Comments on: Peeved: White Necks – the Urban Idiots http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots Confessions of the Highly Motivated Tue, 24 Jan 2012 00:48:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Pete http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17437 Pete Wed, 03 Jun 2009 17:42:21 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17437 "when Driver Faith goes flies by sending text messages in her Mercedes with a 'My Kid’s an Honor Student' bumper sticker - it’s just too easy." LOL... I hear you, Ben.... (And re-reading my earlier comment, it's a little more obnoxiously pious than I wanted it to be. Thanks for having an open mind about it.) “when Driver Faith goes flies by sending text messages in her Mercedes with a ‘My Kid’s an Honor Student’ bumper sticker – it’s just too easy.”

LOL… I hear you, Ben…. (And re-reading my earlier comment, it’s a little more obnoxiously pious than I wanted it to be. Thanks for having an open mind about it.)

]]> By: courtenay http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17409 courtenay Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:39:21 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17409 http://comics.com/pearls_before_swine/2009-06-02/ You are fat! You are lazy! Share the road! http://comics.com/pearls_before_swine/2009-06-02/

You are fat! You are lazy! Share the road!

]]> By: Loren Pokorny http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17406 Loren Pokorny Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:01:19 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17406 How do you know all of these people's names? Of course it's us against them. Everything in life is that isn't it? You compete for a job, at school, for the most awesomest girl, to look good when you go out the door (maybe not), to have a safe place to live, to get a good deal, your company competes, etc.. it's all a competition. Unless you're a specator to life. BTW - you should stop stereotyping car makers. I've been harassed by more trucks than anything else (I should say drivers and passengers in trucks). The guy in a Buick jumped me while the guy in the Mercedes only threatened me. More recently as I wrote, the guy in the Prius called me a f@ggot cyclist (which was offensive because I'm more well rounded than a single sport athlete) and reved his battery at me as he tried to run me over after having fully executed a lawful stop. Gosh. How do you know all of these people’s names? Of course it’s us against them. Everything in life is that isn’t it? You compete for a job, at school, for the most awesomest girl, to look good when you go out the door (maybe not), to have a safe place to live, to get a good deal, your company competes, etc.. it’s all a competition. Unless you’re a specator to life.

BTW – you should stop stereotyping car makers. I’ve been harassed by more trucks than anything else (I should say drivers and passengers in trucks). The guy in a Buick jumped me while the guy in the Mercedes only threatened me. More recently as I wrote, the guy in the Prius called me a f@ggot cyclist (which was offensive because I’m more well rounded than a single sport athlete) and reved his battery at me as he tried to run me over after having fully executed a lawful stop.

Gosh.

]]> By: Ben http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17403 Ben Tue, 02 Jun 2009 03:44:48 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17403 Pete, you're absolutely right, and I agree that my character creation does perpetuate a hatred between Driver Jack (ass) and Cyclist Hope that has already gotten out of hand. It's just that imagination goes wild when Driver Dick delivers an extended honk. And when Driver Faith goes flies by sending text messages in her Mercedes with a "My Kid's an Honor Student" bumper sticker - it's just too easy. Pete, you’re absolutely right, and I agree that my character creation does perpetuate a hatred between Driver Jack (ass) and Cyclist Hope that has already gotten out of hand. It’s just that imagination goes wild when Driver Dick delivers an extended honk. And when Driver Faith goes flies by sending text messages in her Mercedes with a “My Kid’s an Honor Student” bumper sticker – it’s just too easy.

]]> By: Pete http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17396 Pete Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:04:59 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17396 I'm quite sympathetic to your viewpoint, and I understand that your tongue is somewhat if not firmly in cheek with this essay. That said, is it impossible these days to treat people as individuals rather than as an evil tribe? To your mind, it wasn't Driver Jane or Driver Jim who nearly killed you; it was the soccer mom taking her kid to the baseball field (or maybe the baseball dad taking his kid to the soccer field), or the doctor or lawyer (but certainly not the baker) heading home with a Range Rover full of organic food. This sort of imagining of the details of the lives of the antagonists one encounters is novelistic and fun -- but it's become so rampant, sloppy and commonplace in discussion real issue today that it only serves to divide further, and in the end hurts the cause of living peacefully together. You see, the inevitable result of your crude caricature of drivers is to give rise to an equally crude caricature of cyclists -- and that's no small part of what's behind the kind of reaction Loren points to in his comment. You're helping to turn trying to ride a bike safely into an Us Against Them game, which only heightens tensions and the possibility of conflict. I'd encourage you to think about whether the way you view the situation is helping us toward safer riding or taking us further away from that goal. I’m quite sympathetic to your viewpoint, and I understand that your tongue is somewhat if not firmly in cheek with this essay. That said, is it impossible these days to treat people as individuals rather than as an evil tribe? To your mind, it wasn’t Driver Jane or Driver Jim who nearly killed you; it was the soccer mom taking her kid to the baseball field (or maybe the baseball dad taking his kid to the soccer field), or the doctor or lawyer (but certainly not the baker) heading home with a Range Rover full of organic food. This sort of imagining of the details of the lives of the antagonists one encounters is novelistic and fun — but it’s become so rampant, sloppy and commonplace in discussion real issue today that it only serves to divide further, and in the end hurts the cause of living peacefully together. You see, the inevitable result of your crude caricature of drivers is to give rise to an equally crude caricature of cyclists — and that’s no small part of what’s behind the kind of reaction Loren points to in his comment. You’re helping to turn trying to ride a bike safely into an Us Against Them game, which only heightens tensions and the possibility of conflict. I’d encourage you to think about whether the way you view the situation is helping us toward safer riding or taking us further away from that goal.

]]> By: Ben http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17364 Ben Fri, 29 May 2009 18:50:07 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17364 I had to watch that several times. I'm not quite sure how the rear door of the truck was able to pick up the entire car and swing it like a rag doll. The one cyclist you can still see after the wreck is obviously in shock... wow. Thanks Chris. I had to watch that several times. I’m not quite sure how the rear door of the truck was able to pick up the entire car and swing it like a rag doll. The one cyclist you can still see after the wreck is obviously in shock… wow. Thanks Chris.

]]> By: Chris Tremonte http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17363 Chris Tremonte Fri, 29 May 2009 18:12:55 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17363 <a href="http://www.wharf.co.uk/2009/05/video-boris-johnsons-narrow-es.html" rel="nofollow">This driver</a> doesn't fit the "whiteneck" stereotype but he does show off the carnage that can occur when an impatient driver tries to pass a bunch of cyclists on a narrow road. Luckily nobody was hurt in this case. This driver doesn’t fit the “whiteneck” stereotype but he does show off the carnage that can occur when an impatient driver tries to pass a bunch of cyclists on a narrow road. Luckily nobody was hurt in this case.

]]> By: Loren Pokorny http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots/comment-page-1#comment-17361 Loren Pokorny Fri, 29 May 2009 16:49:49 +0000 http://bencollins.org/blog/2009/05/peeved-white-necks-the-urban-idiots#comment-17361 I'm so excited for my new commute by bike from Seattle to my sweet new office in Bellevue. My first 2 years here in CA were only marked with 2 minor incidents with a cab driver drifting over into the bike lane and a lost tourist. In the past 2 months I've had at least 1 motorist yell, threaten or drive so close that my jersey was brushed by a side mirror each week (1 episode a week) - and we have bike lanes nearly everywhere on major roads. I don't get it. I’m so excited for my new commute by bike from Seattle to my sweet new office in Bellevue. My first 2 years here in CA were only marked with 2 minor incidents with a cab driver drifting over into the bike lane and a lost tourist. In the past 2 months I’ve had at least 1 motorist yell, threaten or drive so close that my jersey was brushed by a side mirror each week (1 episode a week) – and we have bike lanes nearly everywhere on major roads. I don’t get it.

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