Are the pedestrians in stealth black and the cyclists with legal-minimum lights the ones operating a large, two-ton, not terribly-maneuverable vehicle at speeds exceeding their ability to accurately observe their surroundings and maneuver safely? "Sorry mate, I didn't see you" or "he came out of nowhere!" is an admission of liability, not an excuse.
We all have the responsibility to operate our machines responsibly. All the push for reflective gear smacks of victim blaming, just like the obligatory "s/he was/wasn't wearing a helmet" in the paper after somebody gets run over by a drunk driver and dies of massive trauma. Best, Will On Monday, August 10, 2015 at 12:08:20 PM UTC-6, Kevin Lindsey wrote: > > > "Meanwhile I heard on the radio this morning that some (presumably) > well-meaning state senator in New Jersey has introduced a bill that would > REQUIRE anyone cycling after sunset to wear a reflective vest or other > reflective clothing. Typical rationale from a legislator who thinks more > laws will solve everything: "It's very clear to me that drivers are more > likely to see a cyclist if the cyclist is wearing a reflective vest." Of > course, New Jersey already has a law requiring cyclists to have front and > rear lights on their bikes if riding after sunset. So every Garden State > cyclist who wants to ride after dark would have to buy a headlight, a > taillight, and now a reflective vest. Under the proposed law, if you don't > comply, you're fined." > > Instead of cyclists, it might be more useful to require pedestrians and > runners to have reflective stuff if they're out at night. At the very > least, something more visible than the one-piece head-to-to flat black > light-absorbing stealth clothing they seem to favor in my part of the > country. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
