LadyDeliah

This guy got community service for his second conviction of causing a cyclist's death by dangerous driving: http://road.cc/content/news/83478-ctc-and-families-cyclists-killed-same-driver-25-years-apart-call-appeal-against

Just thought I'd share this appalling account of extreme cycle hatred that sums up why I want to challenge some motorists' sense of entitlement and prejudice towards cyclists whenever I get the chance: http://road.cc/content/news/84212-norwich-police-seek-driver-who-tweeted-about-collision-cyclist

grancabrona Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I know what you mean. All down my street there are > all these filthy, noisy, killer cars expelling > lethal toxins, disturbing people's sleep and > sometimes crippling, maiming and killing young and > old alike. Can the council trim these here cars > back? Lol

My passport took 2 weeks to come back. I was pretty impressed with the speed

I assumed this was some spraying offensive to stop magic mushrooms from growing!

Car drivers on here seem to get defensive and try to deflect critic onto cyclists whenever there is anything that might put them in a negative light. It seems pointless trying to pierce their defensive armour with logical arguments as their inability to look at the harm their addiction to car causes them to be blind to criticism resulting in circular, repetitive and pointless arguments. Typical of all most addicts really.

I reckon the OP's thought processes went like this: Clearing wasteland; Irish Accents; Ran from authorities = must be travellers wanting to live there. It seems she's the one with the dodgy adding up.

Not a fan of the Royals, but this a nice story and I wouldn't have expected them to support Credit Unions.

So does that mean you choose not to play the 'i'm greener than you' game anymore Willard? Do you give in? Does that mean I win?

You have a point.

And back to the thread. Park on pavements and expect to get a ticket. Simple really.

DJKQ - Willard wanted to know whether I have a higher or lower carbon footprint than him, so I decided to bore you all with my efforts to live a greener life over the past decade. Sorry to be a tw@t, but I feel I was left with no choice on the matter!

Louisa, I don't think you'll find that a few arty types have caused the social apartheid that you talk of. You might want to look at things like the bedroom tax, high residential property prices, low wages and caps on benefits.

puzzled Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > lady d, you really are a total tosser. obsessed, > closed minded, delighting in your ability to anger > and provoke all those around you. a period of > humble silence would be welcome. forum authorities > should consider suspending you and your spite And breathe .....

P.s. I also grow fruit, veg and get my eggs from my own chickens. I have about 2 foot of insulation in my loft and double glazing. My last gas bill was ?54 for a month and a half in the middle of winter.

Willard, thanks for the olive branch! The problems with individual car ownership is about more than just the carbon footprint. It's also about congestion; pollution; the inherent danger to cyclists, pedestrians, other drivers etc.; the health problems associated with reduced levels of exercise and stress from driving through congested roads; loss of amenity due to increased need for wider roads and parking spaces etc. There are lots of negative aspects to individual car ownership that are not just borne by the car owner and I feel it is unfair for the rest of society to have to suffer these negative by-products of individual car ownership for other people's convenience. In relation to each of our carbon footprints, only my son owns a car. He has a small car which he uses to transport his large amount of taekwondo equipment to his classes otherwise he cycles every day to his job in Elephant & Castle. He is hoping to buy a second hand electric vehicle at some point because I keep nagging him. The rest of my descendants cycle, walk and use public transport. They also get much of their stuff from charity shops/Freecycle. As for flights, in the past 10 years there have been 6 flights in total between all of us and only one was long haul, to Jamaica to visit family. I would like to ask you a few questions if you don?t mind. Not wanting to play the 'i'm greener than you' game, but you did start it! Do you have electronic/electric gadgets in your house? Do you use a tumble dryer or dishwasher? How many flights have you been on in the past 10 years? Do you upgrade your electronics when the old ones still work? Do you buy your clothes/furniture etc new or second hand? Do you pass on your unwanted goods to others/recycle them or throw them away? Do you make journeys of under a mile in your car? If so, how often?

DJKQ - just for the record, you state above: And yes....I don't know a single person who works on location in the film industry or TV drama that doesn't own a car, or motorbike. and Actors are always collected by private hire cars. So I'm kind of confused, does everyone own a car/motorbike or not? And what's wrong with motorbikes? It's individual car ownership that I have been saying is unsustainable.

Using cabs is not the same as owning cars and clogging up the roads. My issue is with individual car ownership and the additional problems that causes. Cabs are similar to using shared cars in a car club, each journey obviously produces pollution and CO2, but less cars are needed, less parking space is required and people are less likely to make local trips in a cab which could more easily be done on foot or by bike. It's still not green, but it can be included as part of the move towards a more sustainable transport model.

Thanks for answering my question bluecanary. I agree that disabled kids might need to be driven to school, although my friend pushed her severely autistic / blind daughter to school in an oversize buggy, but what you said here: To answer your question, a child with say a learning disability which is classed as having special education needs, may be capable of walking but may refuse to do so. They may choose to walk on tiptoes and/or backwards. Maybe the child has no fear or understanding of danger and could run into the road at anytime, despite having their hand held. There are many reasons why a child who has SEN may need to be driven to school besides the reasons of distance, going on to work etc that any parent may face. Could be that after struggling to get the child to co-operate with getting ready for school, eat breakfast or even leave the house the parent/carer is to exhausted to try and face the ordeal of walking. applies to loads of non-SEN kids, including two of mine who were hyperactive. You just adapt the way you do things, including telling the teachers that you won't let them browbeat you into forcing your child to have a horrible morning by shouting at them & rushing them to be on time for the benefit of the school's OFTED statistics on timekeeping.

I think what much of this is because people don't like their negative but comfortable habits challenged, so they grasp onto whatever they can to prevent themselves having to look at their behaviour and it's impact on others. It's clear that currently switching from car to other healthier / less socially destructive transport modes would inconvenience many people quite seriously, but if there is no change in people's attitude to car ownership and use, there will be a pretty crappy future facing all our kids, SEN or not, especially in our cities.

How about you the bluecanary? Care to educate me?

Still waiting TED....

Ok, well enlighten me by answering my question. As far as I'm aware SEN covers everything from a child being a bit slow to learn to a child who is too hyperactive to be able to concentrate, so I don't see why they would specifically need to be driven to school, unlike kids who have mobility issues.

How is that rude? I'm asking a question. If a child can't walk, they are disabled. If they are not disabled but are labelled as having Special Educational Needs, why would they need to be driven to school?

So because their SEN, they can't walk?