Bandit Alley
GENERAL MOTORCYCLE FORUMS => GENERAL MOTORCYCLE => Topic started by: Sven on March 20, 2006, 08:15:48 PM
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Here's an example of why I say that motorcyclists need to remember they are part of a community of people using the roads: Idiots who wish you illl for doing something they can't do (whether it's legal or not).
Contact the The Lake Cities (Texas) Sun to comment at
The Lake Cities Sun . PO Box 879, Lake Dallas, Texas 75065
PH (940) 497-4141 -- Fax (940) 497-2273
Mark Henry - Publisher. editor@sunnewspapers.com
Tina Moore - Business Manager. tina@sunnewspapers.com
Airing of grievances
Douglas Simpson, Managing Editor
To quote Seinfeld's Frank Costanza at Festivus dinner, now is the time for the airing of grievances.
Usually there's one hot topic to prompt me to write a column, as my fingers angrily dance across the keyboard. But there are a few things that are, well, bugging me that I need to address.
Here they are, in no particular order:
1. Motorcycles. Why are these things street legal? I challenge anyone out there to remember a time they saw a motorcycle that was driving the speed limit and adhering to all traffic laws.
When I see them, they are usually going about 120 mph down I-35E, weaving in and out of lanes like those white lines are just there for show.
Nothing irks me more than sitting in dense 5 p.m. or Friday traffic, only to see a motorcycle driving between the rows of cars, going about 40 mph. I want so badly to open my car door just before they reach me.
I'll never forget the time I was driving down the George Bush around 10 p.m., when all of a sudden scorching down the road were not only about five motorcycles driving erratically, but they were all riding on their back tires. Popping a wheelie while doing 80 mph down a public roadway: stupid.
I remember a few years back, I think after Gary Busey had his bad motorcycle wreck, there was a public service announcement asking motorists to "keep an eye open for motorcyclists," like they are being abused by us car and truck drivers.
I remember telling the TV, "I'll look out for them as soon as they start obeying traffic laws." I'm still waiting, so in my eyes, they are fair game.
Our police officers do a good job, I just hope they pay a little extra attention to the wheelie-popping idiots that are making the roadways dangerous for all of us....
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Nice guy! Makes you wonder how he treats his wife and kids...
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Screw complaining to the paper, call the police! That's a threat if I've ever seen one. I hate d-bag editorialist like that who have no accountability for the crap they write.
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I re-posted this on New York's craigslist. Let's spread the word. An apology from the newspaper would be nice.
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Was there anything after item #1?
I don't know about where he lives, but where I live, I see more cars darting in and out of lanes and driving at well over the speed limit than motorcycles wheelieing at 80, or salaloming thru traffic. Not that there's no bikes here doing that, just there's more squids in cages than bikes. And 99% of the time, the offender is a young male - regardless of vehicle choice.
And to be honest, when I was in that age group, I did stupid stuff on the public roadways, too... and paid the prices for such stupidity in fines and high insurance.
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Here is my response (sorry for the lenght but it really pissed me off):
Dear Sir and Madame,
I take personal offense to the article written by Mr. Simpson and yes, in addition to driving a car I also ride a motorcycle. He is doing all motorcyclists a disservice by singling out a small segment of the motorcycle riding population to label all motorcyclists as dangerous. He is also doing car and truck drivers a disservice by preaching the wrong behavior. Even worse, however, is his comments of opening car doors to foil lane splitting and declaring motorcyclists "fair game". Are we living in the wild west? Is it now Mr. Simpson's job to become judge, jury and most literally executioner when he sees a motorcyclist doing something he deems dangerous to the driving public? His comments are irresponsible. Let's not teach drivers to pay more attention to those of us that are more vulnerable on the road (I.E. motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians) and teach them instead that it is there duty to teach people who drive poorly a lesson. Run them down! T-bone there auto! Knock them of their bike! Nonsense. If that is the case, though, I have a suggestion for Mr. Simpson's next piece:
Let's all hope that every last SUV rolls over, killing all it's occupants. Every SUV I see on the roads is tailgating and changing lanes erratically while going 80 - 90mph. (I think it a 4000 - 6000lb vehicle with a high C of G is more dangerous to the driving public than a 400 - 500lb motorcycle.) It would be wrong to suggest that all SUV drivers drive like this even though it is true I see allot of them do it.
It would be easy for me to give examples of every type of driver of every type of vehicle and use them to categorize an entire group. Just as Mr. Simpson has done, that action would prove me to be close minded, judgmental, irresponsible and just plain wrong.
You give the impression you do not believe motorcyclists are being abused by car and truck drivers, yet you have never seen one obey traffic laws. Maybe, Mr. Simpson, you should pay a little more attention when you drive. If you did, you would see motorcyclists being ignored by car and truck drivers routinely. You would also see just as many motorcyclists obeying traffic laws as drivers of cars and trucks. Maybe even more, because if you take notice you would see many car and truck drivers speeding, weaving, talking on cell phones and TAILGATING. No police officer was paying attention to the driver of that 5000lb SUV that was 3 feet from the back tire of my 500lb motorcycle on I-495 the other day while I was trying to do 60mph in the middle lane but was getting passed by everyone on the road.
Mr. Simpson is a disgrace to journalism and the human race. No, that is not taking it too far because his viewpoint embodies why there are so many people who jump to conclusion about a person because of what they drive or wear, the color of their skin and the religion they choose to practice. Good job Mr. Simpson, good job.
Sincerely,
Brandon Jewett
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That's a very nice letter, but please take out the disgrace to the human race line. That simple comment cheapened the whole letter by lowering to the level of pointless insults.
Also, you talk about the writer in the third person at the beginning and end of the letter, but say "you" (second person?) in the middle.
Other than that I like it. Although you shouldn't waste your time with this idiot.
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That's a very nice letter, but please take out the disgrace to the human race line. That simple comment cheapened the whole letter by lowering to the level of pointless insults. Also, the racism comparison doesn't hold up in my opinion.
Also, you talk about the writer in the third person at the beginning and end of the letter, but say "you" (second person?) in the middle.
Other than that I like it. Although you shouldn't waste your time with this idiot. If you want the paper to publish it, there is probably a word count limit.
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Wow,...Amen...
Ehh, +1!!!
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Prior to posting this editorial to Bandit Alley, I had already written the editors, inquiring whom else the "Managing Editor" wished injury to, perhaps if we knew who was on his hate list (I-pod owners? Gays? Women?) we could be ready for the onslaught. I also forwarded it to the AMA, MSF and MCN, so they could make others aware of the journalistic integrity of this rag.
I haven't received a response, but the paper has apparently removed the editorial due to the amount of crap they've received.
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This guy has gotten ruffled by a few 1%ers. He doesn't notice the 99%ers because they don't stand out. Let him vent, for the most part it will fall on deaf ears. He's the type that says: motorcycles kill people, guns kill people, cigarettes kill people, etc. All this guys doing is publicly displaying his ignorance. BTW, forward articles like this to the AMA, they have a watch dog group (they went nuts over the Janklow deal) and go after these idiots.
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yeah, jfudo...I always go a little too far and would benefit from taking ENG 102. I'll keep trying, though. :grin:
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Let him vent, for the most part it will fall on deaf ears. He's the type that says: motorcycles kill people, guns kill people, cigarettes kill people, etc.
Sorry but I totally disagree. You even make my point - aren't there groups out there trying to ban guns and cigarettes? There's a whole (unfortunate) part of our society that simply believes anything dickheads like this write just because of its simple appearance in an official publication like the Dallas Lakes Sun. If people don't call them out every time, what they say can become a self-fullfilling prophecy. IMHO - this guy should be embarassed in a forum at least as public as the one in which he used to make his assinine statements.
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... - aren't there groups out there trying to ban guns and cigarettes?...
Since I'm a gun nut, there's a quote that pops to mind that fits this guy perfectly:
Gun control is not about guns.
Read between the lines (sorry for making this so obvious, but some people Truely don't get it) and you see that it's about Control. That's what this guy is about too... HE wants the control. And it's typically the control freaks that are also extremists and are blind to all but that which would further their cause. Epotime of ignorance IMHO.
Anyway, carry on...
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The editorial has been taken down according to sources on various Texas motorcycle boards however there has not been any apologies or retractions as of yet. It is apparent that their server was slammed with presumably anti-editorial comments from across the nation. In addition there is a campaign to contact advertisers on the site and alert them to this ridiculous diatribe. Perhaps the loss of some revenue will get their attention similar to the San Francisco fiasco of last month.
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Oh now THAT'S a good idea.... Go on to their page, link to some of their advertisers and write to them with a copy of the text of this rocket scientist's Op/Ed piece. Brilliant!
Their web site is having major problems at the moment but here it is:
www.sunnewspapers.com
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Thats it! Write the paper and voice yourself. In the past, motorcyclists and especially off roaders, have been a passive bunch. People write articles like this and no one argues it. In our representatives and public eyes, it becomes fact sadly to say. A few years back we had an outdoors editor write a nasty column in the local paper about ORVs (the moron went hiking on ORV designated trails). Whoa, did the nasty letters roll in. He actually wrote an apology the following week!
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On the other side of the coin, I can't think of too many young guys (and even some gals) on sport bikes that AREN'T doing all the things this guy's bitching about. It ain't no 1%, either. Time for a reality check. I don't care how much of an old man I sound about this, we need to take a good look in the mirror.
At the recent Motorcycle Expo, I saw a multitude of stands selling videos that glamorize all this kind of dangerous behaviour on public roads, and all these video guys were looking for "new footage" and were willing to pay anyone that could supply them with it, perpectuating and expanding the problem further and further.
It's becoming quite an alarming trend with groups like this pushing all the right testosterone and ego buttons on young guys (and even gals) to go and do this kind of stuff on public roads. They're PAYING them to do so. So no matter what happens to these kids, they're not legally held accountable for it.
Of course, you can always point the finger at the kids that are doing it, and yes, they do need to be held responsible for their actions, but it's way too easy for people like this to corrupt a young mind into doing these kind of things, for their own financial gains. Let's face, young kids simply don't know better. These videos guys aren't working in a vacuum, either.
Remember, these people are promoting these videos at the premiere motorcycle show in this country (and possibly the world). Which means the bike manufacturers are indirectly helping to promote this behaviour (regardless of all the disclaimers you see on their product ads) because they know it allows them to sell their bikes to these kids. I've also seen these videos at EVERY motorcycle dealer I've been to.
So the problem doesn't really lie with guys like this newspaper editor making soapbox rants about this issue, it's the motorcycle industry (and these video publishers are a subset of that industry) and the riders that's at the core of this problem. The motorcycle industry could care less what happens to not only these kids, but any innocent bystanders in unfortunate mishaps that occur as a result of such actions, because there's big money to be made. The motorcycle industry has even gone out of their way in recent years to weaken MSF motorcycle training to make it easier for people who shouldn't be riding bikes in the first place to be handed a "license to self-distruct".
So while this guy is obviously out of line in his rant, he's not the problem here. As much as he needs to be put in check for some of his comments, the motorcycle industry, and the kids who ride these bikes in this manner need to be put in check, and more importantly held accountable, for their actions.
Unfortunately I don't see this happening anytime soon. I don't know what the numbers are, but the sport bike industry is probably the largest, or one of the largest sectors of the motorcycle industry. I'm sure it's going to keep growing too. So you're going to be seeing a lot more of that "1%" on the road. You can also expect to see more and more rants like that editor's, and sooner or later, you're going to see restrictions placed on our riding freedom. Who are you going to blame then, that editor?
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Its the way our society is, its easier to blame groups than it is to single out individuals. Any broad based accusations need to be met head on with a counter argument. Don't let an article like this one go unanswered or it will become fact. Don't be afraid to contact your local representatives, write letters to the editor (my letter was printed 2 days after that outdoors editor ranked on off road riders). Stay vocal and you will be heard.
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Squids Gone Wild.... :toofunny:
Seriously, I think you make great points. I'm not sure the "sport-bike" is one of the largest though... I would bet money the cruiser market is larger on an annual sales volume. Like many high risk endeavors, we should police from within before outsiders do it for us yet how to do that is a tough question to answer.
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I'm not sure the "sport-bike" is one of the largest though... I would bet money the cruiser market is larger on an annual sales volume.
Here's a clue as to how big the cruiser market is....
>50% of new street-legal motorcycles sold in the USA are Harleys.
Honda sells more motorcycles than HD, but only if you incude dirtbikes.
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I'm not sure the "sport-bike" is one of the largest though... I would bet money the cruiser market is larger on an annual sales volume.
Here's a clue as to how big the cruiser market is....
>50% of new street-legal motorcycles sold in the USA are Harleys.
Honda sells more motorcycles than HD, but only if you incude dirtbikes.
Well that explains why Aussies do so well Road Racing - The biggest selling road bikes in the land of Oz last year were 1000cc sports bikes - the HD Fatboy did make the Top 10 but was beaten by Hondas VT750. Dirt bikes did sell more than the road bikes, but that should be no surprise to anyone, most of the Aussie champs started out on dirt bikes.
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Cruisers are huge here. Most now have online services where you can have them customized the way you want them. Honda with the VTX and Yamaha with the Star models have tons of stuff. There's a few performance mods but mostly just bolt on bling. Most cruiser riders do just that, cruise. This shouldn't raise the public's hackles too much.
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You guys are losing sight of the obvious. It's inconsequential how large or small the sport bike market is. People doing stupid shit with them on public raods will eventually cost us all.
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You guys are losing sight of the obvious. It's inconsequential how large or small the sport bike market is. People doing stupid shit with them on public raods will eventually cost us all.
couldn't agree more, but to be honest, from what I've seen here in the land of Oz, there's just has many dumb a@#e knob heads on cruisers as there are on sports bikes, and lets not even talk about the squids on dirt bikes....
But at the end of the day, there is not a lot I or we can do about it, short of 'talking' to them and pointing out the error of their ways....as if they're going to listen anyway.
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As a person who believes in Karma, I know this guy will in some way get what is coming to him. By publishing such a narrowminded idea he is no better than the very ones he writes about.
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You guys are losing sight of the obvious. It's inconsequential how large or small the sport bike market is. People doing stupid shit with them on public raods will eventually cost us all.
jmho i would rather be surrounded by squids on sportbikes (when i`m on my bike) than a flock of cruisers coming out of the bar :beers: what i see when i`m watching squids is misplaced talent (at least the good ones lol ) what i see from the cruisers coming out of the bar on fri,sat night is lowbrow ,mouth breathing knuckle draggers with impared judgement . jmho
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what i see from the cruisers coming out of the bar on fri,sat night is lowbrow ,mouth breathing knuckle draggers with impared judgement . jmho
That's a bit harsh isn't it -
just think, one day you may suddenly loose the ability and co-ordination to ride a bike with a seat height of more than 760mm at speeds greater than 80km/h around corners with a 90km/h advisory sign, and then you to will need to ride a cruiser......
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>>jmho i would rather be surrounded by squids on sportbikes (when i`m on my bike)...<<
You might not feel that way if one of them pops a wheelie, loses control, and drops it on you as you go down the road. It's happened.
You might also not feel that way of they lose it a take out an innocent bystander along with you. It's happened.
If you're going to do stupid bike tricks, do it away from people and private property. Popping wheelie down the main strip in hopes of impressing some chick won't work too well if you should carreen into her, will it? Racing on public roads is fine if there's no one around and the road is yours. Weaving in and out of traffic at speed can get others involved that want no part of your fun.
Like the editor of that newspaper.
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I've found there is usually one thing in common with the idiots that do the stupid stunts, ride drunk, crash, etc. In most cases they do not have an endorsement. There was a study by the AMA on motorcycle fatalities and someone may have a more accurate figure, but I think it was in the 90% range. Some stiffer laws and penalties are needed if you're stopped and you're not endorsed. I don't even know what the current penalties/fines are, but they're not much of a deterrant. Larger fines, bike impoundment, driver's license suspension, something more needs to be done.
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Sorry guys, been sitting back,
BUT NOW THAT I"M UP ON ME EFEN SOAPBOX
Well lets just start with my all time favorite. ( on a religious note )
He without sin shall cast the first stone.
Now just be honest with yourself, don't worry about admitting it to us.
Remember your actions, you may think that it was cool, but I'm sure as my butt hole still points downwards, someone seen you and thought, " efen squid "
Now my next favorite one. How does ( and I'm talking about down under, and what I read about the state of things in the UK.) this problem be stopped, stronger fines, lose of licence, etc etc.
I can tell ya, it ain't gonna happen, and it can not happen, even if the laws are changed so it possible to happen. And here is why.
We have govcernments that tell us they give a shyte aboout us, but the honest truth is they give a bigger shyte about revenue raising, and with the ever growing camera detection, the only real policing done on our roads are (1) camera speed detection, (2) camera red light detection, (3) random booze and drug detection. At at none of these is there licence checks. :duh: So therefore if ya don't ride like a squid at these places, you can get away with screaming bloody murder, I know I've been doing it for years. Ok I don't go riding around pulling Mono's at every set of lights, but the odd power mono does happen, on both the B6 and the rex, I do ride hard, I get off on it. I dont think I'm being a squid putting 40, 60, 80 khp on top of the speed limit, some of joe public would think I'm a total nutter, And I do stand the risk of losing my licence for a very long time at 80kph over the limit, and will lose my licence for 3 months for 20 kph over the limit, but as I keep on saying, ya need real police doing a real policemans job to catch me doing it.
BTW yes i'm a efen squid, ( just ask 90% of the population who have seen me riding,) and I got enough balls to admit it. And yes I reckon I'm riding well within the limits of my skills, and the limits of the bikes I ride.
But I still manage to bring myself unstuck every now and then. --it happens.
Showing some age here with this old biker saying but it puts it all in a nutshell.
When we do wrong, no-one forgets.
When we do good, no-one remembers. :duh:
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dont think I'm being a squid putting 40, 60, 80 khp on top of the speed limit, some of joe public would think I'm a total nutter,
Two things about the above statement.
1. Remember I have ridden with you, and to be honest I was a wee tad pre-occupied with where the road was going to be watching the road - oh by the way apparrantly Gods Road does have broken white lines - but I've never seen them.
2. You can't be a nutter, because then that would then make me a nutter, and I'm one of the most sane people I know.....doesn't say much for the people I know does it.
Seriously, it doesn't matter what part of society you look at, there are always extremists and/or trouble makers - yes I've been known to be both - I agree there isn't much you can do about it except legislate the life out of us all and leave us with no freedom to choose our own path...and who truly wants that to happen
There is an old saying "There but for the Grace of God go I" and when you see idiots on bikes, or in cars, keep that in mind....
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Quick update but no real concrete details and no apology from the paper....
http://www.dougsimpsonhatesmotorcycles.com/4.html
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Looks like we win. Justice is served :banana:
Hope the stupid, ignorant F can't get a job in journalism again.
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I'd recommend he get a journalism job at a motorcycle rag. Since it's doubtful he's a rider, he can learn to ride and write from the POV of a newbie. Then he'll learn to appreciate the environment we have to put up with instead of being hypercritical.
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Oh no!! with such a newb on the street, the rep of decent riders will go down FAST!