Bike Justice
Jan 18, 2008 · 06:52 AM · permalink
One of our readers from Taiwan, submitted this story about a bike and a Buick:
Woman hits student on bicycle with Buick. Demands payment for scratches to car. Argument ensues. Mob of students responds with “turning over and violent dismemberment of the sedan” [sic].
That’s bike, well, “mob” justice. While Bike Hugger does not promote bike-on-car violence, I did imagine a mob descending upon one of those PI-bike-hater forum trolls, who were out in force last week over storm grates (of all things). Like this cyclist who challenged a driver in downtown Toronto and won!
Side note on those grates: I’ve ridden here for over 15 years in Seattle and haven’t known anyone terrorized by grates or seen that myself. That was new to me and as a rule I do not ride over grates or hug the curb. Train tracks are absolutely a concern, especially in a city like ours that’s a construction zone.
If no one got hurt, and it was only property damage to a car, well done! Why should we care about property when people are killed by cars so frequently: whether while in one, while outside one, from asthma and smog caused by them, or munitions used for them to ‘secure’ oil? A good thing the law respects human life and health more than property… er, there’s an idea!
Holy crap! Don’t mess with Taiwanese students, that’s what I say. It seems that this incident was an example of some serious social unrest, perhaps outright class war, and the bicycle collision was the trigger, or catalyst. Bikes do tend to become symbolic fairly frequently. As far as the storm grates are concerned, they may not be the most serious problem we have, but refusing to fix them and paying out $25,000 instead is just plain stupid. A perfect example of just how much good approving the Bicycle Master (Lip Service) Plan has done us.
This incident occurred in China, not Taiwan.
Michael
Correct and what’s interesting to me is that before I traveled to Beijing, I ride the State Department’s report on “crowd justice” and people’s court and how to avoid that, if confronted. This is what happens!
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