Last Friday’s ride commemorated the 18th birthday of Critical Mass! Happy birthday to everyone who has ridden Critical Mass in those years, all the friends we’ve made and lives that have been changed during that time.

I liked this photo for the wary eye of the San Jose Bike Party rider as he looks over his shoulder at a motorcyclist interloper. It seemed like a good illustration of just why corking is important. Having a motorcyclist or car weaving in the midst of a mass of bicyclists is downright dangerous!

This expensive Lamborghini convertible reminded me of a comment by Ric Bruce I read a few days ago on Streetsblog:

Perhaps it would be useful to address the true underlying cause of driver inattention. That is, driving a car is tedious manual labour.

Paradoxically, nobody knows that better than the automobile manufacturers themselves. Their massive advertising budgets (approximately US$17 billion per year for the last five years or so) invariably feature single cars “flying” down roads uncluttered with other cars, red lights, or pedestrians or bicyclists. In other words, the companies’ extensive research into the issue has clearly proven that the realities of automobile ownership and operation are, at best, unsaleable.

In an effort to distract attention from the underlying tedium that is driving, automobile manufacturers have added an ever-increasing number of toys that enable the driver to amuse themselves.

So, rather than attempt to “make roads safer” or “make drivers pay attention”, perhaps we’d do better to recognize that driving isn’t “fun” or “freedom” or “excitement”, and begin liberating Americans from the tyranny of the automobile-centric way of life.

We ended up in the Presidio — always a great place to explore on a warm September night!

I titled this one “Ralph Nader Does Not Approve,” thinking of the “Unsafe at Any Speed” phrase. I personally love seeing people carrying kids and dogs by bike. The serious injuries I hear about with bikes always involve cars. Biking is not in itself a dangerous activity!

Congratulations for another successful Critical Mass! Here’s to another 18 years!

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