the rubber stamp

there was a previous post where I typed all angry and drunk about a conversation that I had with a guy I know from the neigborhood at a local bar
this morning I went in and tried to amend things a bit
tried to clear some stuff up
tried to lessen my attack

but the additions to last night's drunken rant did not make it to the web
the information got lost in cyber space

durning the day the beligerent encounter resurfaced in my mind a few times
it was I that was beligerent
the whole episode worked like a pressure cooker

the conversation was aggravating and a tad boring from the start
the amount of actual conversation frustrated me
the inability for the guy talking to read his audience irked me

to have this guy talk on and on about bikes would be like me talking about guitars to a musician
why would I talk on and on about guitars to a musician?

I could go through my long list of guitars
the electric tawainese fender rip off
the bass that had no guts
the various acoustic guitars
how I got these guitars and where they went
it would be quite a list

but.... I try not to go through this list
especially to someone who has a deeper connection with the guitar than I do
as I do not know how to play guitar
literally do not know how to play guitar
this guy can ride a bike better than I can play guitar

as I know nothing about guitars
I tend to listen when the topic is about guitars
or at least I will try to get an idea of the person I am speaking with's knowledge on the topic
this guy had no idea where I stood on bikes and cycling

when he talked about his Hard Rock...
I could have talked about the Hard Rock that I owned
or the Hard Rock that I gave to my brother.... a mountain bike that was too large for him
but was enough to get him into the sport
I could talk about the GT with the elevated chain stay that I broke but then realize that it was a Jamis
but no...
I listened to his list
I too have a list of bikes
my list of current bikes in my circulation exceeds the list of bikes in his life
not boasting just facts

but it was not so much that he was uninteresting
it was that he could not listen

nor could I
as I had listened enough
having him tell me one more time that he worked for 8 hours on his house would not make it any more interesting than the first four times
nor would telling me that a overweight slow rider in lycra on a three thousand dollar bike needs to get off the road and onto the bike path
there are times when I agree
but
I have heard this topic enough times from Red Staters in SUVs that I do not want to hear it from someone who has the ambitions to be a poser on a track bike

sure
I see cyclists and feel that they are out of place
going too fast on the bike path
going too slow on the road
but there is a bigger issue
there is no place for the bicycle
it is as if the world has a big sticker posted on it.... NO BIKES ALLOWED
and this is pissing me off

bikes belong
bikes do belong
if there were a place for bikes
if bikes were given rights
well, they would not seem so out of place doing what they do

should a bicyclist be going 12 miles an hour in a 35MPH Zone?
as long as there is nothing posting that bicycles are prohibited
then this slow cyclist no matter their weight... no matter the cost of their bike....
this cyclist is within the limits of the law
while the majority of the cars are speeding
more than likely everyone but the blue haired lady with the braille dashboard is speeding excessively
leaving the cyclist in a legal position and the car drivers in and obnoxious and illegal position

when the speed limit is 25...
it does not matter how many miles per hour the cyclist is moving below the speed limit
that cyclist is still cruising at a legal pace
while each and every driver over the speed limit is breaking the law

it bothered me
that this guy who more than likely someone who fancies themselves as a cyclist would take the same approach to a bicyclist rights as any and every other asshole in an suv
there does need to be an education
laws and rights need to be discussed
I am tired of car drivers standing behind the cyclist running red lights and stop signs
as the bicyclist is modifying the law to a very similar extent that the car driver does when the speed
there are limits
there is excess
there is a difference between leading and stealing
there is a difference between bending the rules and breaking the law