed and agreed with him....I was fu(king livid but said nothing.

I recognised one of the guys in the group as being in the same triathlon club I was in. Only knew him to see. This same guy never said a word......probably afraid to pipe up to say he (and his wife) were cyclists and to challenge him.

Ya it's weird how ok it is to joke about running people over. I bet if he said I hate X and hope X gets cancer everyone would be upset with him but death by car is ok

CramCycle

breezy1985 wrote: »

Ya it's weird how ok it is to joke about running people over. I bet if he said I hate X and hope X gets cancer everyone would be upset with him but death by car is ok

True, if I was to pass comment in some places about hitting a cyclist and reversing, just to be sure, it would get a laugh. If I mentioned taking out a club hammer and bludgeoning someone to death (or near it), while the effect would most likely be the same, it never gets the same laugh. It is odd that it really depends on how you kill someone as to whether its funny or not. Aside from this, if it went to court, one might get me DQd from driving and maybe a fine. The other could see me serve 20years and take everything from me socially.

Having sadly to relieve an animal once in not to dissimilar circumstances (not running it over, had to use stun and cervical dislocation, for which I am trained), I still have visions of it to this day and don't sleep well on occasion, I do wonder how some of these people sleep at night.

I know the response will be well they don't mean it, but the truth is, based on the behaviour of a minority on the roads, I have to assume, some people do mean it.

magicbastarder

CramCycle wrote: »

had to use stun and cervical dislocation, for which I am trained

i wish i'd been trained. i had to put a bird out of its misery once and it went blackly slapstick. no dignity at all to it.

breezy1985

CramCycle wrote: »

True, if I was to pass comment in some places about hitting a cyclist and reversing, just to be sure, it would get a laugh. If I mentioned taking out a club hammer and bludgeoning someone to death (or near it), while the effect would most likely be the same, it never gets the same laugh. It is odd that it really depends on how you kill someone as to whether its funny or not. Aside from this, if it went to court, one might get me DQd from driving and maybe a fine. The other could see me serve 20years and take everything from me socially.

Having sadly to relieve an animal once in not to dissimilar circumstances (not running it over, had to use stun and cervical dislocation, for which I am trained), I still have visions of it to this day and don't sleep well on occasion, I do wonder how some of these people sleep at night.

I know the response will be well they don't mean it, but the truth is, based on the behaviour of a minority on the roads, I have to assume, some people do mean it.

Im not sure that there is anything quite like roads for bringing out an uncontrolled anger that many people would never display otherwise. Just look at L plate drivers they literally have a sign up saying sorry Im still learning and rather than leeway many drivers give them the same beeping, screaming, "must get past" attitude they give bikes

Wildly Boaring

breezy1985 wrote: »

Im not sure that there is anything quite like roads for bringing out an uncontrolled anger that many people would never display otherwise. Just look at L plate drivers they literally have a sign up saying sorry Im still learning and rather than leeway many drivers give them the same beeping, screaming, "must get past" attitude they give bikes

Was at the scene of a crash Friday.
Was directing a few cars. A learner stalled in traffic. The dick behind lifted him out of it and started revving right up behind him.

Dickheads window was open. He got some choice words from me and another boy present.

Really, loosing your cool with a learner. Moronic

magicbastarder

magicbastarder wrote: »

i wish i'd been trained. i had to put a bird out of its misery once and it went blackly slapstick. no dignity at all to it.

i clearly jinxed myself here because i've just had to put a frog out of its misery after hitting it with the lawnmower.

magicbastarder

breezy1985 wrote: »

Im not sure that there is anything quite like roads for bringing out an uncontrolled anger that many people would never display otherwise. Just look at L plate drivers they literally have a sign up saying sorry Im still learning and rather than leeway many drivers give them the same beeping, screaming, "must get past" attitude they give bikes

might be a hoary old chestnut, but a woman my wife knows was telling us yesterday that when she was learning years ago, the car cut out on her, and no matter what she tried she couldn't get it started again. lad behind her started beeping the horn and her dad said not to mind, focus on getting it started again but she couldn't, so they put the hazards on.
the chap behind was having none of it and basically just leant on the horn, until her dad walked back to yer man's car, knocked on his window, and said 'look, we're having trouble getting the car started so how about you go up and fix it, and while you're trying, i'll sit in your car leaning on the horn at you like the **** you are' and that seemed to deal nicely with the situation.

CramCycle

magicbastarder wrote: »

i wish i'd been trained. i had to put a bird out of its misery once and it went blackly slapstick. no dignity at all to it.

There is rarely any dignity. Got trained through work, a method of last resort if everything goes wrong, its not the worst with small animals. Regrettably this was with a deer on the Enniskerry road, hit by a car that drove off. Legs broke, bottom half of face ripped off and screaming (or attempting too, ore like a guttural choking noise) in pain. Two lads had stopped and were waving down traffic. We dragged it to the side, rang multiple vets, the gardai but couldn't get anyone who might have been able to help. In the end we made a judgement call as it was in agony and would have died anyway judging by the blood loss. One guy had a hammer in his van, I knocked it out and snapped its neck as quick as I could.

On a joking side of the situation, judging by the face of one of the lads, he won't dare start a fight with a cyclist in lycra for as long as he lives.

Don't think this counts as putting an animal out of it's misery but I used to pluck turkeys every Christmas when I was at school. I was quite good at it too. Seems I had a knack for killing turkeys and quickly plucking them (slower you are the harder it is)

Oddly to this day turkey is my favourite meat

CramCycle

Deleted User wrote: »

Don't think this counts as putting an animal out of it's misery but I used to pluck turkeys every Christmas when I was at school. I was quite good at it too. Seems I had a knack for killing turkeys and quickly plucking them (slower you are the harder it is)

Oddly to this day turkey is my favourite meat

Not sure of your experience but the tip I was always given was to grab them by the legs and turn them upside down ASAP and they instantly stop fighting. Its a lot more difficult to snap a turkeys neck then you would think (apparently), there is a certain knack to it. Thankfully I never had to do it but am assured of this by more experienced friends who sold turkeys when we were teenagers.

One of my first jobs out of college I worked for a company that done DNA tracing, went into the abattoir to collect samples and I felt beef was unlikely to be heavy in my diet going forward but oddly, didn't change a thing. I had worked in a butchers before but convinced myself it wasn't the same. In hindsight, it was no different just the volume was incredible.

magicbastarder

CramCycle wrote: »

On a joking side of the situation, judging by the face of one of the lads, he won't dare start a fight with a cyclist in lycra for as long as he lives.

i now have this vision of you arriving home covered in blood, and your shocked partner asking what happened, and you deadpanning 'some asshole in an audi tried to left hook me but he won't be making that mistake again'.

eeeee

On the learner driver impatience. I was with my dad in the lorry one time, and we were going through Templmore at the time I think it was (had a kind of staggered/ zigzag road/ crossroads in the middle of the town in the 90's!), and a learner driver had stalled in the middle of the cross. We were about 3 or 4 vehicles back. The learner had flooded the engine, and couldn't get it going. The other cars behind them were beeping the shyte out of them and starting to shout at them.
The father got out of the lorry, sat into the car beside them, told them to ignore all the beeping, and calmly got them going again. He went back to the lorry in no hurry, prompting a flurry of beeping behind us, which the father replied with some sign language (!) and with a full load on we didn't take off the fastest either.

What the others thought beeping at the learner was going to achieve bar making the situation worse I don't know. Utterly pointless and needlessly aggressive behaviour. A little patience and understanding would have gotten them moving in half the time!

Seth Brundle

"I probably did not pull out far enough"
Woman fined €3,000 and disqualified from driving for careless driving causing the death of cyclist

This country is a complete joke!

Woman's daughter summed it up pretty accurately in her statement

Tell me how

Seth Brundle wrote: »

"I probably did not pull out far enough"
Woman fined €3,000 and disqualified from driving for careless driving causing the death of cyclist

This country is a complete joke!

I'm just curious about this statement.
What sentence/punishment do you think would be appropriate in such an incident?

This was a 68 year old woman driving home from mass. I'm not excusing her, but it doesn't seem to compare to drink driving, joy riding, boy racer type incidents which we here about all too often.

The article doesn't suggest any obvious unacceptable behaviour other than incompetency.

Again, not trying to be argumentative here but should every RTA result in a custodial sentence?

eeeee

A 68 year old woman recklessly killed a mother of 2 entirely through her own fault.
There isn't a single mitigating factor.
She saw the other woman, and killed her with her car.
She should never, ever be allowed to drive again.
I don't think prison works, but I do think people should be punished for killing others.

Seth Brundle

Tell me how wrote: »

I'm just curious about this statement.
What sentence/punishment do you think would be appropriate in such an incident?

Why is a case involving a fatality held in a court that cannot impose a prison sentence or a fine greater than five grand?
Is it appropriate that after a brief period, the driver can resume their driving?
What is the point in a financial punishment? Did the court evaluate the driver's financial means to establish a suitable amount (noting that the maximum they can impose is five grand)?
Is the victim's life worth three grand?
The punishment for taking a life in this case shows that if you kill someone with a car, you can to a large extent, get away with it.

Tell me how wrote: »

This was a 68 year old woman driving home from mass. I'm not excusing her, but it doesn't seem to compare to drink driving, joy riding, boy racer type incidents which we here about all too often.

Should the drivers, age, gender or where she's driving from have any bearing on whether they should be punished for taking a life?

Tell me how wrote: »

The article doesn't suggest any obvious unacceptable behaviour other than incompetency.

eeh, careless driving is not incompetency!
She saw the vulnerable road user and yet did not perform the overtaking manouvre with any consideration or care. Nothing to do with competence.

Tell me how wrote: »

Again, not trying to be argumentative here but should every RTA result in a custodial sentence?

Surely it should be within the power of the court though to impose a custodial sentence. To have this trial in a court that cannot impose one surely belittles the life of the victim?


Almost every time I'm out on a bike someone will overtake me without due care. I've given up going to the garddai as it is to a large extent a waste of time. I'm also of th view that the courts don't see it with the seriousness that it deservers either.

breezy1985

If you get put off the road do you have to go back and do your lessons and test again ?

Cause if not you should

velo.2010

Tell me how wrote: »

This was a 68 year old woman driving home from mass. I'm not excusing her, but it doesn't seem to compare to drink driving, joy riding, boy racer type incidents which we here about all too often.

It does compare!

None of those types of driver you mention set out to deliberately kill someone when they drive, just like that woman in this case. However, they all share the same thing in common — complete disregard for other road users.

Her statement...'I probably did not pull out far enough'... exemplifies a lack of awareness that cyclists are road users with equal access to our roads.

zell12

Voxpop on Budget
"turn Dublin into baristas and cycle lanes"
"motorist is being pushed off the road by the cyclist who pay nothing"
https://www.newstalk.com/podcasts/henry-mckean-on-the-hard-shoulder/motorists-taxed-off-road-cyclists-want-turn-european-city-baristas-cyclists-budget2021-anger

God newstalk love their anti-cycling rants don't they.