Lessons from Japan: The Politics of Limit
His Highness the TibetanMonkey, originator of the Stop the Bullshit Campaign
I still saw thousands of little cars being swept away by the Tsunami.
They have built bullet trains and have an effective public
transportation system as well, but still the MIGHTY BICYCLE seem to be
missing from the politics of limit.
"It is the greedy profit-seekers, who minimise these risks, whether in
the Gulf of Mexico or Fukushima...
These predatory forces are made more formidable because they have
cajoled most politicians into complicity...
Such a challenge must include the repudiation of a neoliberal
worldview, insisting without compromise on an economics based on needs
and people rather than on profit margins and capital efficiency."
http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/03/201131691422585897.html
***
Contrast though the high-tech approach of the bullet train with that
assigned to the HUMBLE BIKE...
"I just returned from a trip to Japan... I found myself riding
sidewalks and riding slowly."
http://sites.google.com/site/urbanbicycles/japan
In other words, CAPITALISM IS INCLINED TO WASTE INSTEAD OF EFFICIENCY.
It's a beast --the Hungry Lion-- that must be tamed BEFORE we are
devoured.
WARNING: RIDING ON SIDEWALK IS DANGEROUS TO YOURSELF AND OTHERS --AND
IT'S PAINFULLY SLOW.
----------------------------------------------------
His Highness the TibetanMonkey, originator of the Stop the Bullshit Campaign
Banana" <nolionnoprob...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> http://sites.google.com/site/urbanbicycles/japan
>
> In other words, CAPITALISM IS INCLINED TO WASTE INSTEAD OF EFFICIENCY.
> It's a beast --the Hungry Lion-- that must be tamed BEFORE we are
> devoured.
>
> WARNING: RIDING ON SIDEWALK IS DANGEROUS TO YOURSELF AND OTHERS --AND
> IT'S PAINFULLY SLOW.
It was bound to happen (at least on paper):
April 2008
Anyone who has spent more than a week in Japan has probably been
surprised at the lack of regard that cyclists here often show both for
their own safety and for the safety of others. It is not uncommon to
see housewives cycling with one child on a seat in front and one
behind, or salarymen riding one-handed in order to hold an
umbrella(even on windy days!), or even high school students steering
with one hand while sending text messages on their mobile phones with
the other. Unsurprisingly this type of irresponsible behaviour has led
to a dramatic increase in the number of accidents involving bicycles,
with the result that the National Police Agency has, on paper at
least, begun to clamp down on dangerous cyclists.
His Highness the TibetanMonkey, originator of the Stop the Bullshit Campaign
> April 2008
> Anyone who has spent more than a week in Japan has probably been
> surprised at the lack of regard that cyclists here often show both for
> their own safety and for the safety of others. It is not uncommon to
> see housewives cycling with one child on a seat in front and one
> behind, or salarymen riding one-handed in order to hold an
> umbrella(even on windy days!), or even high school students steering
> with one hand while sending text messages on their mobile phones with
> the other. Unsurprisingly this type of irresponsible behaviour has led
> to a dramatic increase in the number of accidents involving bicycles,
> with the result that the National Police Agency has, on paper at
> least, begun to clamp down on dangerous cyclists.
What do we got here? We got reckless cyclists in Japan and reckless
SUVs in America.
Why SUVs have to accelerate when passing a bicycle? Why their motors
roar? Why they seem to be glued to the phone?
It seems few in this "dog-eat-dog" capitalism lives free from fear.
But still the Japanese seem less intimidating.
Enough jungle wisdom for now.
His Highness the TibetanMonkey, originator of the Stop the Bullshit Campaign
bike --almost as much as I rode today. And this other gay spent his
gas trying to put gas. Usually it takes one guy to push a small car,
but probably he failed to see the advantages of stick shift...
"One man wasted so much gas queuing up that his car ran dry and needed
several people to push it up to the station.
Kabuya Kubo said she had waited for nearly six hours to put gas in her
tank. Ever since the tsunami, she has had to bike to work whenever the
car runs low on fuel -- a one-hour trip, versus 15 minutes by car."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110321/lf_afp/japanquakelifestyleeconomy
***
I promote bicycles first, then scooters and finally small stick shift
cars.