Latest anti-bike screed

A column in the Trib by John McCarron on Chicago's alleged "war on cars" is not to be missed. He's not really "anti-bicyclist" as much as he is "anti-everything-but-cars". In this short column, he ridicules Gabe Klein (who has the audacity to confess he's "making the city easier to traverse by cyclists and pedestrians"!!), biking to work, bike lanes, dedicated bus lanes, making decisions that are beneficial to health, and more.

Very forward-thinking.

And this guy says he teaches a graduate level seminar in urban issues at Northwestern? NU might want to rethink that relationship.

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Permalink Reply by Chris B on November 29, 2011 at 9:44am

I love this comment "I don't think tourists come to Chicago to drive around in the Loop; that would be a pretty lousy vacation."

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Permalink Reply by Michael J Blane on November 29, 2011 at 12:23pm

Roads Were Not Built For Cars

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Permalink Reply by Fran Kondorf on November 29, 2011 at 12:36pm

+1

clp said:

McCarron's OpEd piece has already received at least one cogent rebuttal in Brent Cors' blog:

...Is this really a war on cars or an honest assessment of a city's transportation needs for the future? Can a city like Chicago continue to function while levels of air pollution and congestion continue to rise? Should we dismiss, out of hand, any solutions that might make some of us physically or financially uncomfortable? This isn't a war on cars. Framing it this way makes motorists out to be the victims - a vulnerable group oppressed by a tyrannical government. Rahm The Terrible hates us for our freedom of mobility...

This is a war on declining living conditions. It's a war against air pollution and the health issues toxic emissions exacerbate for everyone. It's a war against congestion and all the precious time, effort, and energy it wastes for everyone. It's not a war against anything other than the negative consequences of our own selfishness. We've seen the enemy and the enemy is us...

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Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on November 29, 2011 at 1:18pm

That is a completely useless case to make when it comes to road use; the streets we have today are made for cars.

Michael J Blane said:

Roads Were Not Built For Cars

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Permalink Reply by Adam Sterling on November 29, 2011 at 3:20pm

I like how he's proud of the fact that he teaches at NW but hasn't ever spent more than $180 on a suit. I'll bet he's a real charmer at cocktail parties. I wonder how long it takes him to drag all his opinions through the front door when he gets home at night. They're probably pretty fucking heavy. I like how he also disclaims his hatred for biking by naming a bike path he likes, and stating he can change a tire. That's like defending racism with "but I know this one black guy, and he's cool, it's just all those OTHER ones."

Guys, it's the Trib. This kinda tripe is pretty common in my experience from their editorial board. It's bought and paid for by the likes of the Civic Committee and other pro-business groups. When Colonel McCormick sent a reporter over to Germany from the Trib during the run up to WW2, the reporter defected to the Nazi party. Not much has changed in the past 60+ years.

And LMAO "ego" "stamina" about biking to work. The idea of spending $90 per month to ride a crowded stinky disease vector of a train nauseates me. I can afford the gas, but the idea of sitting in traffic for 20 min to go somewhere I can get to on a bike in 10 or less nauseates me. It has nothing to do w ego or identity. It has to do w biking being, simply, the cheapest and fastest way to get around Chicago.