Reclaim CM and the Streets
Thread started by
md2 at 07.17.09 - 11:48 am
If you're an old punk ass like me... you're probably not as excited about CM as you once were. I think it has potential for something great, and Ive tried to think about what it is--essentially I only find it to be a great tool to introduce people to riding bikes, and thinking about bikes.... other than that the political and philosophical stuff doesnt seem to be a byproduct.
But if you're older, you might recall "Reclaim the Streets"... unlike CM, it had a philosophical and political driving force behind it. I haven't kept up with whether their movement (whatever you want to call it) still exists, but for all the forum chatter I've read over the years, I think on the surface, incorporating something like CM and Reclaim the Streets would be an interesting experiment towards the kind of things some riders want to see... maybe Im wrong.
Obvious differences:
CM - generally constantly moves, whereas RTS blocked an area and had a stationary party. RTS would construct interesting structures to block traffic and or to keep the police from ending the party (e.g. a person would rest on a structure and trying to get the person down meant potentially injuring them).
I think i would absolutely great, to show the general public...in mass, that taking one street (e.g. Santa Monica blvd) and designating it a full bike street is better for them, and the city.
Could we block SM blvd for a large stretch, and somehow keep this under wraps, while still giving motorist the opportunity to ride during this event? Think bike carriages for those that cant ride.... if we cant get the city to do anything... why not SHOW them, what we envision... fuck it... we're gonna probably bomb each other soon anyway.. whats there to lose?
I'm a bit old and I broke up my cycling crew years ago... so I'm throwing the general idea out there... maybe others will play with it and make it special.
In short, my feeling in this... IF, IF, IF CM is going to be what is currently is: a party on wheels, then why not really party and make a point at the same time?
That was short, and loosely written... I think it will be nice to flush out something... even if its impractical
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Cops are rough everywhere.
im thinking more along the lines of...
you need a group of organizers who can do this secretly (not MR forum)... and have a method of letting hundreds upon hundreds of people know when and where to meet. How do you close off streets with permit? Without notice? without it falling apart immediately?
I've just played with idea and threw out just because people read anything you blog (for some reason).
Maybe it will spark a way of doing so...
I think what will make this interesting is finding out how to show motorist...or non-commuters how much easier they can get to work or around town if we had less lanes for cars and lanes for alternate transportation....
I think bike carriages would be cool = jobs, and people who dont want to sweat or ride... we dont want to assume bikes are for everyone...
md207.17.09 - 12:07 pm
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