I can't conceive of any situation that would warrant a cop hip-checking a bicyclist and then standing over the poor biker to gloat.
I've participated in the Houston Critical Mass numerous times and we've never had an incident. So that the uninformed know, Critical Mass is not so much an organized movement as it is a loosely-held idea. We ride once a month to illustrate that bikes are road vehicles and demonstrate that with the "power in numbers" technique. I can't say that I agree with the running of red lights at busy intersections, but we only enter them when the light is green and continue through until the whole mass passes. We've had our share of angry, impatient motorists, but nothing notable. The police officer in this situation deserves to be reprimanded; nothing calls for that kind of aggression on a civilian.
NEW YORK - Police stripped a New York City officer of his badge and gun Monday after a video posted on YouTube showed him body-checking a bicyclist who was part of a Times Square demonstration. The video was recorded Friday at the Critical Mass ride, a monthly protest of urban reliance on motor vehicles. The video, posted anonymously, shows the officer standing in the street as bikes whiz past. He moves toward a cyclist and violently knocks him to the ground in front of crowds of people. The officer in the video was placed on desk duty pending the outcome of a police department investigation, chief police spokesman Paul Browne said. The officer's name wasn't released. The biker, Christopher Long, of Hoboken, N.J., was arrested because he was obstructing traffic in the heart of Times Square, a criminal complaint said. He was charged with attempted assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. The complaint said Long, 29, deliberately steered his bicycle into the officer, causing both of them to fall to the ground. During his arrest, Long squirmed and kicked, saying to the officers, "You are pawns in the game. I'm gonna have your job," the complaint said. There were no other arrests during the ride. Long's lawyer, David Rankin, said he hopes the Manhattan district attorney's office will drop the charges. The district attorney's office said it was investigating. Long's next court date was set for Sept. 5. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25898876/
Yeah, the mass acts as one entity. On the Houston ride, we get far more cheers from pedestrians and thumbs up from drivers than an angry motorist. There are people who overreact and attempt to drive into us at times, but that's rare.
It'll be August 29. We meet at Tranquility Park in Downtown at 6:30, but the ride won't get started until around 7:00-7:15. 6:30 is just for socializing and what not. If you're interested, there is typically a house party afterward that is BYOB at a rider's home. It always makes for a fun Friday night!
I was thinking the same thing...There has to be more to the story and/or a previous incident...Too bad for the cop that doesn't matter as to retaliate like that cost him his job...idiot...
Do you think, of the multitude of cyclists there, the cop saw, recognized and picked off one guy in particular because he remembered him from a previous incident? It's not impossible, but how likely is it these two guys ever met before? New York is a big place. I think it is more likely that this policeman (or the force) thought they could give Critical Mass a bad reputation by charging a rider, and this one guy was picked at random. Or, he just didn't like the cut of the man's jig.
I don't know if the cyclist ran his mouth at the cop and instigated it, or if the cop was just going to nail one of the last guys to come through no matter what. Either way, the cop should be at least suspended for 6 months if not fired. Absolutely he and the city should be sued for thousands. The Seattle incident looks like one where everyone's at fault. I bike, I'm all for anything that might diminish the ridiculous and unwarranted amount of hatred towards bikers, but being a douche to drivers to teach them not to be douches to cyclists is stupid. Cyclists and busy streets (aside from Manhatten) just don't go together. I honestly think the only answer rests with the city establishing dedicated bike lanes. I know I don't want to be on a 40 mph street going 20 mph with angry drivers behind me and vice versa. Evan
