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Comment by tres | Hacker News Reader

couldn't figure out why you were downvoted, your comment seemed to add to the conversation... until I got to

the GP sounds like one of these people, which may explain many of his experiences.

I'm not sure where you get that from what was written in the post, or why you think it would add value to the conversation, but in the future, I'd recommend keeping in mind that unjustified accusations directed at individuals render pretty much anything and everything else you write moot; they become what people take away from what you've expressed.

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Agreed that last sentence wasn't helpful, but neither are the downvotes for him explaining exactly what the situation likely was.

Maybe the OP is a great cyclist. Maybe he's not. It's immaterial.

What is material is trying to provide some context into why that happened, if it did. Lets just say as a fellow Chicago resident I also immediately had the same suspicions that you were responding to.

I used to commute daily as a cyclist, until I moved here. I sold my bike, as I don't want to be associated with these people whatsoever. They are the most entitled, aggressive, and actively dangerous group of commuters I've witnessed. I've lived in Amsterdam. This is not how bikers should behave.

So to me, it was simply providing context to those who don't live here for stories that don't make any logical sense. Cyclists here get absolutely zero benefit of the doubt from me, and I imagine that attitude can get into a cop on a bad day as well. Certainly doesn't justify it, but it explains it.

Cycling's a big part of my life. I've been involved in advocacy groups, racing organizations, commuted most of my life, etc. I'm also a fairly smart guy. I recognize the difference between being out training fast/racing, and riding my bike to work. The two things have different applications, and I do them in appropriate settings.

I think I'm a pretty great cyclist, and by great I mean that I know when to do what, and consider my impact on those around me as much as myself.

The problem here is this is just one example of the problem with police abuse in general. Police should be capable of not defaulting to biases against groups of people because they need to be by their job description. Whether that's "all bikers are entitled and actively dangerous" or "all blacks are suspicious unless otherwise proven", the sentiment is the same. They must be held to a higher standard of judgment because of the authority they are given.

PS - If everyone gave up cycling because they didn't want to be associated with those who do it poorly, not only would that be a shame, it'd leave nothing but the belligerents you speak of.

>They are the most ... actively dangerous group of commuters I've witnessed.

Do people commuting on bike in Chicago kill more people than commuting in cars?

You don't compare fractions by their numerators alone, do you?

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