tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post3264787005363993357..comments2023-05-11T03:06:59.054-07:00Comments on The Well Run Dry: Knee-Capping The Peasants - Three ExamplesTH in SoChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00483293929968668475noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-6304754796243707582009-03-22T00:56:00.000-07:002009-03-22T00:56:00.000-07:00I`m with you TH. Part of personal responsibility ...I`m with you TH. Part of personal responsibility is looking out for other knuckleheads who AREN`T being responsible and avoid hazardous interaction with these types. I would also agree that it is ludicrous to demand registration of bicycles. I could drown in a tablespoon of water if I was stupid enough, or incapacitated...perhaps tablespoons should require registration as well. This is as ridiculous an argument as suggesting that the poverty-stricken had to have brought this state on themselves and therefore must face the consequences by themselves.<BR/><BR/>I too am greatly concerned about the growing restriction on civil liberties and am trying to spread awareness and the importance of responsible freedom.<BR/><BR/>Peace and comfort to you, and to all.Jerryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10354640729644229842noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-13484764322238448322009-03-17T21:15:00.000-07:002009-03-17T21:15:00.000-07:00Anonymous (No. 2), thanks for your readership. Ho...Anonymous (No. 2), thanks for your readership. However, I think you miss a few things. First, global oil production has already peaked; therefore, the use of automobiles as transportation is going to become increasingly difficult for everyone. Secondly, cars produce greenhouse gases which contribute to destructive climate change. It is therefore in the interests of us all to reduce automobile use. But penalizing people who use alternatives to cars keeps people dependent on cars and hinders a societal move in a better direction away from cars. Your suggestions sound like a strategy to destroy every alternative to car-based transit.<BR/><BR/>As far as requiring children who ride bikes to be insured, how old are you? I don't mean to sound harsh, but your requirement sounds outlandish. If you grew up during the time I did, kids were allowed to play without being encased in body armor. They took risks, they fell down, but most survived. Requiring insurance for bike-riding kids is a form of overprotection.<BR/><BR/>As far as "rewarding" the poor and homeless, I can assure you that American society does no such thing. Most of the social safety nets which existed for the poor and homeless have been eliminated from the time of Reagan onward, because of people who thought that such safety nets constitute a "reward" for being poor. This is a peculiarly American idea, and springs from the notion that people who are poor or homeless must have brought this condition on themselves - thus they deserve what they're getting.<BR/><BR/>The antidote to such wrong thinking is coming down upon many formerly well-off people who find that their jobs are evaporating and their standard of living is being cut down. Many, many of us are about to get a chance to walk in a poor man's shoes. That will change your perspective, believe me!<BR/><BR/>Lastly, how much wear and tear does a 150-220 pound man on a 30 pound bike cause to a roadway, as opposed to a 4,000 pound SUV?TH in SoChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00483293929968668475noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-56011888320574079142009-03-17T13:30:00.000-07:002009-03-17T13:30:00.000-07:00HR 3008 -- a step in the right direction. I have ...HR 3008 -- a step in the right direction. I have no problems with bicycles using the roadway which tax dollars built for automobiles -- what I have a problem with is bicycles NOT sharing the RESPONSIBILITIES and COSTS of using the road.<BR/><BR/>ROAD TEST - REGISTER - INSURE<BR/><BR/>every conveyance which uses the main roadways, including children riding bicycles in neighborhoods. <BR/><BR/>As usual, if people have to pay for insurance, most will become more safe to avoid incidents which would raise their rates.<BR/><BR/>If bicycles are inspected for safety equipment, and bicycle "drivers" are road-tested for rules and regulations, the roads WILL be safer. As it is now, some people who ride bicycles have never received licenses to operate motor vehicles and are therefore ignorant of the most obvious road laws, such as, stopping at stop signs.<BR/><BR/>Tax dollars and individual homeowners and businesses are paying for alterations to the roads and intersections to accomodate bicyclists -- shouldn't bicyclists contribute to the costs?<BR/><BR/>... and I still don't "get" why being poor and/or homeless is rewarded to the degree that it is in our society.<BR/><BR/>Should people who can't afford insurance or who can't afford to maintain the most basic safety standards [brakes, tires, etc.]for their vehicles be allowed to drive vehicles on the roadway? Do YOU want to be involved in an accident with an uninsured driver or an uninsured bicyclist? Who pays?<BR/><BR/>There is a discrimination against motor vehicle owners/drivers happening here. If bicyclists want to shake their fists in the air and stage "critical mass" disruptions demanding to use the road, then I'm demanding that they share in the costs and responsibilities.<BR/><BR/>HR 3008 is a start to making us all more equal in regards to using the public roads.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-52575041634275604852009-03-16T17:27:00.000-07:002009-03-16T17:27:00.000-07:00Oh, memories, memories! You've brought back recoll...Oh, memories, memories! You've brought back recollections of my [never] carefree grad school days... back in the late '70s and early '80s. <BR/><BR/>When I lived almost entirely on my microscopic stipend, plus whatever I could scratch up doing 'permitted' odd jobs for the university. <BR/><BR/>And every year, my monthly income went up a munificent $25.00... and every year, my bank's minimum deposit requirement to avoid service fees went up by exactly $25.00... so that it was always pegged at about $50.00 more than I could afford to leave in my account.<BR/><BR/>Memories, memories. I remember also that I knew full well this was neither accident nor coincidence, and it stimulated my vocabulary every payday. <BR/><BR/>On a slightly related note, are you aware how many food banks and charity clinics are ONLY open from 9 to 5 [or worse hours, like 10 to 4 M-W-F]? To serve people who are given neither time off nor sick leave and must often work two jobs six days per week? <BR/><BR/>For these places, it's not about actually doing anything... it's about looking like they do something. Not quite knee-capping, more like 'let them eat papier-maché cake stage props'.Stormchildhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05039949137714076734noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-44982119733284751632009-03-14T13:52:00.000-07:002009-03-14T13:52:00.000-07:00Thanks for your readership. I don't know anything...Thanks for your readership. I don't know anything specific about Scotts Miracle Gro, except that they are partnering with Monsanto in selling Monsanto products. I also know that Scotts products are widely sold in hardware/home improvement stores, whereas many of Monsanto's products are sold strictly to farmers and agribusiness. Scotts is thus a more accessible target for a boycott for most of us. By leaning on Scotts, we might get them to lean on Monsanto a little bit.TH in SoChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00483293929968668475noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7578125528475198742.post-23519726254936444712009-03-14T06:45:00.000-07:002009-03-14T06:45:00.000-07:00While I have my own issues with Scotts Miracle Gro...While I have my own issues with Scotts Miracle Gro, I am curious about your anger towards the company. I don't think of it with anywhere near the contempt and suspicion I reserve for Monsanto. I'm wondering what you know specifically that I may not Thanks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com