Bell Ends
Just as things were looking up for cycling…
Trek suddenly got lumped in with the likes of Smith and Wesson: they’re now officially weapons manufacturers and suppliers to an oppressive regime. They might get some karma from that one gal at a demo in Cardiff on a Trek though.
Who even knew Dunkin Donuts PD had it in ’em to pump leg? If you’ve watched enough helmet-cam videos you know their main role is to block bike lanes, or refuse to act on drivers getting angsty with cyclists.
This is where August Vollmer comes in. He became chief of Berkeley, Californa’s PD in 1905 and set about making the outfit into an efficient, property-protecting machine.
Evolving quickly from getting on their bikes in 1910, the Berkeley plod got motorbikes in 1912 and then got into cars in 1913. Other forces followed. The bike hardly had a chance to innovate.
Covering up their badges and jumping on the peaceful, the traumatised and the grieving… they’re certainly “innovating” now.
Oh and Berkeley?
Yes, the very same Berkeley where on May 15, 1969 the police shot students with shotguns for declaring a “people’s park.”
How can Brits support BLM?
https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co/
Read all about it:
Source and recommended read:
Policing the Open Road: How Cars Transformed American Freedom (Sarah A Seo, 2019)
