Sympathetic article in Sydney Morning Herald

[redsonic]

The SMH today published a quite balanced article looking at the recent spike in cycling fatalities in NSW. Nationally, deaths have also risen from 32 last year to 46 this year-to-date.
SMH Article

I particularly like this summary:
There are differences between commuter cyclists and recreational riders but the reality is they all ride a road network built for car usage alone, with motorist anger regularly whipped up by a hostile media.


Presumably, SMH doesn't consider itself among the hostile media. Same can't be said for the Courier Mail which is Brisbane's only daily.

[The 2nd Womble]

It also doesn't help when everyone sees the AGF as THE voice of cyclists when representation is sought by the media, motorists and cyclists alike. This is something which those at the top of this org, and BN, like it a be as directly stated by Mark Textor this week on Twitter. To the extent that they have now gone on record as effectively having rubbished the vast majority involved as kooks being responsible for a fractured cycling community in Australia. Neither I nor tens of thousands of cyclists want such weak and limp wristed self appeasing and self appointed "we must please everyone all the time with what we say" representation in the media and in front of our policy makers. They are improving fast, but we've already fallen so far behind.
Cyclists are desperately seeking strong representation on several issues, so when every national paper and television network (and in particular the SBS) go to the usual for comment, we are being shown as one dimensional and jelly backed. This does nothing to further cycling's cause.
Rant over. Possibly.

[ldrcycles]

Ahh, now I see why some people were angry about the "Is it ok to kill a cyclist" article, of course the media were going to ignore all of the facts presented about the disgusting lack of consequences for murderous drivers and instead pick out the few lines conceding there are some idiot cyclists.

I wouldn't call this article sympathetic, while it isn't rabidly anti-cycling like so many others it does appear to me to present cycling as horrifically dangerous and inappropriate for the road. It's just the bogan cry of "Get off my road!" in a few more words, packaged to make it sound like they're doing us a favour.

[DavidS]

Hmm, not a bad article but they just can't help being sensationalist can they?

Riding a bike is looming as a new wave health hazard with three cyclists killed around Sydney suburbs in the past three weeks.

Yeah, and how many were killed in cars? That number has no meaning without comparing it to other fatalities, with cyclist fatalities over a longer period of time and with fatalities versus usage rates. Also, and especially given the small number, we should look at the reason for these fatalities, speaking of which, the next line was:

A woman and two men, all aged in their 40s, died after being clipped by vehicles or falling off their bikes and suffering head injuries.

Oh, so at least one (possibly 2?) of these accidents was caused by another vehicle clipping a bike. So where's the comment about how drivers should be more careful, even maybe learn to control their heavy dangerous vehicles?

A very superficial article which adds little to the debate.

DS

[redsonic]

Good comments above, and DavidS, you made a good point about the failure to detail the car drivers' complicity in the recent deaths.
What can I say, it seemed like a balanced article to me. We'all up heah in Brisbane don't get much from the cyclists' point of view in our free press

[The 2nd Womble]

Good comments above, and DavidS, you made a good point about the failure to detail the car drivers' complicity in the recent deaths.
What can I say, it seemed like a balanced article to me. We'all up heah in Brisbane don't get much from the cyclists' point of view in our free press

Cyclists up here are entitled to a point of view? Don't tell Gary Hardgrave.

[DavidS]

Redsonic, it was certainly a lot better than many articles we see, I was being pretty damned picky . Unfortunately we often don't get the detail in media reports and I certainly don't know the detail of the recent deaths in Sydney.

Would be nice to have some articles pointing out that bicycles have the same right to the road, and a lane, as other vehicles.

DS

[Jono L.]

"Respect

Let’s get one thing, perhaps the purest essence of the problem, very straight right here and now:

Respect does not have to be earned.

You can walk out into the street, see hundreds of people whom you’ve never met before in your life, and you can respect them. You can let them do what they’re doing, wear what they’re wearing, say what they’re saying. It’s perfectly normal and natural and – by and large – everyone does this. It’s basic respect that we all have for each other by default.

Yet, somehow, many people seem to have a philosophical problem with extending this to the idea of driving in such a way as to simply ensure that these people stay alive."

http://beyondthekerb.wordpress.com/2013 ... c-respect/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[cyclotaur]

Amen.


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