Doug GordonDec 26, 2022

For my own sanity — and as the unofficial moderator of The War on Cars account — I'm actively muting anyone who thinks "Not everyone can bike everywhere, you know" is a cogent argument against reducing car dependency.

I've taken the attitude of @notjustbikes to heart and simply don't have patience for it anymore.

Show threadDoug Gordon
I'm happy to have good-faith conversations with people who are new to this and who are genuinely curious about How It All Works, but those aren't the people I mean. The people who aren't worth my time anymore are those who reflexively argue that because biking (or transit or walkable/accessible neighborhoods) won't work for *everyone* it shouldn't work for *anyone.*
Dec 26, 2022 at 9:02pmWeb
Show threadDoug GordonDec 26, 2022
It's one of the good things about switching to a new social media platform. I can dictate some of the terms of the conversations I'd like to engage in *before* things get out of control.
Show threadS Bodzin, Real American 🇺🇸Dec 26, 2022

@BrooklynSpoke or won't work for every possible moment in every life

Like dude the first 90% matters a lot more than the last 10%

Show threadDoug GordonDec 26, 2022
@stevenbodzin Exactly. "What are you going to do when it rains?" Um, any number of things!
Show threadS Bodzin, Real American 🇺🇸Dec 26, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke those arguments are, in my experience, not about the words. They are self defenses by people who feel deeply guilty or at least conflicted about their life choices. That's the part that might be worth engaging with.
Show threadCodexNotFoundDec 26, 2022
@stevenbodzin @BrooklynSpoke and there is plenty of people who don't mind discussing things with them. But I understand that people with such a following don't want to take up discussions that are often hopeless.
Show threadJym Dyer 🚲🌎Dec 26, 2022

@stevenbodzin @BrooklynSpoke - I've wasted much time myself making good-faith responses to these arguments. More than a few times I've seen the same person bring up the same argument all over again, at which point the presumption of good faith falls apart.

Fortunately or unfortunately, I have this habit of archiving what I write, so I can tell them something like, "You already brought this up 2 years ago, I typed this reply to you then."

Show threadPascalDec 26, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke @stevenbodzin sure sure but everyone isn’t sponsored by @cleverhood 😛
Show threadDoug GordonDec 26, 2022
@pascal I was gonna go with "Take the bus or a cab, it's fine!" But wear good rain gear works too!
Show threadPascalDec 26, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke yeah I got the official WOC Cleverhood and I love it
Show threadAGTMADCAT 🇬🇧🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼🇵🇸Dec 27, 2022
@stevenbodzin @BrooklynSpoke Yup - once we eliminate 90% of cars and car traffic, I'm going to swap sides and argue to preserve the last remnants of car accommodations, but that's a looooooong way away and we need to address the best majority of cases first.
Show threadLyle Solla-YatesDec 26, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke they have had an incredible run of good luck with policy priorities in North America for the last century. They’ll survive.
Show threadDavid AlpertDec 26, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke I’ve long wanted a pithy name for this “if it doesn’t work for everyone” fallacy since it comes up so much.
Show threadDoug GordonDec 27, 2022
@alpert All the time!
Show threadBenjamin RossDec 27, 2022
@alpert @BrooklynSpoke The point about narrative grooves is so reminiscent of media coverage of housing until the last couple of years, and still lingering somewhat now. The story was people vs developers and anything that didn't fit that framing didn't exist.
Show threadPascalDec 27, 2022
@alpert @BrooklynSpoke it’s called “you can’t please all of the ‘you can’t please all of the people all of the time’ people all of the time”
Show threadxanderstrikeDec 27, 2022
@BrooklynSpoke Part of carbrain is believing that you have to put 100% of your transportation investment into a single mode and that's the only one you're allowed to use. The idea of having a meaningful choice about how you get places is just beyond some people's understanding.