The other day I watched this beautiful clip showcasing the Dutch and their babies doing their 'everyday bicycle stuff' and it made me feel happy, and mad, and sad ... all at once.
Now I can't stop thinking about how crazy we are in Australia with our 'everyday bicycle stuff'!
And yes it confirms my opinion that it all comes back to an inate sexism so deeply engrained here in Australia.
This is a nation that continues to sacrifice women, and children, and trees, and Mother Nature on an altar of white male insecurity even though we have the evidence and data to say we should do none of these things.
This is a nation that continues to elect an array of self-serving predominantly male politicians who continue to trash our nation by their own limitations and deficiences.
This is a nation that gets who they vote for ... sigh
Tomorrow, Wednesday, I am to appear in the NSW District Court in Newcastle (first of a trifecta of helmet court matters over the next two weeks, next one in Adelaide followed by the third one in Sydney). I am appearing to appeal against the criminal conviction I received in the Scone Local Court last year.
Yet again I will be protesting our mandatory bicycle helmet law made against evidence and science, and in contempt of the environment.
Yet again I will be protesting the craven hubris of the influential uninformed.
Yet again I will be protesting the 'unquestioning endorsement of the necessity of helmet compulsion which has conferred undeserved credibility on our useless helmet law.'
Yet again I will be protesting the very Australian triumph of general ignorance and its miscarriage of science.
But this time I am going to revisit Article 7 of the International Covenant on Civil and Politica Rights whereby it states:
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. In particular, no one shall be subjected without his free consent to medical or scientific experimentation.
... and section 41BD of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 whereby it states that a medical device is an:
1(a)(iii) investigation, replacement or modification of the anatomy or of a physiological process
... then diverting off to here
... where bicycle helmets are effectively delisted - (oooh but are they?!)
... and where I am then going to argue that because I don't use my bicycle at home, or for occucupational use or for recreational use, a bicycle helmet cannot be excluded by this table in my instance and therefore does fit after all the definition of a medical device as set down by the provisions in the Therapeutic Goods Act!
Oh, it's worth a burl don't you think!
I'll keep you posted
If you don't use your bicycle for for occupational or recreational purposes, what do you use it for?
ReplyDeleteI use it as 'my wheels' (I don't own a car) to get me to town to do the shopping. I do not use it for my occupation as a 'conference coordinator' or for recreation such as getting exercise. I can assure you 'shopping' is neither occupational or recreational!!!
DeleteYes, I love that video. I do use my bicycle for work, sometimes, and especially for visiting clients. Often if I'm working all day at a conference, I prefer to take the métro because even old bicycles like mine tend to get stolen, especially at universities. I do also just go for a ride, though I'm not particularly "sportive".
ReplyDeleteI was so sad about that tree story in your last post. Indeed it is the same kind of mentality as silly rules to discourage and punish cyclists.
The Guardian's latest article on coral reefs is sad as well:
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/mar/22/climate-change-warnings-coral-reef-great-barrier-reef-experts-projections-scientists
But merde! on your trial. Chase those crazy baldheads out of the town...