🚀 go-pugleaf

--------------4F07954D884581BA3C6BC62C
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit

Unless you are old, handicapped, or otherwise
incapacitated, get off your lazy asses and ride
a bike.
In an ideal Seattle, they would close I-5 (except
one lane for mass transit and freight) and all but
a few surface streets to passenger cars.
It will eventually come to that anyway, but not until
we (drivers and real people alike) are gasping and
competing for oxygen.
While the dunce cap brigade argue about traffic
laws and police corruption, developers are bulldozing
the trees, tens of thousands of able bodied
Seattle residents commute alone every day, the
air looks smokier every day, and we are baffled
about the rise in incidence of cancer and
respiratory diseases.
Whole communities are gobbling Prozac and
guzzling Kava trying to feel better while still
avoiding exercise, and the so-called
Medical community turned pushers for
pharmaceutical companies are grinning all
the way to their early graves.
If one in every five lone commuters would
commute by bike, even only two days a
week, it would begin to turn the tide.
Instead of whining about how unfair
traffic laws are, transcend the whole
situation by not driving.
If every- no- if even some people will
make their own small efforts we might
be able to save this place before we
run out of reasonably clean air.


--
Cyclito ergo sum


Jim Titus wrote:

> In our various discussions of aggressive driving, a number of possible
> policy options have been overlooked.  One solution would be to simply
> arrest anyone who drives more than 10 mph under the speed limit--better
> yet, anyone who drives less than 5mph over the limit.  That would leave
> much more room for people who want to go fast, and thus, they would be
> less likely to be aggressive because they would be having a better day
> with no slowpokes on the road.  Moreover, it is probably easier to
> enforce than other solutions because these slow drivers are so easy to
> catch.
>
>         This policy is being tested in Frederick County, Maryland.
> Unfortunately, the only description I have is a biased editorial from
> the Washington Post, which opposes this policy--which one would expect
> from a liberal DC paper.  Still, this conveys the general gist of this
> innovative solution to aggressive driving.
>
> See
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-06/26/038l-062698-idx.html
>
> Friday, June 26, 1998; Page A26
>
>    ESTER MARIA Pena's going to think twice before venturing into
> Frederick County,
> Md., again. Perhaps so should most motorists if they, like Ms. Pena,
> happen to drive
>  under the speed limit and might be likely to mistake a sheriff deputy's
> siren for an
>   ambulance. Her harrowing June 12 experience with three county officers
> is one that
> ought to have county leaders and other citizens up in arms.
>  For driving 38 mph in a 55 mph zone and not pulling over when she heard
> a siren --
>  which she thought was coming from an ambulance she couldn't see --
> Frederick
>
>          County sheriff's deputies, one with gun drawn, descended upon Ms.
> Pena, a D.C.
>    schoolteacher, manhandling her as if she were public enemy No. 1. It
> was a stark
>   case of an excessive use of force and police overreaction. It was also
> a dumb thing
>   to have done, made only dumber by the explanations from the sheriff's
> department.
>
>  "Older ladies that are confused and scared unfortunately cause
> accidents," said
>   Maj. Francis Tully in the sheriff's office. He was referring to the
> 58-year-old Ms.
> Pena. Consider the possibility, however, that Maj. Tully has it
> backward. That
>  maybe Ms. Pena -- who was driving slowly along the highway looking for
> an exit so
>  she could get to her ladies' church group on time for lunch -- ended up
> scared out of
> her wits by the behavior of his deputies. Maybe driving slowly looking
> for a left exit
>  does impede traffic flow. But does it warrant being pulled over,
> ordered to put your
>  hands behind your head by officers -- one with gun drawn -- yanked out
> of your car
> by your arm, made to bend over the trunk, handcuffed roughly, and then
> hauled off
> to the county detention center, where you're kept in leg shackles for
> hours while
> waiting for a bail commissioner? We'd say Ms. Pena had good and
> sufficient reason
> to be terrified, disgusted and mad as hell to boot.
>
>                   Frederick County leaders ought to be all over the
> sheriff's department. How in the name of sweet reason could Ms. Pena
> have been arrested, shackled and charged
>  with "fleeing and eluding" when she was driving 17 miles under the
> speed limit?
> And how, in the face of such official excess, could State's Attorney
> Scott Rolle
>  defend those officers? Ms. Pena didn't deserve to be treated like a
> dangerous felon.
> The danger that existed came from the other side.
>
>                              � Copyright 1998 The Washington Post
> Company





--------------4F07954D884581BA3C6BC62C
Content-Type: text/html; charset=us-ascii
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

<HTML>
Unless you are old, handicapped, or otherwise
<BR>incapacitated, get off your lazy asses and ride
<BR>a bike.
<BR>In an ideal Seattle, they would close I-5 (except
<BR>one lane for mass transit and freight) and all but
<BR>a few surface streets to passenger cars.
<BR>It will eventually come to that anyway, but not until
<BR>we (drivers and real people alike) are gasping and
<BR>competing for oxygen.
<BR>While the dunce cap brigade argue about traffic
<BR>laws and police corruption, developers are bulldozing
<BR>the trees, tens of thousands of able bodied
<BR>Seattle residents commute alone every day, the
<BR>air looks smokier every day, and we are baffled
<BR>about the rise in incidence of cancer and
<BR>respiratory diseases.
<BR>Whole communities are gobbling Prozac and
<BR>guzzling Kava trying to feel better while still
<BR>avoiding exercise, and the so-called
<BR>Medical community turned pushers for
<BR>pharmaceutical companies are grinning all
<BR>the way to their early graves.
<BR>If one in every five lone commuters would
<BR>commute by bike, even only two days a
<BR>week, it would begin to turn the tide.
<BR>Instead of whining about how unfair
<BR>traffic laws are, transcend the whole
<BR>situation by not driving.
<BR>If every- no- if even <U>some </U>people will
<BR>make their own small efforts we might
<BR>be able to save this place before we
<BR>run out of reasonably clean air.
<BR>&nbsp;

<P>--
<BR>Cyclito ergo sum
<BR>&nbsp;

<P>Jim Titus wrote:
<BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE>In our various discussions of aggressive driving,
a number of possible
<BR>policy options have been overlooked.&nbsp; One solution would be to
simply
<BR>arrest anyone who drives more than 10 mph under the speed limit--better
<BR>yet, anyone who drives less than 5mph over the limit.&nbsp; That would
leave
<BR>much more room for people who want to go fast, and thus, they would
be
<BR>less likely to be aggressive because they would be having a better
day
<BR>with no slowpokes on the road.&nbsp; Moreover, it is probably easier
to
<BR>enforce than other solutions because these slow drivers are so easy
to
<BR>catch.

<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; This policy is being tested
in Frederick County, Maryland.
<BR>Unfortunately, the only description I have is a biased editorial from
<BR>the Washington Post, which opposes this policy--which one would expect
<BR>from a liberal DC paper.&nbsp; Still, this conveys the general gist
of this
<BR>innovative solution to aggressive driving.

<P>See
<BR><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-06/26/038l-062698-idx.html">http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-06/26/038l-062698-idx.html</A>

<P>Friday, June 26, 1998; Page A26

<P>&nbsp;&nbsp; ESTER MARIA Pena's going to think twice before venturing
into
<BR>Frederick County,
<BR>Md., again. Perhaps so should most motorists if they, like Ms. Pena,
<BR>happen to drive
<BR>&nbsp;under the speed limit and might be likely to mistake a sheriff
deputy's
<BR>siren for an
<BR>&nbsp; ambulance. Her harrowing June 12 experience with three county
officers
<BR>is one that
<BR>ought to have county leaders and other citizens up in arms.
<BR>&nbsp;For driving 38 mph in a 55 mph zone and not pulling over when
she heard
<BR>a siren --
<BR>&nbsp;which she thought was coming from an ambulance she couldn't see
--
<BR>Frederick

<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; County sheriff's deputies,
one with gun drawn, descended upon Ms.
<BR>Pena, a D.C.
<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp; schoolteacher, manhandling her as if she were public enemy
No. 1. It
<BR>was a stark
<BR>&nbsp; case of an excessive use of force and police overreaction. It
was also
<BR>a dumb thing
<BR>&nbsp; to have done, made only dumber by the explanations from the
sheriff's
<BR>department.

<P>&nbsp;"Older ladies that are confused and scared unfortunately cause
<BR>accidents," said
<BR>&nbsp; Maj. Francis Tully in the sheriff's office. He was referring
to the
<BR>58-year-old Ms.
<BR>Pena. Consider the possibility, however, that Maj. Tully has it
<BR>backward. That
<BR>&nbsp;maybe Ms. Pena -- who was driving slowly along the highway looking
for
<BR>an exit so
<BR>&nbsp;she could get to her ladies' church group on time for lunch --
ended up
<BR>scared out of
<BR>her wits by the behavior of his deputies. Maybe driving slowly looking
<BR>for a left exit
<BR>&nbsp;does impede traffic flow. But does it warrant being pulled over,
<BR>ordered to put your
<BR>&nbsp;hands behind your head by officers -- one with gun drawn -- yanked
out
<BR>of your car
<BR>by your arm, made to bend over the trunk, handcuffed roughly, and then
<BR>hauled off
<BR>to the county detention center, where you're kept in leg shackles for
<BR>hours while
<BR>waiting for a bail commissioner? We'd say Ms. Pena had good and
<BR>sufficient reason
<BR>to be terrified, disgusted and mad as hell to boot.

<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Frederick County leaders ought to be all over the
<BR>sheriff's department. How in the name of sweet reason could Ms. Pena
<BR>have been arrested, shackled and charged
<BR>&nbsp;with "fleeing and eluding" when she was driving 17 miles under
the
<BR>speed limit?
<BR>And how, in the face of such official excess, could State's Attorney
<BR>Scott Rolle
<BR>&nbsp;defend those officers? Ms. Pena didn't deserve to be treated
like a
<BR>dangerous felon.
<BR>The danger that existed came from the other side.

<P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&copy; Copyright 1998 The Washington Post
<BR>Company</BLOCKQUOTE>
&nbsp;
<BR>&nbsp;
<BR>&nbsp;</HTML>

--------------4F07954D884581BA3C6BC62C--