[*BCM*] BioTerror Protest Action w/ Themed Critical Mass July Ride? No thanks.

[Thomas John Vitolo]

Stephanie, Sholom, others:

I'll play.  I think dedicating a ride to a particular issue is a bad idea. 
Here's why:

CMers ride for a wide variety of reasons now.  Some people in the past have
written that they like to ride:
  - to meet cyclists
  - to snarl traffic once a month
  - to protest our oil economy
  - to enjoy a slow tour through the city
  - because they like bikes
  - because they're fighting the man
  - because they like the attention
  - because they can
  - to remind cars that bikes belong on the road
  - because a little anarchy (if not more!) is a good thing
  - (lots of other reasons I don't recall at this instant)

The reasons why I ride don't have to jibe with the reasons of any other rider. 
In fact, they generally don't.  We're not organized, and we don't agree.  We
just happen to ride together.

So, I recommend that *you* ride "against the BU biolab".  Wear masks, constumes,
signs, etc.  Encourage others to do the same.  But, the line between encouraging
others to share your issue during the ride and making the entire ride represent
your issue is a really important one in both philosophical terms and perhaps
legal terms.  We're not a parade, and we're not a protest.  We're a coincidence.




On a side note, there's been such mis-information touted by the anti-biolab
folks, and so little information touted by the pro-biolab folks that I can't see
how anybody can form a reasonable, wise, fact based opinion that lands them
firmly in either camp.

P.S.: I'm a grad student in engineering at BU -- but I have no personal gain or
loss if the biolab gets built, as my field has no overlap with the lab and I'll
be finished at BU and probably be living a few hundred miles away before the lab
construction would be complete.


> I'm getting a little Farklempt, talk amongst yourselves. I'll give
> you a
> topic: What do you think of having this month's critical mass
> dedicated
> to the Bio-terror lab (read below)? Costumes, posters, stickers,
> signs,
> and riding out to the location? Discuss.
> 
> Solidarity,
> Stephanie & Sholom
> --------------------------------------------------------


Thomas John Vitolo
Ph D Systems Engineering Candidate,
Boston University

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