Today’s Comment of the Week is by SurlyOgre in response to a post Jonathan wrote from NYC after listening to Astoria, Queens Assembly member Zohran K. Mamdani on a panel titled Supersized SUVs, Mega Trucks, and Regulatory Failure.
My choice is personal. I recognized Mamdani’s name as being the representative whose office is within a couple of blocks from where a friend of mine was run over by a cement truck earlier this year. Tammy Kao was right-hooked while riding a Citi Bike east on 24th Ave, the driver turned right onto 29th St and crushed her. I lived a few blocks from the crash site for several years in the 1990s.
I hadn’t been in touch with Tammy since leaving NYC, but her death still came as a shock to me.
Although Tammy wasn’t mentioned in Jonathan’s post, it surely has been on Mamdani’s mind, as well as mine. SurlyOgre captured my feelings:
it’s about time an elected official is calling for regulation of an industry that manufactures missiles with 4 wheels. it is super bad news when an airplane crashes and hundreds of people die. Imagine if Tesla, GM, Ford, all had to pay 1% of their quarterly revenue every time a serious crash occurred. Reducing Crashes and Safety would become their focus, not luxury and speed. There was a time when people did not wear seat belts and look where we are now, nearly everyone wears seat belts. People used to smoke inside and look where we are now, smoking is not allowed in restaurants or airplanes. Culture changes when government realizes there is danger and/or financial loss. People can change when there are carrots and sticks. TAX LARGE VEHICLES NOW. TAX LARGE TIRES NOW. TAX LARGE ENGINES NOW. TAX VEHICLES THAT CAN EXCEED SPEED LIMITS NOW.
Sometimes my sessions of sweet, silent thought turn to all of the people I know, and their families, who have been severely injured or killed by cars. The injuries especially can affect generations of a family. My personal catalogue is long.
Thank you SurleyOgre for putting into words what many have been thinking for years. Read the comment in its original thread here.