Stand up and be counted

[TNT1]

Yeah, scotty, that's a circular argument. Pointless. My reply would be the same.

[NotSoBigBen]

Bob can I sit now?

[TNT1]

 

Bob can I sit now?

 

Have you written to your local council yet?

 

[Captain Slow]

'S true' date=' Bob. There's no point randomly bitching about things, even if it does make you feel better about your own sh*t cause you have a bunch of like-minded whingers who agree with you. Creating awareness is one thing, which is why I do and will continue to ride the critical mass, but there comes a point when concrete action needs to be taken. Speak to someone who can actually do something. If that doesn't work, speak to his/her boss. Even if you climb all the way up the tree and nothing happens, at least you have done a) all you can; and b) more than the poephol burning tyres and dancing about cos he gets a day off work.
[/quote']

 

droo, I applaud you for your actions, but what saddens me is that the amount of cyclists (again generalising) that drive like idiots themselves!!

 

We really need to act more responsibly (all SA citizens) and stop acting like we don't care and then cry fowl when something happens. We need to get over the fact that there are some, not all, politicians & officials that act irresponsibly. What happened to what we learnt at school and at home. We need to be more sociably moral!!!

[amateur]

Jeez I read Swissvan's post as a joke' date=' [/quote']

Maybe I reacted harshly, but I'm C for serious. Hence not posted in chitchat...

 

no offence TNT, but you are one of the guys who make jokes on other threads not posted in chit chat and not meant to be joked at by the original posters.

 

I agree with your point on some levels and others not, and agree it's a serious matter. just wanted to point out that SV was joking!

 

Keep fighting the fight!

[amateur]

Jeez I read Swissvan's post as a joke' date=' [/quote']

Maybe I reacted harshly, but I'm C for serious. Hence not posted in chitchat...

 

double posting, problems with the hub today??

amateur2009-02-13 03:03:46

[2 X 2]

Why is it that when a person rides next to us with their cellphone to the ear' date=' we just accept it, or when a young child is standing on the front seat without a restraining device, we find that acceptable!!

 

Yes, we need to stand-up for what's right and what's wrong and we need to start looking at ourselves. Once we have done that, let's start making people aware that their behaviour is unacceptable. Believe me, you will be sworn at and verbally abused, but you have planted a seed.

 

Protest rides don't work, but standing up to what's is right & wrong does!!! We are teaching our Children & Grandchildren to act like those we are quick to criticize!!

[/quote']

 

Captain Slow, I agrre in a sertain sense with you.  I drive from Pta to Jhb everyday and there are so many people on the highway that break the law.  In the beginning I tried to point their wrong doings out, but by the time I arrive at work, I was so worked up that I couldn't have decent conversations with people at work. So one tend to go into a mode of telling yourself to relax and let it be.  Why worry about other peoples wrong doings and this is where the spiral of letting things go, begin.

 

 

[Slave]

Sheeesh thanks TNT. I had no idea that my rather simple statement would eveolve into a thread like this. To be honest, I though people like Samma, Colonel and a few others would roast me alive.

 

Since we have your attention, have you ever tried getting your local elected rep to do anything at all? Have you heard some of the bullsh!t they spew about why sh!t can't be done?

 

These prats are as useful as ashtrays on a Colnago / Cannondale (take you oick. Any bike fits here even a KTM)

 

In the 80's the only thing that got attention were protest marches and affirmative action. Anything less got laughed off and NOTHING has changed. Just the name of the ruling party, but they just as useful as the previous bunch of hooglians that held power.

 

Nope,I'm also C for serious. Noneone is going to pay attention to us unless we do something drastic like hold the whole of JHB CBD to ransom by blockading it for several hours.

 

Get the news teams there and we have our say. Get our plight heard and then all go home, have a ride tomorrow and some other poor dude gonna get knocked off his bike.

 

The cops are as useful as the councilors so we need to make noise. BIG, BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEG noise cause right now, aint no-one listenting to us.

 

The Argus (I think someone mentioned it on this forum) started out as a 's protest ride. If that's true, what impact has it had, nothing. If it's true, I don't know that it is a protest ride that happens every year.

 

uys, we have to do something very big and while I hate that many innocent people will get causght up in it, we need to bring some very serious attention to our plight, or just count the cost in hospital bills and dead cycling buds.

 

You all have very valid points to contrinute, Captain and others, but like when is the carnage going to stop unless something gets done.

 

Go BIG, or go HOME.

[SwissVan]

 

I wouldn?t look at it like a vote for the continuation of things, more like a suggestion to adapt to what works with the majority of people in the region.<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Obviously the part about burning car tyres while still attached to cars was a tongue in cheek joke and if it disrupted the serious nature of the thread I apologize.

Freedom and democracy have been with me before I went overseas, first experienced it 25 yrs ago, been overseas 6 yrs now....

 

I edited the original post to exclude the reference to <?: prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Rome.

 

Yes TNT you are right in theory, you should follow the correct channels, but it might only work if you can get everyone or the vaste majority to do the same.

 

Anyone care to tell me who the local councilor for Parkrand Boksburg is, I?ll be sure to tell him that I will be bringing less forex back to spend on my next holiday.

 

[TNT1]

 

 

Since we have your attention' date=' have you ever tried getting your local elected rep to do anything at all? Have you heard some of the bullsh!t they spew about why sh!t can't be done?

 

 

[/quote']

 

Odd that. I live in the same country as you. I live in a neighborhood where we encounter the same problems as any other in this country, and we have a local ward councilor, like all other wards. We also stand together as a community, and address our concerns and issues with said councilor regularly. As a result, we have an "open door" to him, and when things like street-lights don't work, electrical supply is disrupted, refuse isn't collected, we can simply pick up the phone, call him and he sets to work in the council to get things working. And believe it or not, it really happens.

 

We have recently started a neighborhood watch system, with this councilors buy in, we have direct contact with the local superintendent of SAPS, and when we patrol the streets we have two police vehicles in attendance.

 

Odd. No protests, no mass action in the streets, just citizens holding their democratically elected officials accountable.

 

[droo]

 

 

?

 

Since we have your attention' date=' have you ever tried getting your local elected rep to do anything at all? Have you heard some of the bullsh!t they spew about why sh!t can't be done?

 

?

?

[/quote']Odd that. I live in the same country as you. I live in a neighborhood where we encounter the same problems as any other in this country, and we have a local ward councilor, like all other wards. We also stand together as a community, and address our concerns and issues with said councilor regularly. As a result, we have an "open door" to him, and when things like street-lights don't work, electrical supply is disrupted, refuse isn't collected, we can simply pick up the phone, call him and he sets to work in the council to get things working. And believe it or not, it really happens.We have recently started a neighborhood watch system, with this councilors buy in, we have direct contact with the local superintendent of SAPS, and when we patrol the streets we have two police vehicles in attendance.Odd. No protests, no mass action in the streets, just citizens holding their democratically elected officials accountable.

 

 

 

There, sir, lies the key to it. Sometimes it takes a boot to the crotch (sometimes in the form of a protest, hence my comment about critical mass) to get people to take notice. When that's done, though, generally reason can prevail.

[Slave]

TNT. I'm really happy you have an elected official that actually does stuff and I'm not talking about taking bribes as doing stuff.

 

Our local rep is the complete opposite. He has 50 excuses for why stuff is not done. You think the area I live in are going to vote hom out. No-way Jose.

 

We have some hectic hijacking and crime around us and he does f***k all about it except make excuses.

 

The council have no money to put towards sectioning off the hood but they have 2.3 odd millions to spend in defence of Robert Mc(bloodyBride in his drunken driving charge.

 

Let me rather get off my soap box, but suffice to say, that if I felt the way to go was as you suggest, I would do that.

 

The fact that I believe that nothing will come of it if we go the democratic route and behave like a civilised gentleman.

 

The only way these nitwits pay attention is when we spit our dummies out.

 

Please believe me when I say that I want to protest, that I do not want to burn tyres, run around like a mad thing and break stuff. I want a peacful and orderly protest, but the media coverage is the only thing that will help.

 

I agree that fighting frie with fire just resultsin both protagonists just getting burned, but eish. Something needs to be done.

 

There is no service delivery, the cops are undertrained and useless in a lot of instances and crime is a huge problem. Not just violent crime, but the petty stuff like driving with your phone attached to your ear, speeding, hell, you name it.

 

How many more cyclists have to be assualted, knocked down or killed before someone takes notice.

 

Yeah Captain, some of them cyclists are hooglians and ridelike fools, but how many are innocent and still get knocked down?

 

Have you told the loon driving next to you that he's an ijit because he is useng his hand-held phone while "driving"? And you lived to tell the tale. I once told an oke he was illegally stopped (Next to another illegally stopped vehicle) and he pulled a gun on me.

 

Sorry, That one doesn't work for me. The cops do nothing, so now it is up to those who believe in it to do something drastic.

 

I'm too old to emigrate and I think we have a beautiful country here in SA. Why should I leave? But, why should we live in fear or should that be terror? 

[Captain Slow]

Sorry, That one doesn't work for me. The cops do nothing, so now it is up to those who believe in it to do something drastic.

 

I'm too old to emigrate and I think we have a beautiful country here in SA. Why should I leave? But, why should we live in fear or should that be terror? 

 

EXACTLY, just because the cops are useless does not give us the right to drive like hooligans with cellphones to our ears etc. We are not kids and don't need the cops to be our babysitters.

 

WE JUST HAVE TO BE RESPONSIBLE AND ACT ACCORDINGLY!!!

[droo]

S2L. you make the point of media coverage, which is generating awareness. If after that you use the leverage you have generated to create action, you're almost guaranteed to make progress. If all you do is burn tyres (metaphorically speaking) then, as Bob said, you may as well have stayed home and cried to yourself.

[TNT1]

S2L... You are not duly appointed to police a total stranger's parking ability or lack thereof. It is a harsh but true reality that you are part of the problem in doing so, and not a part of the solution.

 

If your public official doesn't act in an appropriate or satisfactory manner, stand for election yourself. Support an alternative candidate. But to go straight, from I asked, and did you really, to I must protest, perpetuates the ideology that the only way to achieve is through protest. Then our democracy is doomed.

 

[fandacious]

 

Then our democracy is doomed.

 

 

a real democracy? in africa? what ARE you smoking?