This story is part of my ongoing coverage of the 2008 National Bike Summit. See the rest of my coverage here.
During this morning’s opening remarks, the executive director of Bikes Belong, Tim Blumenthal, reported that U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters apologized to him for disparaging remarks she made about bike funding.
Peters caused an uproar back in August when, during a media interview about the Minnesota bridge collapse, she pinned partial blame for the disaster on spending too much transportation infrastructure money on “special programs” and “earmarks” which she said included things like lighthouses, museums, and bike paths (!).
Her remarks led to the meeting with Blumenthal where he reported that she said, “I am sincerely sorry, I can’t believe those words came from my mouth.”
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This is a good sign. It would carry more weight if Mary Peters herself had come to the opening day of the summit to say this herself. Could someone post Peters email so we can thank her for this apology and ask her to get involved in Earl\’s Bike Bill.
she made the comments on national television – the damage is done unless she retracts/apologizes for the statement in a similar venue. it just doesnt carry the same weight, to me, said in a meeting, and then relayed to a small segment of the public as s second- or third-hand piece of information
of course, as metal cowboy mentions, id accept sincere involvement in/backing of earls bike bill as a form of retraction/apology 🙂
Let me guess…she\’s overweight and drives an SUV – probably doesn\’t have any natural smile lines either.
A direct explanation and perhaps an apology, is in order, not one offered in a second hand manner. Has she made this gesture on her website or some such thing?
Don’t believe one optimistic word from any public figure about the economy or humanity in general. They are all part of the problem. Its like a game of Monopoly. In America, the richest 1% now hold 1/2 OF ALL UNITED STATES WEALTH. Unlike ‘lesser’ estimates, this includes all stocks, bonds, cash, and material assets held by America’s richest 1%. Even that filthy pig Oprah acknowledged that it was at about 50% in 2006. Naturally, she put her own ‘humanitarian’ spin on it. Calling attention to her own ‘good will’. WHAT A DISGUSTING HYPOCRITE SLOB. THE RICHEST 1% HAVE LITERALLY MADE WORLD PROSPERITY ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE. Don’t fall for any of their ‘humanitarian’ CRAP. ITS A SHAM. THESE PEOPLE ARE CAUSING THE SAME PROBLEMS THEY PRETEND TO CARE ABOUT. Ask any professor of economics. Money does not grow on trees. The government can’t just print up more on a whim. At any given time, there is a relative limit to the wealth within ANY economy of ANY size. So when too much wealth accumulates at the top, the middle class slip further into debt and the lower class further into poverty. A similar rule applies worldwide. The world’s richest 1% now own over 40% of ALL WORLD WEALTH. This is EVEN AFTER you account for all of this ‘good will’ ‘humanitarian’ BS from celebrities and executives. ITS A SHAM. As they get richer and richer, less wealth is left circulating beneath them. This is the single greatest underlying cause for the current US recession. The middle class can no longer afford to sustain their share of the economy. Their wealth has been gradually transfered to the richest 1%. One way or another, we suffer because of their incredible greed. We are talking about TRILLIONS of dollars. Transfered FROM US TO THEM. Over a period of about 27 years. Thats Reaganomics for you. The wealth does not ‘trickle down’ as we were told it would. It just accumulates at the top. Shrinking the middle class and expanding the lower class. Causing a domino effect of socio-economic problems. But the rich will never stop. They will never settle for a reasonable share of ANYTHING. They will do whatever it takes to get even richer. Leaving even less of the pie for the other 99% of us to share. At the same time, they throw back a few tax deductable crumbs and call themselves ‘humanitarians’. Cashing in on the PR and getting even richer the following year. IT CAN’T WORK THIS WAY. Their bogus efforts to make the world a better place can not possibly succeed. Any \’humanitarian\’ progress made in one area will be lost in another. EVERY SINGLE TIME. IT ABSOLUTELY CAN NOT WORK THIS WAY. This is going to end just like a game of Monopoly. The current US recession will drag on for years and lead into the worst US depression of all time. The richest 1% will live like royalty while the rest of us fight over jobs, food, and gasoline. Crime, poverty, and suicide will skyrocket. So don’t fall for all of this PR CRAP from Hollywood, Pro Sports, and Wall Street PIGS. ITS A SHAM. Remember: They are filthy rich EVEN AFTER their tax deductable contributions. Greedy pigs. Now, we are headed for the worst economic and cultural crisis of all time. SEND A “THANK YOU” NOTE TO YOUR FAVORITE MILLIONAIRE. ITS THEIR FAULT. I’m not discounting other factors like China, sub-prime, or gas prices. But all of those factors combined still pale in comparison to that HUGE transfer of wealth to the rich. Anyway, those other factors are all related and further aggrivated because of GREED. If it weren’t for the OBSCENE distribution of wealth within our country, there never would have been such a market for sub-prime to begin with. Which by the way, was another trick whipped up by greedy bankers and executives. IT MAKES THEM RICHER. The credit industry has been ENDORSED by people like Oprah, Ellen, Dr Phil, and many other celebrities. IT MAKES THEM RICHER. 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Their idea. All of which concentrate the world’s wealth and resources and wreak havok on society. All of which have been CREATED AND ENDORSED by celebrities, athletes, and executives. IT MAKES THEM RICHER. So don’t fall for their ‘ good will’ ‘humanitarian’ BS. ITS A SHAM. NOTHING BUT TAX DEDUCTABLE PR CRAP. Bottom line: The richest 1% will soon tank the largest economy in the world. It will be like nothing we’ve ever seen before. and thats just the beginning. Greed will eventually tank every major economy in the world. Causing millions to suffer and die. Oprah, Angelina, Brad, Bono, and Bill are not part of the solution. They are part of the problem. EXTREME WEALTH HAS MADE WORLD PROSPERITY ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE. WITHOUT WORLD PROSPERITY, THERE WILL NEVER BE WORLD PEACE OR ANYTHING EVEN CLOSE. GREED KILLS. IT WILL BE OUR DOWNFALL. Of course, the rich will throw a fit and call me a madman. Of course, their ignorant fans will do the same. You have to expect that. But I speak the truth. If you don’t believe me, then copy this entry and run it by any professor of economics or socio-economics. Then tell a friend. Call the local radio station. Re-post this entry or put it in your own words. Be one of the first to predict the worst economic and cultural crisis of all time and explain its cause. WE ARE IN BIG TROUBLE.
She\’s been hanging around Betsy Johnson too much…
Her bio can be found at: http://www.dot.gov/bios/peters.htm
No idea if she\’s overweight or drives an SUV. She rides motorbikes, apparently.
Personal attacks when trying to discuss an issue is counterproductive. Sure it\’s appropriate to call someone out as aggressively as is appropriate but the personal insults reflect poorly on *US*.
The more intelligent and thoughtful our arguments are the better we position ourselves for success.
I\’m with Zaphod… but the \”smile lines\” bit was pretty funny.
Can we paste Zaphod\’s comment on the bulkhead of BikePortland.org?
# Zaphod
March 5th, 2008 10:37 8
Personal attacks when trying to discuss an issue is counterproductive. Sure it\’s appropriate to call someone out as aggressively as is appropriate but the personal insults reflect poorly on *US*.
The more intelligent and thoughtful our arguments are the better we position ourselves for success.
Sorry all for setting US back as advocates in the cycling community…sure hope Secretary Peters doesn\’t retract her apology if she accidently stumbles onto my post!
Generally speaking I agree.
Moo\’s smile line made topper made me laugh out loud… so I agree to disagree today.
At 5.
I represent the 1%.
I take issue.
And I brought cake.
moo, overweight people ride bikes, too. they\’re less likely to do so if you make fun of them, of course. but i\’ll bet even people with SUVs ride bikes.
tonginchic: oo, what kind of cake? 🙂