B
B. Lafferty
Guest
Report of a lecture in Montreal about bicycle "terrorism" as seen by the US
government:
http://thelink.concordia.ca/article.pl?sid=05/10/11/1933240
To save you all the trouble, I've reproduced it below. I was a bit doubtful
at first about some of the speaker's claims, but the ones about the Rutabaga
cyclists checked out:
http://www.cyclecircus.org/diary.html#1
Here's some more info on the lecturer, from an announcement of the talk
reported below:
Dr. Paul Simpson is a Pennsylvania physician of Internal Medicine and
President of the Centre Region Bicycle Coalition. He has recently spoken at
Velo-City 2005 in Dublin, Ireland, BikeFest 2005 in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, and Curb Your Car?s Car-Free Week 2005 in Ithaca, New York.
Bush's war on... cyclists?
Paul Simpson lectures on the Bush administration's attempts to boost
consumption of oil
Monday, October 10, 2005 @10:00PM
by Imai Welch
"You're either with us or you're a bicyclist: North American car-dependency
and the use of the Bush Administration's 'War on Terror' to discriminate
against bicyclists, pedestrians and users of public transportation" is the
name of the lecture that Dr. Paul Simpson gave at McGill last Friday.
Simpson claims that the Bush government's war on terror "has been used to
discriminate against [sustainable transport users]," some of it
systematically-based. "Government and business now see any investment toward
private cars... as an important investment in infrastructure-public
transport is now seen as a wasteful subsidy."
A specialist in internal medicine from Pennsylvania and president of the
Centre Region Bicycle Coalition, Simpson contextualized his speech at the
beginning by giving a history of what he called "the obesification of
America."
In 2000, the U.S. Surgeon General and the Centres for Disease Control
attempted to counter obesity by suggesting ways that the government could
promote physical activity. Among the recommendations were the planning and
zoning of cities and suburbs to promote public transport, the creation and
promotion of bike paths and recreation centres.
Simpson claims that the U.S. government's priorities lie in oil, shelving
obesity-related legislation. In 2001, the Bush administration invited
lobbies and companies such as Enron and Haliburton to create the National
Energy Policy Development Group.
According to Simpson, "It's pretty clear that the discussion [of the Group]
was centered around... how to get people to use more oil." A policy paper
the group published squeezed sustainable transportation.
Further discrimination is weaved into the Department of Homeland Security's
courses post 9/11.
"One of the things they taught was that bicycles could be used to cause
terrorist attacks and should not be allowed into [public buildings and
structures]," said Simpson. He added that there has yet to be an attack
using a bicycle.
However, cars may be parked underneath buildings, serving as effective means
to transport bombs. Cars have yet to be restricted to the extent bicycles
have.
Another effect was the general mistreatment of bicyclists by police, who are
often branded as terrorists. Among the many examples Simpson cited, one
artistic group promoting bicycling, the Rutabaga Flying Cycle Circus, was
arrested hours after their arrival in St. Louis, Missouri. Their bicycles
were destroyed, their belongings urinated upon, and their artwork defaced or
destroyed. All this, Simpson noted, "while these things were in police
custody."
The police claimed they had a tip that the bicycle posse was a terrorist
organization.
FreeRide, a bike co-op in Pittsburgh, was branded as a terrorist
organization for promoting bicycle usage instead of cars. Another Pittsburgh
organization, BikePittsburgh, was declared "a domestic terrorist
organization subject to investigation and harassment by the FBI," Simpson
said.
Under the U.S. Patriot Act-a cluster of anti-terror legislation resulting
from 9/11-a terrorist can also be defined as anyone speaking against energy
production.
During the question period, people asked Simpson about the actions taken
against bicyclists by the American government, including a lawsuit against
the Critical Mass bicycling group in New York. The government is trying to
bar the group from cycling in the streets.
One woman asked, "How did the idea [of bicyclists as terrorists] get there?"
"Some of the actions of John Ashcroft toward the Freeride in Pittsburgh
[helped]," Simpson replied. "It seems people have got the idea that cyclists
are terrorists."
Simpson argued that in terms of putting a stop to the negative attitudes,
"The technique that will work is getting people to use public transport."
When asked what Dr. Simpson thought would encourage people to use
sustainable transport, he said, "I think that economics and the world [oil]
situation is going to do it."
government:
http://thelink.concordia.ca/article.pl?sid=05/10/11/1933240
To save you all the trouble, I've reproduced it below. I was a bit doubtful
at first about some of the speaker's claims, but the ones about the Rutabaga
cyclists checked out:
http://www.cyclecircus.org/diary.html#1
Here's some more info on the lecturer, from an announcement of the talk
reported below:
Dr. Paul Simpson is a Pennsylvania physician of Internal Medicine and
President of the Centre Region Bicycle Coalition. He has recently spoken at
Velo-City 2005 in Dublin, Ireland, BikeFest 2005 in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, and Curb Your Car?s Car-Free Week 2005 in Ithaca, New York.
Bush's war on... cyclists?
Paul Simpson lectures on the Bush administration's attempts to boost
consumption of oil
Monday, October 10, 2005 @10:00PM
by Imai Welch
"You're either with us or you're a bicyclist: North American car-dependency
and the use of the Bush Administration's 'War on Terror' to discriminate
against bicyclists, pedestrians and users of public transportation" is the
name of the lecture that Dr. Paul Simpson gave at McGill last Friday.
Simpson claims that the Bush government's war on terror "has been used to
discriminate against [sustainable transport users]," some of it
systematically-based. "Government and business now see any investment toward
private cars... as an important investment in infrastructure-public
transport is now seen as a wasteful subsidy."
A specialist in internal medicine from Pennsylvania and president of the
Centre Region Bicycle Coalition, Simpson contextualized his speech at the
beginning by giving a history of what he called "the obesification of
America."
In 2000, the U.S. Surgeon General and the Centres for Disease Control
attempted to counter obesity by suggesting ways that the government could
promote physical activity. Among the recommendations were the planning and
zoning of cities and suburbs to promote public transport, the creation and
promotion of bike paths and recreation centres.
Simpson claims that the U.S. government's priorities lie in oil, shelving
obesity-related legislation. In 2001, the Bush administration invited
lobbies and companies such as Enron and Haliburton to create the National
Energy Policy Development Group.
According to Simpson, "It's pretty clear that the discussion [of the Group]
was centered around... how to get people to use more oil." A policy paper
the group published squeezed sustainable transportation.
Further discrimination is weaved into the Department of Homeland Security's
courses post 9/11.
"One of the things they taught was that bicycles could be used to cause
terrorist attacks and should not be allowed into [public buildings and
structures]," said Simpson. He added that there has yet to be an attack
using a bicycle.
However, cars may be parked underneath buildings, serving as effective means
to transport bombs. Cars have yet to be restricted to the extent bicycles
have.
Another effect was the general mistreatment of bicyclists by police, who are
often branded as terrorists. Among the many examples Simpson cited, one
artistic group promoting bicycling, the Rutabaga Flying Cycle Circus, was
arrested hours after their arrival in St. Louis, Missouri. Their bicycles
were destroyed, their belongings urinated upon, and their artwork defaced or
destroyed. All this, Simpson noted, "while these things were in police
custody."
The police claimed they had a tip that the bicycle posse was a terrorist
organization.
FreeRide, a bike co-op in Pittsburgh, was branded as a terrorist
organization for promoting bicycle usage instead of cars. Another Pittsburgh
organization, BikePittsburgh, was declared "a domestic terrorist
organization subject to investigation and harassment by the FBI," Simpson
said.
Under the U.S. Patriot Act-a cluster of anti-terror legislation resulting
from 9/11-a terrorist can also be defined as anyone speaking against energy
production.
During the question period, people asked Simpson about the actions taken
against bicyclists by the American government, including a lawsuit against
the Critical Mass bicycling group in New York. The government is trying to
bar the group from cycling in the streets.
One woman asked, "How did the idea [of bicyclists as terrorists] get there?"
"Some of the actions of John Ashcroft toward the Freeride in Pittsburgh
[helped]," Simpson replied. "It seems people have got the idea that cyclists
are terrorists."
Simpson argued that in terms of putting a stop to the negative attitudes,
"The technique that will work is getting people to use public transport."
When asked what Dr. Simpson thought would encourage people to use
sustainable transport, he said, "I think that economics and the world [oil]
situation is going to do it."
