So, I guess that I should put down what this is, and why it should be read. This blog is about a man on a journey. I recently have changed a massive amount in my life, including my income, my transportation, the way I look at things, and what I've seen and what I think. This is nothing more than a record of a man who is looking at the world with new eyes, and a new perspective.
First things first.
Commuting to work in San Anto is a combat sport. Now, as a substitute teacher, I do a LOT of commuting, from where I live to the various schools I work for. Normally, I substitute at three schools primarily, O'Connor HS, Warren HS, and Sul Ross MS. Sul Ross is my longest commute, at 10.6 miles through the heavy traffic of Bandera Road.
Riding in at six-thirty am is amazing. Who knew that traffic was that heavy so early in the morning? As I ride, I see so many people so harried, drinking coffee, talking on the phone, and generally looking like someone stuck a cattle prod on low up their butts. I've never realized how enervating it is to be in a car, driving through ugly traffic and feeling caged...
Caged. That perjorative was something that I never got, until I started riding. Now, to be honest, I'm probably not the most ideal road biker. I listen to my iPod at half-volume, so I can hear traffic and keep a steady cadence. I wear gray in the morning because I own nothing reflective besides the bike and the backpack I love. But, riding and being able to sweat and breathe air and not have my awareness taken up by more than what it takes to ride safely. I was free, for the first time since I became a wage-slave like everyone else.
Speaking of wage-slaving, hasn't anyone noted how the economy isn't what it was promised? Let me be painfully honest here. I'm not car-free because of some overriding ideal, although I am fast becoming enamored of the ideal. I became car-free originally because I am going back to school, have no immediate income once that starts, and therefore don't merit a car, or the need to maintain it or insurance or the other thousands of dollars worth of maintenance that is involved.
However, I know that gas is $3 a gallon, everything is creeping up slowly, and my paycheck doesn't get as much. I figure a few thousand invested in some good bikes is better than $12,000 on a new or used car. Even with maintenance, its still better.
So that first pic is what happens when every person in that picture drives their own car. The second shows that they all fit into one bus. The third shows how much space they all take when they ride bikes.
Go figure.
Peace, love, and good energy.
Mago
2 comments:
Welcome to the Blogosphere!
As a fellow Christian, I was heartened to see supporting arguments for your viewpoints supported by scripture. While I appreciate many of the sentiments you express and indeed, you espouse my thoughts as far as stewardship, it seems you are a bit misinformed re: the hype and fake science surrounding "global warming." Global cooling and warming is a natural consequence which has been going on forever. There has been a 1 degree Farenheit rise in temp over the last 40 years which cannot be definitively attributed to man's burning of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide is a natural byproduct of respiration and is NOT a pollutant. Paying "carbon offsets" is a not -so-transparent scheme to redistribute wealth from the rich countries to the poor countries. Souinds an awful lot like socialism doesn't it.
You moght say that the Artic is losing ice. Conversely, the Antarctic icepack has increased quite dramatically. This is merely natural warming of the planet.What you see and hear from the mainstream media re: global warming is largely the result of a liberal viewpoint driven by a powerful political agenda. Make no mistake; this is very political.
My intent here is not to dissuade you from doing your part but to hopefully illustrate something far more insidious. If you tell a lie often enough people start to believe it's true.
Sadly, most people are sheep. They believe what they are told without taking the time to research and find out the facts for themselves. With the acknowledged liberal media spouting it's endless series of lies, hyperbole and half-truths and a largely apathetic populace listening, we are destined to lives of ignorance unless we apply the lens of scrutiny and common sense.
Remember some of these supposed truths in these books which later turned out to be false?
The Population Bomb
Silent Spring
An example to illustrate my point. We banned DDT and caused and continue to cause millions of deaths due to mosquito-borne illnesses which were largely contolled by usage of DDT. No suitable substitute has ever been found. All because members of the "green movement" said it caused thinning of eggshells. This proclamation was proved false by scientists at the time but we banned DDT anyway. The lives lost since the banning are well-documented, no hyperbole here.
The planet should be uninhabitable by now according to the author of the Population Bomb. It's just not so.
These examples of junk science and hyperbole illustrate how easily we can be deluded and the negative consequences of going off half-cocked as it were. Needless suffering and countless lives lost all in the name of "good stewardship."
Please read the exhaustive analysis on "Global Warming" done by the British government.
For objectivity,
Please listen to the Fox network, the least-biased of all.
Read some of the real science done by real scientists about global warming.
Don't be a sheeple, become an informed citizen but do keep riding!
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