Letters to the Editor
crumley
Published Letters: 181 Editor's Choice: 51
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Commuting ain't so bad
[Read the article: Life and death and bicycling]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Country mouse,
As others have said, you make some good points, but you seem to have a tendency toward exaggeration. Bicycle commuting obviously isn't for everyone, but we far from hitting the point where everyone who could reasonably do it is already doing. Personally, I bike commute about half the time, with my main limitation being the need to pick up my kids at daycare. (I have taken them to daycare by bike, but it is such a production that I don't do it often.)
Let me hit on some of your points.
First off, I commute year round at a latitude of 45 degrees. The darkness can be pretty severe on country roads and trails, but I slow down and use appropriate lighting.
Weather here in a typical year ranges from -30 to 100 Fahrenheit and I bike through all of the temperatures. It is never too cold to bike. Just cover all skin and dress in layers. Even in 30 below, I typically work up enough of a sweat that I have to unzip coats, etc. Rain isn't usually a problem for me, though 40 degree drenchers aren't much fun. Once again, dress appropriately and slow down. Fresh snow and ice do keep me off the roads, though the day after a storm is usually worse for riding than riding in the snow itself.
As for high temperature, slow down and rink plenty of water. It is not rocket science.
As for safety, I have had enough accidents to know that road burn is no fun, but I think wearing Kevlar from head to toe would be a bit much. Wearing a helmet is obviously crucial, but I am not convinced there is a need to wear safety gear beyond that.
As for bicycle engineering, I agree that more could be done, though recumbent bikes solve several of the issues that you listed. As for hand signals, if drives don't know them, that an issue for driving exams. If nothing else, most drivers I encounter seem to realize that when I put my hand out I am signaling something and that is really half the battle.
Yes, some those health problems will happen to some people, but most of them are preventable. If you butt hurts, get a new seat or invest in biking pants. Don't wait so long that you do permanent damage. As you said recumbent bikes help with posterior issues, as well as most the other ones that listed. As with any physical activity, there can be aches and pains involved. For some people these issues may rule out biking.
Yes, there are issues with biking for very old and very young, but that's the same with any physical activity. I no people who commuted by bike till they retired. Also, there's no reason you can't bike well into your 70s. I have read that many of the bike tourers in China are retired widowers. http://www.fueledbyrice.org/blog/?p=91
As for smell, I am lucky that I have shower facilities readily available. Without that, I know that I wouldn't be able to commute. Here at least cyclists and runners are integrated fine.
As for funding, your theory of every system paying for itself is noble, but far from the way it works at this point. Though there are segregated funding sources for roads (gas taxes, tolls, registration fees), much funding for roads still comes from general revenue sources (property, sales, and income taxes). I don't think we are at a point yet with cycling that this should be a huge worry.
As for traffic regulations, I agree that there are some bad cyclists out there, and I have often cursed them myself. But traffic regulations are such a joke in this country that even a bad cyclist probably breaks fewer rules than an average driver. In most places, breaking the speed limits are more common than following them, rolling stops at stop signs are the norm, etc. So yeas this is an issue, especially from a PR perspective, but I think that it is overrated.
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Paper ballots
[Read the article: No revote in Florida]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]At least one part of Florida's case is nonses - the part about paper ballot. So some counties won't have optical scanning machines for paper ballots by June 10. Big deal. Vote on paper and count the ballots by hand. A one race election with two choices is the perfect case for old fashioned paper ballots. Yes counting ballots by hand may take some time, but even an extra day or two wou;dn't make much difference by that point. Florida Dems, just swallow your pride and get it done.
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payoff
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]So King, how much is Andrew Sullivan paying for all of those links to his old piece on the tournament? Did you edit that one or something? I completely agree with his thesis, but still I think that your praise seems a bit excessive.
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Re: A few replies
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]me: So King, how much is Andrew Sullivan paying for all of those links to his old piece on the tournament?
King:None. Andrew Leonard, though, pays me a lot.
Wow. I apologize, Mr. Leonard.
me: Did you edit that one or something?
King: I might have. I don't remember.
me; I completely agree with his thesis, but still I think that your praise seems a bit excessive.
King: You can't be serious.
Of course not. In my haste to make a lame joke I mixed up Andrew Leonard and Sullivan. Eek.
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Seamonkey
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]King,
If you want athird Mac browser, try SeaMonkey - http://www.seamonkey-project.org/ .
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Ads
[Read the article: King Kaufman's Sports Daily]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Personally, I can't get over the fact that REM's "Superman" is being used in an ad, though my wife tells me that's not a particularly new one. Ah well, I suppose it could be worse.
One ad I do like is the Spyhunter-based car ad. I have to wonder, though, how many people seeing that ad get the reference. Or has Spyhunter been re-made for modern consoles? All of my Spyhunter playing was a quarter at a time.