[*BCM*] spoiled citizens of brookline.

[. nevele]

i do believe you are a more well informed citizen than i, sir, but i must defend my original statement. 

firstly, i did apologize for using the term 'bitches.' the abrasive terminology was a direct result of me being shaken and pissed off. generally i avoid apologizing for being offensive at times, but you're all very respectful, nice folks who i'd rather avoid seeing roll their eyes at me. 

secondly, the original message was simply "hey, look out for this thing in this place because of this time." i want you all to be as safe as possible.

thirdly, i lived in brookline for 3 years when i first moved here from CT and've worked in coolidge corner for the last 7.5 years. so, naturally, i have this hard-wired urge to be negative in respect to the folks who live there as just about every annoying, jerkbag customer i've had is one. i also realized several years ago during a summer working as a real estate agent that they have some pretty sneaky laws that appear to be good in nature and for nature, but are in actuality quite devious. one is the no overnight street parking thing. seems like a solid idea.. keeps the streets clear and clean for the most part. but hey, if you live there and you need a car (say, working as a real estate agent) what are your options? park 2 miles from where you live? hmm.. no, that's a 30 minute walk for most folks. oh, OR you can pay upwards of $300/mo. for an off street parking spot. this is brookline's sneaky way of dealing with something called 'anti-snob laws'.. which are essentially laws that make it so communities can't have laws that prevent lower income folks from living in said communities. forcing people who can't afford houses with driveways who need their cars for, say, lugging their little kids around to NOT live in the area because they simply cannot afford parking. so, when i hear about more reductions in parking in brookline, my immediate reaction is not to think that they're making a more condusive environment for bikes, but that they've found yet another way to make it more expensive to live there. just sayin

finally, i'm not attempting to paint the entire city with a single color. i've been doored in roxbury, doored in brookline, nearly doored everywhere else, hit by a car in watertown, hit by a car in the longwood medical district, yelled at in brighton.. and everywhere else, but i've also noticed drivers everywhere go out of their way to share the road with me and am incredibly glad that most of the college kids are gone for the summer because the folks who actually -live- in this town are WAY more respectful on the road. oh, and i know it's a lot easier to point out the bad than the good, but a lot of my friends started riding fixed gears over the last year and telling them the bad stories tend to be the most helpful in terms of teaching them how to ride safely. one of those things being to look out for teenage girls in huge SUVs 'cuz they probably aren't looking out for you. =]

-jibbuh hibbuh


                        


> Date: Thu, 29 May 2008 11:54:57 -0400
> From: tjvitolo at bu.edu
> To: list at bostoncriticalmass.org
> Subject: Re: [*BCM*] spoiled citizens of brookline.
> 
> It's worth noting that the Brookline Town Meeting voted last night 
> (with a majority greater than 2/3s) to reduce the parking requirements 
> for a large development at 2 Brookline Place.  I think it points to 
> Brookline beginning to embrace zoning that encourages ridership of the 
> MBTA, walking, and bicycling.
> 
> This isn't an independent incident either.  The Brookline Department of 
> Public Works has installed well over 100 bicycle racks in the past 
> year.  The Highway Department is incorporating contraflow bike lanes 
> and other bicycle accommodations in new roadway design work.  The Town 
> sponsored a Brookline Bikes Beacon event on May 18, where well over 500 
> bicycle riders of all ages and abilities got a police escort ride up 
> and down the length of Beacon Street at 12:30 pm, in spite of BU 
> graduation and a Red Sox game.
> 
> Brookline's government -- and Brookline as a community of individuals 
> -- have a long way to go with respect to the incorporation of safe 
> bicycling in everyday life.  But, the good news is that there is a 
> demonstrated willingness of town employees, town government, and the 
> citizens to embrace this positive change.
> 
> I hope that young driver drives safely in the future.  I hope that 
> Brookline continues to improve the bicycling climate in town.  And, I 
> hope that you apologize for painting a town of 57,000 people of 
> incredible diversity with a single brush, as well as for using the word 
> "bitches," which was entirely unnecessary and inappropriate.
> 
> 
> Sincerely,
> Tommy Vitolo
> Brookline resident
> 
> _______________________________________________
> Boston Critical Mass mailing list
> list at bostoncriticalmass.org
> http://bostoncriticalmass.org/list
> To unsubscribe email list-unsubscribe at bostoncriticalmass.org

_________________________________________________________________
Instantly invite friends from Facebook and other social networks to join you on Windows Live™ Messenger.
https://www.invite2messenger.net/im/?source=TXT_EML_WLH_InviteFriends
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.bostoncoop.net/pipermail/bostoncriticalmass/attachments/20080605/f0262818/attachment.htm