Ch 3 TV picks up the storyUPDATE: Tuesday 6:00 AM
Today's Gazette (using top photo above with permission) states a driver contacted police at 5:31 PM on Saturday after observing two men attacking the bike with axes. Hard to believe two Nitwits could be so callous (also kind of early in the evening to be drunk.)
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ORIGINAL post: Monday 10:00 AM
The Ghost Bike on Montague Road, up for only three weeks, marking the spot where 21-year-old Blake Goodman was killed by a hit-and-run driver was heavily vandalized this past weekend.
And the pernicious perp who did it must have been a Lizzie Borden fan as it appears the bike was whacked 40 times or more with an ax.
Springfield Republican updates:
September 21
Nothing is sacred in this world.
ReplyDeleteI noticed that the other day. Somehow, that was one of the more upsetting things I've seen recently.
ReplyDeleteYeah, somebody sure exhibited a lot of rage.
ReplyDeleteGotta wonder if the original symbol made them feel guilty.
i don't see the point of the bike in the first place. does everyone need to be reminded? and for how long?
ReplyDeleteYes, they do; for as long as it takes.
ReplyDeleteAs it takes for what?
ReplyDeleteI noticed that the other day. Somehow, that was one of the more upsetting things I've seen recently.
ReplyDeleteI am with you Joseph on the rise of upsetting things occurring. Seems our nation is becoming desensitized.
-Ryan
As long as it takes for dumbass drivers to learn that a bicycle has as much right to the road as cars do.
ReplyDeleteWashing Your Hands With Cold Water
ReplyDeleteBy Tara Parker-Pope
--The New York Times
Health groups often advise washing hands with hot, soapy water. But is the recommendation backed by science?
Columnist Anahad O’Connor debunks the long-standing view that water temperature matters when it comes to killing germs on your hands. In controlled studies, water temperature had no effect on how well handwashing removed bacteria from the hands.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/12/washing-your-hands-with-cold-water/
Okay, leave your name and address and I'll come turn your water heater down for ya
ReplyDeleteC. Hill
ReplyDelete325 Montague Rd., Amherst
Yeah, and I'm so sure that is you.
ReplyDelete"C. Hill
ReplyDelete325 Montague Rd., Amherst"
Self righteous "Prickville".
when wrong, instead of admitting it, larry responds with a veiled threat
ReplyDelete"Veiled". I like that.
ReplyDeleteCraig Neal said...
ReplyDeleteAs long as it takes for dumbass drivers to learn that a bicycle has as much right to the road as cars do.
How about when the bicyclists start having to observe the same SAFETY MOTIVATED traffic laws that the cars have to?
If you want to ride a bicycle on the public highway, I think you should have to have a license and insurance, just like I have to for my car.
If I driving down the road and you run the stop sign on your bicycle and I hit someone else trying to save your sorry a**, YOU caused that accident but good luck collecting from you or your non-existant insurance company.
Ditto to "Somehow, that was one of the more upsetting things I've seen recently." and "Id like to meet the people who did this..."
ReplyDeleteYeah, we can only hope there is a special place in Hell...
ReplyDeleteI think it was his friends who did it. Seriously - people were having a "Blake Fest" party this past weekend on Meadow Street and from the description of who wrecked the bike, it sounds like people who knew him.
ReplyDeleteWell, as that really old saying goes "with friends like that..."
ReplyDeleteThey had an anarchy-symboled "Blake Fest" sign so I have a feeling they would think that a symbol like the bike would be lame.
ReplyDeleteYeah, lots of beer will do that.
ReplyDeleteTo Craig: Cyclists arguably have a greater right to the roads than do motorists. Driving a motor vehicle is a privilege. Travel is a constitutional right (at least interstate travel is, which has led most legal scholars to conclude that intrastate travel is too). See Bob Mionske, J.D., Bicycling and the Law.
ReplyDeleteTo Ed: Bicylists are obliged to obey the rules of the road, and they can be held at fault for failing to do so. Sure, there are cyclists who flout the law. But there are plenty of motorists who do so--rolling stops, the Massachusetts left turn (ahead of oncoming traffic), going 50 in a 35 mph zone like my residential street--the list goes on and on. And the odds of causing harm in a 2-ton motor vehicle are astronomically greater than on a 30-pound bicycle.
It seems to me that Americans are too ready to talk about their right to do something, and not ready enough to talk about the responsibilities that come with those rights (or privileges). Operators of vehicles on the public way have a legal and moral responsibility of care toward other operators--cars, bicycles, wheelchairs, horse-drawn carriages, whatever. Maybe we could all concentrate on our responsibilities, and put down the mocha lattes, cell phones, PDAs, and other sources of distraction. Cyclists should take care not to act erratically and cause accidents. So should drivers. But the latter can cause more damage, and have a correspondingly greater responsibility to take care.
To Larry and everyone else: it is a crying shame that the ghost bike was vandalized. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.
"C. Hill
ReplyDelete325 Montague Rd., Amherst"
Cherry Hill Golf Course
Voted 2nd Best Golf Course in
Western Massachusetts
2008 Advocate's
Best of the Valley Reader's Poll
Wow, really mixing our issues.
ReplyDeleteYeah, "second best"--but 6 or 7 years ago under Dan Engstrom (you know, the guy who suddenly disappeared on St. Patty's Day two years ago) it was voted “the best”; and of course that year it also lost a six digit sum of tax money so obviously the patrons who supported it with the venerable Valley Advocate Poll like to get their golf subsidized.
Slam.
ReplyDeleteI commute to work by bike on a regular basis. I stop for stop signs. I also use hand signals. I use lights on my bike. I also wear reflective clothing. Why? Because it's the law and it's common sense. If bicyclists don't obey the laws and rules of the road, they should be ticketed. It's unfortunate, but there are dumbass bicycle riders just like there are dumbass drivers. Wouldn't you agree?
ReplyDeleteAgreed.
ReplyDeleteBut the "dumbass bicyle riders" do not deserve to die.
And if a motorist should happen to become involved in an altercation with a bike--even if not remotely their fault--they still need to stop at the scene (any maybe even try to help.)
I agree, they don't. As far as a driver not stopping to help, thats a lack of caring that I can't even fit in my head.
ReplyDeleteWell maybe not a lack of caring, just an overabundance of concern for one self.
ReplyDeleteAnd perhaps foggy judgment due to drugs or alcohol.