It may be unwise to criticize organizations that support cycling, as was done in the previous two postings.
We need all the friends we can get.
There’s a bicycle backlash afoot, one not to be taken lightly. The situation in New York City has been touched on here. The mayor and his transportation czar have really pushed bicycling. But now some people are pushing back, in court and in print.
It may not be a liberal vs conservative thing, or Democrats against Republicans, yet one of the most vitriolic attacks on bicycling culture was recently published in the Wall Street Journal’s on-line site by a noted conservative writer of some considerable rhetorical skill, P. J. O’Rourke.
The headline may say it all: “Dear Urban Cyclists: Go Play in Traffic.”
It gets better, clearly indicating a distaste for bicycling:
“The bicycle is a parody of a wheeled vehicle—a donkey cart without the cart, where you do the work of the donkey. Although the technology necessary to build a bicycle has been around since ancient Egypt, bikes didn’t appear until the 19th century. The reason it took mankind 5,000 years to get the idea for the bicycle is that it was a bad idea. The bicycle is the only method of conveyance worse than feet. You can walk up three flights of stairs carrying one end of a sofa. Try that on a bicycle.”
Ouch.
