Who's responsible for my medical bills?

Our fatuous belief in bicycle helmets has facilitated the general acceptance of some pretty implausible ideas pertaining to their protective capabilities...

...and I have to admit I was 'gobsmacked' by some of these 'implausible ideas' whilst handing out 'anti-mandatory helmet law' postcards in Newtown last weekend!:

=========================================
Oh World! We, the people of Australia, do solemnly swear that we do truly believe that bicycle helmets offer us superior protection against:

* cars
* buses (!)
* semi-trailers (!!!)
* CBD cycling
* all city traffic
* pedestrians (?)

Oh World! We, the people of Australia, do solemnly swear that the magical properties of bicycle helmets will protect us on bicycles far and wide (even in the Netherlands - where can we find one when we're there?)

Oh World! We, the people of Australia, do solemnly swear that anyone who refutes the superior qualities of helmets is a cavalier renegade. Therefore we do humbly recommend that if such an individual does not don a helmet and then suffers an accident whilst pedalling their free heads, that unfortunate individual should be compelled to pay for their own medical bills or go without treatment - tiddley-pom!
=========================================

This fundamental belief has completely denuded us of any abilitiy to disseminate fact from spin. Consequently, helmet promoters have successfully embedded a perceived bias in favour of their helmets, and we, the Australian mob, will not countenance any discussion on the subject - end of story.

When we routinely call for injured unhelmeted cyclists to foot their medical bills, we glibly dispense with the very ethos of our medical system! Why? - we certainly don't clamour for such ruthless medical care with regards to the tubby, the puffers and / or the boozers!!!

What is it with us & cycling?

Contrary to popular opinion, bicycle helmets do not offer an omnipotent mantle of superior protection!!! - clearly!

Newtown 'Carpet' Run!

(Photos: David Abbott)

Given that this particular participant just couldn't bear the idea of donning a bicycle helmet, the Sydney Tweed Run was always going to be out of bounds (ALL participants must obey ALL Road Rules).

Moreover her non-participating reality was further compounded by the fact that she didn't have any Harris tweed anyway only carpet!!

Undeterred by this somewhat significant wardrobe omission for a tweedy bicycle ride, the 'would-be-if-she-could-have-been' participant creatively embarked upon an upholstered jaunt along her favourite street!!!

"Oh, to be in King Street
Now that June is there"

(apologies to Bobby Browning)

Touch of Europe with dash of America in "melting pot" of Sydney!

Zippy little ride from Newtown to Five Dock today to watch 'baby number 3' play baseball.

Plotted a brilliant route through Stanmore, Petersham, Leichhardt, using Norton & Marion Streets to cut through to Haberfield to neatly arrive in Five Dock for the 'old ball game', ...

...ditched the 'peanuts & crackerjack' and settled for a quick espresso (& photo op) in Marion Street!! (note smile of the 'recaffeinated'!!!

Cheap Labour Plonk

Ruthless, bloodless & gone...& just because he wouldn't dance to the factional power brokers tune, you know the one that goes "Shelve The ETS & Take A Hard Line On Asylum Seekers & Back Off The Mining Tax Tiddley Pom"!

...and before anyone starts giving me a 'Representative Democracy' lesson...jeez...I understand that we don't have a 'Presidential System' where we elect the actual boss, but I do know that in order to get us to vote their way, all party promoters do their very utmost to tempt us with someone winnable.

...and so back in November 2007 we were promised political "french champagne" with an entirely electable chap, yet now, only two and a half years later and still with that same 'entirely electable' chap, they've pulled a swifty and switched us to "cheap labour plonk" - OH! SO NOT HAPPY, BROKERS & PUPPETS!

This was a carefully plotted political coup, and we, the voters, have been exposed as powerless and irrelevant. The 'assassins of Sussex Street' ('Why Mr Abbott, I do believe I agree with you on this one!') have executed our man in Canberra, and robbed us of our chance to either:

(1) vote him back in at the next General Election
or
(2) toss him out at the next General Election

What a waste of 2 very good politicians!

Shame on you, 'Ambition'! & Shame on you, 'Sussex Street'! & Shame on you, 'ABC'! (who clearly knew something was up when they scheduled woefully dull & ancient repeat of the Julia Gillard Australian Story last Monday night)

"When will we ever learn?"

(Photos: Maureen Murphy)
It's almost 9 years since the Sydney Morning Herald published my letter below (20 October 2001):

============================
“Where Have All The Young Men Gone?”
1940s - killed - my grandfather, Indian Army, Kyber Pass
1950s - killed - my uncle, Gurkhas, Malaya
1980s - killed - my father, RAF, Atlantic Ocean
2001 - ....... - my children, Afghanistan – 'please don’t do this, Mr Howard!'
“When Will We Ever Learn?”
============================

Nearly a decade on, & with a different Prime Minister (?) we're still there, and still waving the flag for the US...

...but what exactly has been achieved and when are our 'children' coming home?

- it's a joke that we wrap them up whilst they're growing up with 'bicycle helmets & other safety stuff', and then blithely send them off to war without a quick little read of our history books.

Time to come home

"Man's World" Consumerism

In the begining of "Man's World" Consumerism...

...there was:

The Seller → The Product → The Buyer

...which trended mainly towards:

Marketers → Erections → Men

...which utilised traditional strategies:

1. women
2. cars
3. nationality
4. men
5. war
6. drugs
7. bicycles

...and in that order, occasionally combined.

Fast forward to now:

* nothing's changed
* never will

SIGH!

Sharing the road

When I'm sharing the road with everybody out there, I like to think that the fact that 'one little clip' of their motorised vehicle could completely obliterate me makes motorists extra carefull when they pass me...

...because we 'all-kinda,' 'all-sorta' know that the little enforced polystyrene cap was never designed to protect me from 'one little clip' from any type of motorised vehicle!