In the course of my reporting here at BikePortland.org, I don’t usually come in contact with the Oregon Attorney General. But I was surprised to find out this morning that Oregon top lawyer, John Kroger, is something of a bike lover.
In an AP story I read via the Seattle PI, Kroger was made out to be “tough on polluters”. Why is he so concerned about the environment? Here’s one reason, according to the article:
“…He attributes his interest in environmental issues to his love of hiking and bicycling. He discovered Oregon at the end of a cross-country bike trip.”
A bit more looking and I dug this up from Mr. Kroger’s Wikipedia entry:
In 2000, Kroger had an eight-week period blocked out for an upcoming drug kingpin trial, but when the trial schedule was moved back, Kroger took a three-month vacation. He bought a $350 Trek bicycle and started cycling west across the country, from New York to Oregon.
It’s not quite to the level of U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio’s job as a bike mechanic or Rep. Blumenauer’s daily D.C. bike commute, but I’d say it ranks a bit higher than Governor Kulongoski’s recent, SUV-escorted bike ride into work.
Regardless, it’s great to know that yet another high-ranking elected official in Oregon has had a meaningful relationship with two-wheeled travel.
I’d say this “meaningful relationship” is purely personal unless Mr Kroger is ready to make prosecution of crimes and traffic offenses against bicyclists a priority.
Surely as a bicyclist Mr Kroger is aware that motorists’ violation of certain specific traffic laws and other similar actions are responsibile for the Oregon public’s perception that bicycling is not sufficiently safe and that this perception keeps many people from bicycling in Oregon.
Since this is largely (but not totally) a law enforcement problem, perhaps you could ask him if he plans to address this issue and, if so, how.
I’ll be a broken record again (paraphrasing myself), that is, the more bike-centric, politicians on the upper end of the food chain, the better. If they are truly bicycle enthusiasts, it will influence their decisions regarding bike accidents, litigation etc.
We’ve been evangelized long enough by right-wing church rats selling cheap gas as the best “alternative” to our ongoing crisis.
I’ve met Kroger on a couple occasions and I think changes to enforcement of traffic crimes is something he would generally be receptive to. However, he’s also made a lot of fairly significant campaign promises in other areas which are going to be taking a lot of his time and attention. Definitely he’s a potentially sympathetic ear who we in the cycling community shouldn’t hesitate to contact and lobby though.
Also, as someone who commutes by bike daily but doesn’t consider myself nearly hardcore enough to cycle across the country, I think Kroger’s ride ranks pretty damn high.
If you happen to be in Salem on Friday, come to Salem’s Breakfast on Bikes. We’ll be out on the Capitol steps, and we hope Legislators, the Governor, and others will join us! (Mr. Kroger sent his regrets, alas.)
If we can’t keep the crazies off the streets (the ones with the guns) then it won’t matter how much we make bicycling safer in Portland, no one will want to go outside on a bike. Or at all.
dear attorney general kroger..
i am writing you in regards to once again filing a complaint..
everytime i file a complaint to these maters i receive further coerceon,intimidation and denial of due process of the law..
due process(or more fully)due process of the law
is the principle that the state must respect all of a persons rights not just some or most of them..
on 8-29-04 i was cuffed,tazered,assaulted and received threats to myself and others by jeff weideman and zackery h lad,,
then they filed blatent false reports of arresting me at 1434 #4 ferry street 9-2-04..
there are 2 reports for 9-2-04- to prove for fact false reports and substantiate my claims to 8-29-04 incident..
oregon state bar pressures portland oregon attorney for name of c.i.a. agent who allegedly on unsubstantiated claims may have violated someones civil rights..
dear us attorney patrick fitzgerald,,
i would like to report a violation of us law regarding exposure of covert government agents,,
on 8-20-04 a police report was entered to public record exposing this c.i.a. and i would like robert mueller and the f.b.i. to prosecute these individuals.
also section 213 of homeland securitty act says,
the federal government shall remove from public record,,,,,
sicerely james dean riley