some random thougths from this morning....

Assertive vs. Asshole
there is a fine line between the assertive car commuter and the asshole car commuter
right now I can not tell the difference
at times when in the car I am trying to be assertive... but end up being an asshole
as a rule... when I drive aggressively I am being assertive while other aggressive drivers are assholes

WARNING:
warning when approaching or when being passed by the "short bus"
the person driving the short bus was once a passenger on the short bus
stay clear of the short bus

WARNING:
bus driver's in urban areas are driving around breathing in fumes all day
thus causing their brains to be oxygen deprived
most of them were not too bright to begin with.... watch out
DC Metro drivers make riding a bicycle in traffic like Superman racing the train

and another message to Marvin's Producer at WAMU

David
last night I had an incident with a car driver while on my bicycle
once home when my heart rate settled I reflected on things...

the words of the car driver's sounded so much like Marvin's
either he was quoting Marvin
or somehow there is some mass misunderstanding of the cyclists rights to the road

sure I can see how Marvin was attempting to be clever or cute with his little radio rant
but
his voice over the airwaves could have a negative backlash
not unlike someone telling an Anti-Semitic joke
those who are anti-Semitic would not only find humor, but would feel that their hatred or generalizations are justified

riding a bicycle is dangerous enough as it is
such a radio broadcast can not help things one bit
this whole thing has me more on edge as a commuting cyclist than ever before

maybe this is a chance for listener supported WAMU to aid in the education of car drivers
not just in this Friday's rebuttal
but maybe there could a series of stories that aid in opening people's minds to the rights and perspectives of the cyclist on the road

who knows....
maybe WAMU can start their own "Bike Talk" with Spoke and Spare Tire

thanks for listening

joel