The Monday Roundup: Major Taylor recognized, cycling’s bro culture, campus car culture, and more

Here are the most noteworthy items we came across in the past seven days…

Remembered: Cycling legend and pioneer Major Taylor finally got some of the respect he deserves from America’s newspaper of record as he was featured in their special “Overlooked” series of obituaries.

Cycling bros strike again: Discrimination against women is rife in the Outdoor industry and the bike industry is the worst, with 55% of women surveyed saying they’ve been victims of bias. A group led by people of color has been pushing for diversity in the industry long before this recent survey received attention.

As we were saying: A pro racer is in hot water after he made a lewd gesture toward a woman in an informal photograph.

Women breaking rules: A program to get women on bikes in a city in Pakistan is inspiring and liberating women while causing a stir among men who think they shouldn’t even leave the house.

Off-road riding benefits: A program in Scotland uses urban mountain biking as a way to improve peoples’ mental health. Add this to the myriad reasons Portland needs to expand local singletrack options!

Scooter CEO gets it: “The deeper I get into transportation, the more I realize we don’t need autonomous vehicles, we don’t need tunnels, all we need are more bike lanes,” said Bird CEO Travis VanderZanden at a recent conference.

Riding in cold: You heard about the crazy polar vortex weather that hit the midwest; but did you stop to think what it would be like to ride a bike through it?

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Stars upon e-bikes: Electric bikes are a big hit with many Hollywood A-listers. Now, if we could only get writers and directors to display them in a respectful, accurate way in their productions!

DeFazio interview: Oregon’s very own U.S. House Rep. Peter DeFazio, new chair of the powerful House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, didn’t break much new ground in an interview with Streetsblog.

Interval to freedom: Spend some time with this amazing but true story about Tom Justice, a once serious racer who used his bike as a getaway vehicle for dozens of bank robberies.

Car culture on campus: UCLA officials found that students take about 11,000 Uber/Lyft rides each week for short trips that never leave campus. Sigh.

Oregon failing on emissions: City Observatory once again lays out the truth about Oregon when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions: Largely due to our state DOT being a de facto driving advocacy group we are failing to meet our greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.

Less biking in SF: The SF Examiner reports that on U.S. Census figures that show a decrease of 20,000 bike trips in 2017 compared to 2016.

Ciclovia his Ethiopian capitol: Addis Ababa went carfree for a day and the results were absolutely beautiful (and totally predictable).

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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footwalker
matchupancakes
5 years ago

It’s easy to imagine NW 16th Ave in the shadow of I-405 while viewing the photos of Addis Ababa enjoying Car Free Day!

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  matchupancakes

Particularly since a bridge in Ethiopia looks as well maintained as one in Portland, OR.

JP
JP
5 years ago
Reply to  PS

Why wouldn’t it?

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  JP

Well, one place has a per capita gdp of about $800 per year and the other is multiples more than that.

9watts
5 years ago

On the Bird CEO quote –

How about: “The deeper I get into transportation, the more I realize we don’t need venture capital, global supply chains, CEOs, all we need is to dust off the bike that is moldering in the garage and swing a leg over it.”

Lester Burnham
Lester Burnham
5 years ago

Oh I’m sure the Peter Sagan worship will continue. You can’t have a pro racing story without his mug thrown in our face.

David Hampsten
David Hampsten
5 years ago
Reply to  Lester Burnham

What story? All I got was three paragraphs in and the rest of the story was blocked by a subscriber service. What kind of blog uses other such blogs?

Matt
Matt
5 years ago
Reply to  David Hampsten

It wasn’t actually blocked, not for me at least. I just clicked the “continue reading” button and the subscription request went away and loaded the full article.

BradWagon
5 years ago

I’m having a hard time seeing the direct link between the Camber study and what you are calling “cycling bros” and seemingly linking to behavior by the pro peloton… So corporate middle management and HR policies are run by cycling bro’s? And the masses of employees at large outdoor companies are somehow influenced only by the aggressive minority of people using their products and not the same herd mentalities and professional gender discrimination present in… oh, like every company?

Would looooove to see outdoor industry put up against say construction industry, entertainment industry, finance… oh wait, they all have problems too! Because stuff like this doesn’t care about the end product, its directly related to the number men and number of women involved. More men cycle then women, an uncomfortable fact, but the driving force of this. “Cycling Bro’s” may be a reason behind this but they aren’t strategically infiltrating corporate offices to undermine equality efforts. Maybe “A Lack of Female Representation within Cycling Strikes Again” would be less editorialized.

Q
Q
5 years ago
Reply to  BradWagon

But that doesn’t fit the current PC trend of “all white men are bad” that expects hetero light skinned males to apologize for ..wait for it.. conditions of their birth beyond their control, while being stoked by the concept of making broad generalizations about a group of people based on their gender and racial background.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago

I am curious: which groups you think are not fucked up in the head?

David Hampsten
David Hampsten
5 years ago

Really? I wasn’t previously aware I was evil and screwing up society because of the color my skin, which as Q rightly points out, I had no control over, as I made a poor choice on choosing my parents. It must be my “white privilege”, even though I’m dirt poor, unemployed for the past 10 years, and no longer a fearless cyclist. Too bad we still must judge each other on the color of our skins and our birth genders, rather than the content of our character, in our modern media.

Middle of the Road Guy
Middle of the Road Guy
5 years ago

If only we did not see similar power dynamics of the wealthy and powerful trying to hang onto power in such countries as North Korea, China, the Philippines, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Turkey, Pakistan, Chad, Sudan, etc.

BikeRound
BikeRound
5 years ago

Or even in the Americas before the arrival of Europeans: The Quechua speaking Incas, for example, colonized the neighboring Indian tribes, such as the Aymaras. Europeans were not any more aggressive or power-hungry than any other group of peoples, but they had better weapons.

Toby Keith
Toby Keith
5 years ago

Shhh. We’re only talking about *white* men here!

Jim
Jim
5 years ago

Abuses of power can be perpetrated in many cultures/any culture. How does that in any way mean we should not call out abuses of power in our culture by the dominant group, which is white men?

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago

We should call out abuses of power by anyone, regardless of what “group” they are in.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago

How does your broad, sweeping generalizations about entire demographic groups differ from the generalizations other people make about other groups? Has this sort of language and thinking become so normalized by our esteemed president that it’s ok again? I know I’m behind the times, but it really seems uncool to me.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

“How does your broad, sweeping generalizations about entire demographic groups differ from the generalizations other people make about other groups? ”

I won’t claim or try to speak for Jonathan, but my answer to your question is: power.
Those with a disproportionate share of power (white men being just the most obvious category here) acquired that power illegitimately, on the backs of everyone else. We, individually, probably didn’t do (or need to do) much to accomplish that, but it is a fact, and something worth not losing sight of.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

I wasn’t referring to “cycling bros”, but rather the comment you made declaring a demographic group was “particularly screwed up”. How can you support statements like that while at the same time (presumably, hopefully) condemning similar statements made with equal amounts of evidence, focusing on different groups?

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

9watts: My complaint is that broad generalizations about demographic groups are wrong, often morally, almost always, and certainly in this case, factually. This is completely aside from power dynamics. When I was in school, it was drilled into us to be careful about stereotyping. Now it’s cool again?

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

I don’t think pointing out how power and privilege work, what they have wrought, is to stereotype. It is to simply point out that these are the building blocks of our unfair society.
I’m not even sure it is possible to stereotype the dominant group. How does that work. And what effect could it have?

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Uh… you mean pointing out that “power and privilege” work because white men are f’ed in the head? I fail to see how this is 1) helpful or 2) accurate.

Are you really defending that claim?

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

I’m not defending that particular claim. I don’t even know what that means.
But you and I have a long running conversation here about, among other things, how inequality, racism, privilege manifest, work, what repercussions they have. I was speaking to that larger conversation. A conversation in which you have rejected the notion that white folks have collectively inherited something that burdens them in the present, that places the onus on us to be mindful of those legacies, tread lightly.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

My point here was making broad statements without a factual basis about any group is unlikely to be helpful, and serves only to normalize stereotypical thinking that can be used to scapegoat others. There may be exceptions to this general rule, but if “we” make a habit of it, it’s much harder to condemn when “they” do it.

If you want to make a case why stereotyping is good, please have at it. Otherwise, maybe we should conclude this portion of tonight’s debate.

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Stereotyping is a form punching down. Punching up with words and actions is called democracy. Perhaps the USA will try this form of government some day…

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Stereotyping is not punching at all. It’s over-generalization. It’s sloppy and lazy thinking.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

I’m sticking with my question upthread – is it even possible to stereotype the dominant group? Assuming it is, what would that mean?

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

Can you overgeneralize about the dominant group? Of course you can. Why couldn’t you?

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

You just sucked the power and the politics right out of your own term.
Stereotyping is to overgeneralizing what rape is to intercourse.
The point is that I can say all the mean words I want about a dominant group. But the reason it has no meaningful effect, no repercussions, causes no lasting damage is that they are the dominant group; they call the shots. No posse is going to ride out and string up the members of the dominant group because I pilloried them.

There is a fundamental, basic, long-standing power asymmetry at work in our society, that underlies much of what we find ourselves talking about here, and which you seem extremely reluctant to allow.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

I make a request to stop stereotyping groups of people (in response to a pointless and obviously unfactual statement that not even you will defend), and you respond with a rape analogy and talk of “stringing people up”. Wow. And you wonder why people seem on edge?

May I again suggest we use this forum to discuss bike issues? I’m really getting close to stop visiting altogether. I like bikes. I don’t mind the occasional thoughtful post about politics, but I am getting really sick of the vitriol and wild hyperbole.

idlebytes
idlebytes
5 years ago
Reply to  Hello, Kitty

9watts where are you getting your definition of a stereotype? Nowhere in my understanding of a stereotype or its actual definition does it say a stereotype requires meaningful effect, repercussions, that it cause lasting damage or that a posse ride out and string up the members of the stereotyped group. Even if you can find some such definition I would disagree that it can’t have meaningful effect or repercussions for individuals in that group. Isn’t that sort of what a stereotype leads to? Specific prejudiced choices that affect your interactions with an individual in that group you’ve stereotyped.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
5 years ago

With due respect, if you don’t write based on trends why the post a while back about how you’ll be writing more intersectional politics pieces? Not trying to stir things up here, but it’s pretty clear the content since then has been in step with social/political trends. I can’t imagine I’m the only one that’s fatigued by the constant political bickering everywhere and I’m here to read about biking in Portland.

I appreciate what you do here, but let’s keep it honest, eh?

Toby Keith
Toby Keith
5 years ago
Reply to  MantraPDX

I think Jonathan has a core audience he has to write for. Otherwise why would they be here? The more time I spend here I see BikePortland as more of a political/social justice website than anything cycling related. Bikes seem pretty secondary in most of the discussions.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Toby Keith

“I think Jonathan has a core audience he has to write for. Otherwise why would they be here?”

What does that mean? Why are you here?

“The more time I spend here I see BikePortland as more of a political/social justice website than anything cycling related.”

Why can’t it be both?

“Bikes seem pretty secondary in most of the discussions.”

Whether you approve or not, the world, our world, is pretty messed up, and the fact that this messed-up-ness creeps into the discussions here is hardly surprising. Some of us are trying to make sense of it all, wrestle with the tough issues. Bikes and biking may have brought us here, but the insights on a whole range of related topics keeps at least me here.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

I’m trying to be careful with the words I’m using, because at the end of the day I agree with most of Jonathan’s stances. That being said, I’m just at the end of my rope with politics in general. It’s nearly impossible to have a conversation anywhere without things being derailed to the current political hot topic.

This site is a treasure trove for keeping up with the cycling scene in Portland, so I’m just voicing my general concern about seeing it drifting away from the reasons I came here in the first place. It would also seem I’m finding myself dangerously close to siding with folks that likely hold opinions I’m not agreeable to but that’s one of the dangers of holding a nuanced opinion, I guess.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

“It’s nearly impossible to have a conversation anywhere without things being derailed to the current political hot topic.”

People do seem to be on edge more than they/we used to be. Not sure what exactly to do about that. I certainly don’t blame Jonathan.
Derailed is an interesting, and perhaps slippery term to use here. Some of us (our society as a whole? white people?) are newly (re-)awakened to some of these longstanding injustices, and while this does lead to some predictable and lamentable defensiveness (see above), on the whole I think these are important, probably even urgent, conversations to be having.
I think it entirely possible that at the end of the day these conversations can bring us around, back to a deeper understanding of, among other things, bike related matters. Sometimes it isn’t possible to separate the one from the other.

P.S. White privilege may appear ‘the current political hot topic,’ but to some it has been a defining reality for centuries.

Brian
Brian
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

Well said, 9watts.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

>>> People do seem to be on edge more than they/we used to be. Not sure what exactly to do about that. <<<

Maybe less sweeping, divisive rhetoric, more focus on deeds not words, less injecting politics into every issue unless it's actually relevant, more starting from a assumption that people mean well so we should give them the benefit of the doubt.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

Bah! I’m going to double-post this because I messed up and hit quote instead of reply the first time. Sorry if I’m breaking a rule, Jonathan!

9watts
P.S. White privilege may appear ‘the current political hot topic,’ but to some it has been a defining reality for centuries.Recommended

Thanks for the response, 9watts. We’re probably closer to parity than you may realize. To be clear, I’m commenting on Jonathan’s comment that he doesn’t write with political trends. There was evidence to the contrary and I thought it was an opportune time to point that out while also sharing my opinion about a site that I care about. We’re in agreement on white privilege; I do not deny it’s existence or it’s impact on our shared American culture.

The derailed comment probably reflects some of my personal bias against intellectually dishonest conversations. I.E. moving goal posts, obfuscating the point, etc. You know, all the hip, trendy ways to converse with our peers. I get frustrated because often in discussions I see people that have asserted a questionable statement being corrected with factual information, only to move the goal posts or drag the conversation to the mud. Often times political hot topics are used to apply social pressure in an effort to stifle the conversation or suppress a rebuttal. As a hopelessly logical thinker this drives me absolutely bonkers and I’m probably projecting some of that frustration into this subject.

But, I digress…

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

“less injecting politics into every issue unless it’s actually relevant…”

I’m afraid the politics were already there, don’t need any injecting.

Reluctance to acknowledge the politics strikes me as the greater risk, and itself an indication of privilege.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

>>> Not sure what exactly to do about that. <<<

Right. So in other words, you don't want to do anything about it.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

Huh?

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Toby Keith

“Bikes seem pretty secondary in most of the discussions.”

These days that seems true. Those of us who have been reading for a while are criticizing this trend as tiresome – it would be nice if it was informative, but more often than not leads to bickering in the comments session, and sometimes infantile insults. This blog used to be my relief from that, which you can find prevalent even on LinkedIn these days (my other former ‘oasis’).

I’ve been increasingly lambasted for being “anecdotal”, but anecdotes are experience, and I come here to share which means drawing insights from soren, 9watts, MOTRG, wsbob (who I affectionately refer to as BP’s “whipping boy” given the amount of crap he (?) gets here ), etc. Do I agree with these people? Not always (rarely?), but I do challenge my own assumptions with what they have to say – and I like to think I counter with respect (even if by intention and not word; sorry for the times I haven’t come across as such).

Now I just come here to be insulted for being a white male who sometimes drives a car and takes occasional trips overseas.

Maddy
Maddy
5 years ago
Reply to  BradWagon

My biking friends are pretty evenly split on gender, but I’ve noticed a pronounced trend among my friends (and coworkers) with families: the guys ditch their families to pursue a _very_ time consuming hobby without guilt. Even the badass women cyclists take on way more responsibility, pick up the slack and barely get to ride. It would be super if a bunch of guys on this site took a backseat this year, and gave their partners time to shine.

B. Carfree
B. Carfree
5 years ago
Reply to  Maddy

Do I get credit for minding the house while recovering from surgery (not allowed to even look at my bikes for two lonely weeks around the New Year) while my wife enjoyed her twice weekly rides with her older female friend and hit the gym three other mornings?

Actually, we’ve always made sure we each had the time to pursue our fitness programs. However, we also cheat by doing a whole lot of our riding on a tandem (my wife rides captain to prevent motion sickness and because the scenery is better with that arrangement). Several couples in our circle prioritize the female partner’s fitness, though sometimes that’s because some old men turn to slugs.

The stereotype of males going out to play and ignoring their female partners’ needs is just that, a stereotype. Any male who has paid attention knows that behaving thus is a sure way to be unhappy (not that everyone is paying attention).

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  Maddy

Ah, the anecdotal, “some guys are doing this, so they all must be” suggestive advice. This may be a struggle to believe, but my wife and I communicate, have pretty decent time management skills, and will occasionally put sleep on the back burner if there is a big activity we would like to do. I did 4 big rides in December and all of them started well before sunrise to get the objective in. I ride with other guys with similar approaches and our style is not very instagram friendly, no espresso stops and no beers after, unless it is blasting down the Springwater with a tall boy works its way in. This approach also allowed me to have great days with my kids afterwards. Granted, our close friendships are minimal, but so is our resentment, and as I learned very early on, “happy wife, happy life” is absolutely no joke.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Maddy

Isn’t that what a tandem is for? 😉

BradWagon
5 years ago
Reply to  Maddy

I have been pretty selfish this winter so far and what you describe is a very real problem at least for me. I do feel bad when my ride plans turn out to be different then what my wife expects and make a real effort to over her time to do activities she wants (so not “guilt free”)… still, I get to do a lot more with my free time then she does and it’s been really hard to work toward a balance in that. My wife will always put our families needs above her own health whereas I just don’t have those assumed responsibilities. One thing I am trying to do is encourage my wife to really advocate for her own desires in addition to me trying to proactively offer or sacrifice time. Another aspect of this is maybe an unhealthy need to ride my bike where I get anxious, irritable and frustrated in other aspects of life when I can’t get that dopamine hit. Often she tells me to go ride even when it’s hard for her just because I’ll be happier afterward and the weekend as a whole will be “better” for her.

caesar
caesar
5 years ago

Interesting that you endorse the term “Cycling Bro” but repeatedly censure those on this forum that use the term “Fred.” While they don’t describe the same traits in their target populations, they are both derisive terms that generalize and trivialize.

BradWagon
5 years ago

I don’t really have a problem with the term “Cycling Bro”… I probably am one a large amount of the time. If your using it more to talk about the culture at large then yes… cycling has a “bro culture” just like essentially every industry where there is gender inequality has a “____ bro” culture. I don’t have enough insight to say what the personality make up of corporate offices are but I would be surprised if the patterns found in the local weekend group ride that make it hostile to women would hold if extrapolated out to corporate management… maybe? But I think this is already well defined as just “male dominated” or “sexist”.

That was my only qualm. I don’t know the link between what many think of as a “cycling bro” (immature pro, jerk weekend group rider) and male dominated professional/corporate culture is as strong as you interpret it as from this study. The bike industry seems to suffer from a lack of women representation just like any industry would. I’d assume there isn’t a widespread active aggression from men to purposely keep it this way, but without more women to balance it that culture is what happens. (Not excusing it, just saying we can’t expect it to get better without more women involvement. Which is where those of us that care need to make the changes we can. We won’t turn the ship without women, but it’s also not gonna just start turning by itself.)

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  BradWagon

Let me just first say that I’m not surprised in the least that you don’t understand what womxn in the outdoor industry go through at the hands of cycling bros/cis-het white men. And yes, All Cis-Het White Men are Bad and Need to Do Better. Saying this is a reasonable statement, because there are such few cis-het white men actually stepping up to do their work and correct their centuries of privilege and violence towards everyone outside their identity and even then, there is no separating You from Them. You are Them, just like I am Every White Womxn, no matter how much I want to separate myself from the pack. This statement is designed to agitate you, cis-het-white-man, so that maybe you can dig deep into the idea that you’re somehow “different than the rest,” and reach a better understanding of your privilege.

And Q, your rhetoric is boring and worn out….not to mention vague and ineffective.

This week alone, cycling bros have threatened to report my social media accounts for speaking up against Iljo Keisse, Patrick Lefevere and Specialized. I’ve been told that I look like a heroin addict, that I live in a degenerate city, that my partner must hate being with me because I’m such a “brain washed feminist” and lots of other fun abusive statements, because I dared to call for the jobs of abusive cycling “professionals.” This is on top of all of the daily violence I experience as a bike commuter in this town (just last night a truck tried to block me from riding away from him, so that he could teach me a lesson about “blowing stop signs.”) Older cis-white men flip me off more than anyone in this city.

Oh, and I also work in the outdoor industry but my insider stories are for another day.

Anyway, keep trying Brad, I’m sure you’ll get it one day.

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

Bike Portland needs more of this. Please post more!

Q
Q
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

Talk about boring and worn out rhetoric, yawn.. Keep up the attacks though, clearly it’s been working for you so far.

Chris I
Chris I
5 years ago
Reply to  Q

0 likes.

Tim
Tim
5 years ago

Two things I notices riding at 20 below;
1) snow is no longer slippery;
2) my bike became a push bike as the grease in the hub and on the chain became too thick to work, but it was still doing better than my car that wouldn’t start and was too heavy to push.

David Hampsten
David Hampsten
5 years ago
Reply to  Tim

I grew up in ND and regularly rode there until I was about 25, then went back in my late 30s for a year. The coldest I rode was about -25 air temperature and -35 wind chill (not the same day). You are right, below about -10 snow is no longer slippery, sounds like Styrofoam in fact, but packed snow can be very slippery as can black/clear ice. I usually had a studded tire in front and a wider low-pressure tire on the rear. 3M Thinsulate saved my fingers. Below 0F I used a snowmobile helmet with visor to protect my head from cold and (rare) crashes, but I had to drill numerous holes to vent my breath and to breath. I also wore studs on the bottom of my cycling sneakers.

Jack G.
Jack G.
5 years ago

Went up to Seattle to walk the Viaduct and the new tunnel that opened today. It was a really cool event. It was amazing how quiet the waterfront is now that there aren’t cars roaring along the Viaduct there. It’s going to be really cool to see how it transforms in the coming years.

maxD
maxD
5 years ago
Reply to  Jack G.

Jack G,
I think the tunnel was bait and switch! Now that the tunnel is built, the promise of restoring the city is being replaced with a surface highway: https://www.thestranger.com/news/2019/01/30/38417620/the-tunnel-is-worse-than-we-thought

Liz
5 years ago

Also–there is major backlash against Camber, because it appears they have stolen the work of Teresa Baker, an African American activist that has been working to increase diversity in the outdoors industry for a while now. Please take a look at this link: https://www.snewsnet.com/news/camber-ceo-outdoor-equity-pledge-gets-major-backlash

David Hampsten
David Hampsten
5 years ago

That Tom Justice story is a great read!

David Hampsten
David Hampsten
5 years ago

DeFazio: When I was in DC a bit over a week ago for a French shindig, there were several mayors there who were saying the 20-80 split should be reversed, 80% for transit and 20% for highways. Your representative sounds like one of those wishy-washy 1980s moderate Republicans who want to do the right thing, but still support the majority of users (car drivers). DeFazio blames the current (much more conservative) Repulicans for this and that, but offers no real promises of more bike/ped funding.

FYI, the NC Safe Routes to School Program mentioned in the story was nearly cancelled because rural districts couldn’t find matching funds for projects – it appears that opioid addiction treatment funding is a higher priority. Urban counties weren’t interested because of the bureaucratic hassle for so little money to fix state roads (In NC, VA, & WV, all rural roads and most urban collector and arterial streets are owned and maintained by the state DOT). And so most of the money was returned to the feds unused.

B. Carfree
B. Carfree
5 years ago
Reply to  David Hampsten

When the tariffs against China from He-who-shall-not-be-named were first floated, I went for a ride with DeFazio’s district manager. We put him on an e-bike so he could see what was about to become 25% more expensive. We scheduled a similar ride and information session with Peter, but he backed out twice and then time ran out (Congressional session started).

Peter is simply disinterested in the future, as near as I can tell, and it just kills me to say that. De Fazio is head and shoulders the best Congressman I have ever had represent me. However, he simply doesn’t seem to care about the drastic steps needed to avoid the worst of climate change (as in the end of civilization, if not life itself). Maybe that’s because he won’t be here for the worst of it, given his age.

House District 4 is a safe D seat. It looks like there are people beginning to organize to replace Congressman DeFazio. I hate to see him pushed out after all these years of stellar service, but his time to leave the stage has come. I just hope there isn’t an ugly fight that leaves an opening for an upset victory by Mr. “radioactivity is good for you” Art Robinson.

BikeRound
BikeRound
5 years ago

As a white man, I have the least amount of power in American society: I am discriminated against in university admissions, scholarships and when applying for jobs. Thank to the efforts of the Trump administration, we now have hard evidence that the anti-white discrimination is massive. As the Economist has reported, a black student who is in the top decile of academic performance has a 60% chance of being admitted to Harvard, but a white student only has an 18% chance (which is still a little higher than the chance of an Asian student). Average ACT scores tell a very similar story: black students vastly underperform, and only make it into selective colleges due to affirmative action programs.

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

Even I think that’s a load of BS. If you are interested in learning more about how race is used in admissions at Harvard, take a listen to Act I from https://www.thisamericanlife.org/663/how-i-read-it. I found it fascinating.

Maddy
Maddy
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

Haha! That’s why I didn’t go to Harvard too!!! We are blaming the Blacks, right, and not our general deficit of skills and ambition? Just the Blacks? I’m pretty sure it was the illegals too. Once the wall goes up we are totally getting in!

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

And, yet, somehow white men are payed significantly higher wages than women or people of color to do the same job (with similar qualifications).

And, also, somehow white folk are approved for rental leases at rates far higher than people of color (adjusting for income and credit history).

And, finally, somehow white families inherit and accumulate wealth at significantly higher rates than families of color.

https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/reports/2018/02/21/447051/systematic-inequality/

https://iwpr.org/publications/gender-wage-gap-2017-race-ethnicity/

https://www.epi.org/blog/black-workers-have-made-no-progress-in-closing-earnings-gaps-with-white-men-since-2000/

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  soren

And, yet, somehow, 92% of workplace fatalities happen to men, and about 70% are white men.

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/cfoi.pdf

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  PS

The prevalence of men in riskier jobs and in the military is a production of chauvinism, not misandry.

http://blogs.ubc.ca/shenghuijin/files/2016/06/Edited-288×300.png

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  soren

Or it might be the result of neither.

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  soren

Haha, of course it is, right? There are plenty of women wanting to bang down the doors at google, facebook, microsoft, etc. (all companies with very questionable track records on gender equality, chauvinism and misogyny), but yet, you don’t really hear a lot of women going after the huge number of open trucking jobs, or becoming a logger or arborist, a commercial fisher, etc.

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  PS

“but yet, you don’t really hear a lot of women going after the huge number of open trucking jobs…”

way to erase hundreds of thousands of womxn from their jobs.

“First, the percentage of female drivers increased from 7.13 percent last year to 7.89 percent at the end of 2017. The number of women in management has increased as well, from 23 percent last year to 23.75 percent at the end of 2017.”

https://www.womenintrucking.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=429:women-in-trucking-association-updates-wit-index&catid=27:pressreleases&Itemid=158

sexism has made it harder and continues to make it harder for womxn to get a job in mostly male professions. for some of these professions, it was once illegal for women to even apply for a job.

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  soren

It is no wonder folks constantly disregard these arguments when the responses are so fraught with exaggeration it becomes hilarious. My initial point was, the only gap in employment statistics between men and women that anyone focuses on with any regularity is compensation. Ironically, there are other gaps (notably dying) that no one is honing in on to bring up to parity. I can only imagine your explanation as to why 85% of gynecologists are women.

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

Your comments are so disappointing, BikeRound.

BP has a long way to go in “having conversations,” that don’t allow clearly racist, misogynistic and other violent viewpoints to stand on equal footing with viewpoints that……oh I don’t know, aren’t racist, misogynistic, and otherwise wildly backwards? I appreciate you Jonathan….but this is still a problem. Is creating a message board with the ability to register, block or ban users really that difficult?

Toby Keith
Toby Keith
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

Are BikeRound’s comments really that threatening to you? Do you want people blocked and banned till the forum is little more than an echo chamber? And then what purpose does BP serve?

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  Toby Keith

Oh honey I’m not threatened, I’m just exhausted. I have some pretty off the wall opinions that don’t mesh with the liberalized view you may or may not have of me, I promise (like I’m unbelievable at trap shooting, for instance) But public discourse has no room for white supremacy, misogyny and other forms of violence–just doesn’t. It holds us back, holdsthe back, holds the convo back when most often times, cis-het white men want free education on why their views are violent or why they do in fact hold privileges, even if they’re “dirt poor.” I just don’t have capacity for that nor do I want to feed these people the notion that they’re on the same playing field as someone criticizing the cisgendered straight white patriarchal society that is crushing us all.

It’s not like I want all Trump supporters banned, but it’s unacceptable to let someone like BikeRound cite blatantly false or misconstrued “facts” about Black people and then just let it hang because “the conversation.”

BikeRound
BikeRound
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

I disagree with many of your comments as well, but the last thing that I think should be done is ban you or any of the other participants in this conversation. It is much better to have an open discussion in the marketplace of ideas.

By the way, the statistics about admissions to Harvard that I talked about above came straight from a chart that the Economist published on June 23, 2018. I believe that there are many other pieces of evidence that show that white men are the least privileged members of our society. For example, crimes that are committed predominantly by men, such as certain types of assault, are punished very severely by our criminal justice system. At the same time, crimes that are far more injurious but are committed by men and women in roughly equal proportions, such as reckless driving, routinely go completely unpunished. In 2017, there were 40,000 traffic fatalities in the United States, which means that it should be our policymakers’ number one priority to address this health crisis. However, since this would mean that women would also have to face up to their own criminality, traffic violence is given a very low priority in our society.

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

Your focus is on the criminality of Black people and womxn and I find that disturbing. I am not here to engage with your racism and misogyny. Ttyl bikeround

Hello, Kitty
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

I don’t think BikeRound mentioned the criminality of black people at all, or people of any particular race.

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

“white men are the least privileged members of our society.”

!!!!?

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

“I believe that there are many other pieces of evidence that show that white men are the least privileged members of our society.”

White men are certainly adept at creating alternative-facts that justify “victim” narratives but essentially every aggregate measure of social status — wages, wealth, housing status, property ownership, political power, job status etc — illustrates that white men in the USA are not only privileged but oppressively so. (I posted a few links to this data above.)

El Biciclero
El Biciclero
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

So, Liz, I think I know better then to address you as “Honey”, but I find a few things interesting about this discussion. I think you will continue to experience frustration in educating CHWM unless there is a common understanding of “privilege”. Back in my day (I could be a 12-year-old Chinese girl, but I’m not), “privilege” meant “money”. Same with “advantage”; when we called someone “underprivileged” or “disadvantaged”, it meant they were poor. So when we make claims that “white” = “privileged”, there are tons of people who will misconstrue what is meant. Also, I can only assume you were being hyperbolic in your attempt to “agitate” by saying that “all” cis-het white men are “bad”. Inasmuch as all people are evil to some extent, your claim is true; but it gets dangerously close to what we might think of as a sweeping generalization, which depending on one’s definition of “bad” is either disingenuous (because all people are bad, not just CHWM) or very nearly logically impossible. At any rate, statements like that will shut the very people I imagine you hope to reach right down.

Also, “violence”. Again, some of your (perhaps unintended) audience here could be confused by the idea that “thoughts” = “violence”. Many of us come from a place and time where “violence” meant literal physical harm. Granted, there are viewpoints and thought processes that, if nurtured enough, can lead to violence, but again, many folks here might find it shocking to hear that their own viewpoints—which they have never imagined equated to even wishing harm on anyone—have suddenly manifested as actual physical destruction. I remember a post on this very website where actual damage to life and property caused by reckless driving was referred to as “traffic violence”—and there was backlash. If we can’t even call literal damage, injury, and death caused by physically smashing cars into things and people “violence”, then “violent discourse” is definitely going to sound like an oxymoron.

If you haven’t tuned me out yet, then one more point and then an analogy. Regarding “free education”, I think you’ll end up yet more frustrated here. The salmon says to the tuna, “you need to try swimming in fresh water once in a while!”, to which the tuna replies, “What’s ‘water’?” ba-dump tsssss.

OK, so one more observation, and then an analogy. I’ve attempted to explain to folks on occasion, in what is I’m sure a pretty grayscale fashion, that I believe part of the problem we have is that the CHWM imagine that they are fostering equality and fairness by letting everyone into their club. But in that view—even if everybody was allowed (by whom?) in—it is still the CHWM club. What we are shooting for is to make it everyone’s club. One big club.

Now, for those that are here to discuss “bike” issues, let me bring it back around. Imagine our roadway system. In that system, who is the “privileged” class? I’ll be daring and just say it is “drivers”. Does it matter whether one is driving an ’18 Ferrari Portofino or a ’92 Geo Metro? The Ferrari driver and the Geo driver are both “privileged” in the context of this system. Who are the “underprivileged” classes? Transit riders, pedestrians, bicyclists, and others-not-in-cars. Now, I know this is not an “equivalence” to our social structures with respect to race, gender identity, class, ability, what-have-you, but I believe the comparison is valid. In the event of a crash between a motorist and a pedestrian or bicyclist, who is automatically believed, and who’s account is looked at with great skepticism? How often are investigations into pedestrian or cyclist fatalities carried out halfheartedly? Why do we seemingly bend over backwards to exonerate drivers who have run over people? We build bike lanes and paths that start and end randomly, or take longer, hillier routes (really, what more to “they” want?), and claim we’ve “accommodated” other modes and are “bike-friendly”. We think nothing of relinquishing 2/3 of street width for auto parking, but get up-in-arms when in the absence of any bike racks for blocks around, we find bikes locked to street signs “blocking the sidewalk”. We have drivers who call bicycle commuters “elites”, claim bicyclists are really the privileged ones, since “they” get to use “all those bike lanes”, while I have to sit in all this car traffic. Even our “accident” reporting form automatically assumes that when two vehicles collide, they are both automobiles.

I’m sure I’ve already crossed some line somewhere, so I’ll just let this hang.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  El Biciclero

The White Guy Club has treated me fairly well, but truth be told I’m not so stoked on our current representation. Not sure what this year’s dues will be; haven’t heard back from my CPA yet. (Maybe our current ‘Leader’* can show me a loophole or three I’m missing?).

The People Who Ride Bicycles Club, on the other hand, still has hefty dues. In addition to being the only minority group that it’s still politically correct to bash in the media, some of our members continue to pay the ultimate price to stay current. Vehicles don’t seem to discriminate against members of this club, black or red or white, male or female or shemale… at some level it seems like we actually all might be equal. Maybe we even share some commonalities with our People Who Walk Near Traffic Club brothers and sisters?

Huh… makes me wonder.

* That was an air quote.

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  Pete

Not wasting my time to point out all the other things wrong with your comment, but “sh**m*le” is a slur and you should not say it. Please catch up.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Pete

You should tell my cousin Erica that, because s/he has openly used it around me for years.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Pete

Also the unnecessary “Please catch up” at the end of your comment is exactly what I refer to in my other comment about the tiresome childishness that goes on here now. It’s ageism, at best.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Pete

Also to your point, I will refrain from using this term. I talked with my cousin this morning and got some education on its broader acceptance. My sincerest apologies to anyone offended, because it came from my ignorance not bigotry.

PS
PS
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

Literally a few posts above, “all cis het white men are bad” – Liz.

Q
Q
5 years ago
Reply to  PS

Exactly. The current attitude of many “womxn” who want to simply be on the “winning side” of issues in gender dynamics is no more productive than what they pretend to be against. Claims such as these made by people like “Liz” simply come off as immature punitive revenge fantasy.

soren
soren
5 years ago
Reply to  Q

I think it’s hilarious that you air-quoted “womxn”.

Triggered much?

BTW, the X is meant to include people who do not conform to patriarchal gender norms.

Q
Q
5 years ago
Reply to  soren

Those are actual quotation marks, not air quotes. Air quotes are when you do it with your fingers while you’re talking.
Also, replacing an A with an X in the word “woman” just because these people blame men for their problems is absurd at best.

Liz
5 years ago
Reply to  Q

Q, that is an assumption you’ve thrown around about me that I dont appreciate. Calling out behavior isn’t hatedul towards men. Using the term “womxn” isn’t a chance to blame, it’s about inclusion. Asking for better moderation and user registration isn’t weaponizing my opinions or encouraging censorship, its bringing awareness to a situation that could be improved–that situation being that people feel empowered by the ability to comment anonymously on the internet and say racist and mysogynist trash that Jonathan can’t immediately handle; currently the people that are needed most in these conversations (Black, Brown, Indigenous and People of Color, disabled cyclists, womxn, transgender folks, non binary folks, poor folks, basically anyone that hasnt been historically or authentically represented in cycling) feel the least welcome here.

I’m participating now in a conversation with a womxn’s cycling group about whether it’s worth commenting on a particular topic on BP and the collective answer is no probably not worth it. I wish to point that out, however, without slighting Johnathan–my criticism has nothing to do with him as a person.

I’m going to keep speaking up until I can’t anymore, so I’m not worried about my health in relation to the social media abuse I incur from said speaking out here and other places, but I feel very tired of doing emotional labor for cis het white men that are more offended at my statements than the actual truth of their harm and privileges. What is your stake in this, Q?

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  Q

Thank you, Liz.

I hope you stick around.

Pete
Pete
5 years ago
Reply to  Liz

Wow. Liz posts something above clearly described as “agitating” cis-het white men and basically saying we’re all responsible for everything every white guy ever did, and now Liz wants the agitated banned? Amazing. I used to come here to read about bike stuff…

BradWagon
5 years ago
Reply to  BikeRound

Why white men should have the least amount of power in society, Exhibit a-billion.

B. Carfree
B. Carfree
5 years ago

Regarding car culture on campus: I ride through the University of Oregon daily. They supposedly created locations for Uber/Lyft to do their pick-ups and drop-offs, but those companies just ignore the rules and do as they please. I’ve watched as their passengers door the few people on bikes, after stopping in the middle of the street, and laugh about it. I’ve seen them drive into places where private cars are prohibited to pick-up and drop-off clients. The behavior is horrid enough that it may be a big part of why there are so few bikes on the UO campus these days.

Sadly, the UO’s response is to wring its hands and do nothing of substance. They are also planning a multi-story parking structure on the very banks of the Willamette river, so clearly our flagship university doesn’t see climate change as a threat.

I’m not sure if what is needed are higher admission standards or higher employment standards. The UO is simply failing our future. The alumni who (partially) closed the campus to cars back in the ’70’s must be weeping to see what has happened.

Maddy
Maddy
5 years ago
Reply to  B. Carfree

Didn’t Eugene’s bike commuter percentage dive in recent years? Is anything organizing to reverse that trend?

bendite
bendite
5 years ago
Reply to  B. Carfree

Go Beavs!

9watts
5 years ago

“Alana Sur, a first-year psychobiology student, said her roommates have taken Ubers to their classes before, but only when it rained outside or when one injured their ankle…”

bendite
bendite
5 years ago

Q
But that doesn’t fit the current PC trend of “all white men are bad” that expects hetero light skinned males to apologize for ..wait for it.. conditions of their birth beyond their control, while being stoked by the concept of making broad generalizations about a group of people based on their gender and racial background.Recommended 3

Q, as a white guy myself, I’ve never been expected to apologize for being white. Maybe you’re misinterpreting something.

Emily Guise (Contributor)

Thanks for including the article about the women riding in Karachi- it was beautiful and heart-breaking.

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
5 years ago

9watts
P.S. White privilege may appear ‘the current political hot topic,’ but to some it has been a defining reality for centuries.Recommended 1

Thanks for the response, 9watts. We’re probably closer to parity than you realize. To be clear, I’m commenting on Jonathan’s comment that he doesn’t write with political trends. There was evidence to the contrary and I thought it was an opportune time to point that out while also sharing my opinion about a site that I care about. We’re in agreement on white privilege; I do not deny it’s existence or it’s impact on our shared American culture.

The derailed comment probably reflects some of my personal bias against intellectually dishonest conversations. I.E. moving goal posts, obfuscating the point, etc. You know, all the hip, trendy ways to converse with our peers. I get frustrated because often in discussions I see people that have asserted a questionable statement being corrected with factual information, only to move the goal posts or drag the conversation to the mud. Often times political hot topics are used to apply social pressure in an effort to stifle the conversation or suppress a rebuttal. As a hopelessly logical thinker this drives me absolutely bonkers and I’m probably projecting some of that frustration into this subject.

But, I digress…

9watts
5 years ago
Reply to  MantraPDX

Thank you for elaborating, and digressing. We agree!

MantraPDX
MantraPDX
5 years ago
Reply to  9watts

…And there was much rejoicing!

liz
5 years ago

Q
Talk about boring and worn out rhetoric, yawn.. Keep up the attacks though, clearly it’s been working for you so far.Recommended 0

;_____; Thanks Q, I couldn’t do this without you.

liz
5 years ago
Reply to  liz

*suddenly decides to stop keeping it up because Q made me realize speaking up for equality isnt working*

(FYI for internet nerds—if you want to make a sarcastic statement, use asterisks instead of brackets–lest your sass get lost in the message board coding)

Q
Q
5 years ago
Reply to  liz

You aren’t speaking for equality, you’re making people who speak for equality look foolish by trying to equate yourself with them. Good luck though..

vic
vic
5 years ago

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)
not really sure what you’re trying to say here David.White skin = privilege. Male gender = privilege.These are not judgments IMO. These are facts. It doesn’t mean you’re a bad person! But yes, it does mean you need to be extra careful to not screw up society any more than white men like us already have.(I wish we could talk about white male privilege without white males getting so defensive.)Recommended 7

There is some truth to this: When I’m harassed by other cyclists, it has been exclusively by white males. It’s never by another person of color or women in the 10+ years I have been commuting by bike. I say this in a sincere conclusion based on personal observation.

As a person of color, I also know by experience, that white males will often quickly escalate from verbal abuse to threats of physical confrontation rather than backing down. I do equate this white male rage with white male privilege, IMHO.

Trigger for anger with white male cyclist seems to often focus on objectifying people who are different. Different color, different bike, different riding style, different bike parking choices, different riding speed. All these variables, to me at least, are virtues of diversity rather than issues to be angry about.

Lester Burnham
Lester Burnham
5 years ago
Reply to  vic

For a cycling oriented site, BP has such an odd vibe. There are times when cyclists in spandex are public enemy #1, while some posters equate hardcore commuters with the devil. Not a lot of harmony in this cycling “community”.

Ruben O Halperin
Ruben O Halperin
5 years ago

At the risk of incurring Oregon wrath, I will say I am from LA and spent time on UCLA’s campus. I do not understand why anyone would would use uber/lyft. It’s a really walkable/bikeable campus and the weather is pretty much perfect for walking/biking year round. If you don’t want to walk, there is a shuttle bus system that runs frequently.

Liz
5 years ago

Hey Jonathan, any updates in the works on the Camber story? Teresa Baker’s intellectual work was stolen. Here’s another link about it, and at the bottom you can click to see the original work that was stolen:

https://m.facebook.com/PNWOutdoorWomen/photos/a.1522809408009306/2063025243987717/?type=3&__tn__=EH-R