Streetsblog Los Angeles

Did The Media Treat Bachmann Unfairly Because She’s An Insane Woman?

For years, Streetsblog has chronicled some of the most ridiculous car advertisements that appear in print or television. We’ve also tried to occasionally lighten the mood with the “Cartoon Tuesday” series. Leave it to The Onion News Network to give us a chance to do both at once.

In an otherwise ho-hum report on whether or not Michelle Bachman’s presidential campaign was hampered by her insanity, David Barrowdale, whose opinions are sponsored by Acura, is forced to give them from the inside of the car itself. If only all newscasters were required to do the same when their news shows only prevent half the picture on transportation policy before heading off too commercial.

The Onion’s editorial cartoonist “Kelly” has a reputation for holding bizarre or downright insane views on issues ranging from America’s place in the world to child support for deadbeat dads.  This week he offers his take on transportation planning, bike lanes, and freedom all in one fell swoop.  Click through to get the punchline, and remember, we’re laughing AT not with him.

For the rest of the jokes, Click here.

This week, The Onion’s “American Voices” asks three average Americans their views on L.A.’s recently passed cyclist anti-harassment ordinance.  As you would expect from The Onion, the comments aren’t pretty.  Of course, these three have been answering these questions for quite some time now.

But I have faith that Streetsblog readers are funnier than Onion staff writers, so take a crack at writing your own ridiculous commentary on the law, and leave it in the comments section.  If we get enough comments, we’ll make a poll out of it to crown the winner of a LA Streetsblog t-shirt.

Via our friend’s at NRDC Switchboard comes “Built to Last” an award-winning video by John Paget that the makes the case for “Smart Growth” without ever using the term.  The film id in two parts, a “problem” section that identifies what is the greatest threat to the earth (CUL-DE-SACS!).  The second part identifies the solution, smarter planning resulting in density, walkable communities and places that don’t require a car to do basic things.

I know the concepts of New Urbanism and Smart Growth are old hat to most people reading Streetsblog, but the snappiness of the film production makes it easy to watch and understand for folks that don’t think about urban design in their day to day lives.  So take a second to watch the video, then send it out to your friends and family.  As Kaid Benfeld said at the Switchboard, “…this is a great little video that should be spread far and wide”

Posted without comment. Originally posted at The Political Wire.

Just something to think about as Congress continues to debate how best to fund our transportation system in the coming months.

On February 19, 2010, the Portland City Council passed a Bike Plan.  Just like we saw this week, Portland’s Mayor announced a funding mechanism to make the plan a reality.  For Portland, it was the $20 million “kickstart.”  For Los Angeles, it’s the steady trickle of Measure R local return funds.  But nevertheless, the day after Portland passed its Bike Plan, the super-blog Bike Portland printed this cartoon.  Consider it part joke, part history lesson and part warning.

The tale is one that is familiar to us all. A model citizen is kind to friends, family and neighbors alike. He stops and smells the flowers. He walks around an ant.

Then he gets behind the wheel of a car.

Road rage. Entitlement. Delusions of road ownership. Selfishness.

Our everyman experiences all of these emotions as he travels to and from work, all behind the wheel of his automobile. Amazingly, this cartoon debuted in 1950 decades before the “war on cars” began or Streetsblog was even thought of. Yet, the concept of Road Rage, in all its ugliness and self-obsession, still existed. It’s a problem that all the fancy gadgets or high-tech cars in the world can’t solve.

But as we see at the four minute mark, the cure for road rage is still the same then as it is now. Take away the car and even the worst road rage monster becomes your average citizen again.

Two YouTube videos have been making the rounds amongst Streetsblog readers in the past couple of days, and both have tickled the funny bone for different reasons. Given that things have been a little denser than usual here, heck even our recent polls required some study, I thought I’d break up the grind before going back discussing tomorrow’s Metro Board Meeting.

So here are your choices. Tell me which of these videos got the strongest reaction.  Laughter.  Crying.  Whatever.

First comes proof that adorable cartoon animals don’t make bad traffic planning seem better; they make it seem even more depressing and scary. Streetsblog NYC has more on this video from yesterday’s installment of Cartoon Tuesday.

Second, Biking in L.A. and Commute By Bike discover a P.S.A. on bike safety that actually includes the line, “You Better Be Pimpin’ with That Helmet on Tight.”

Watch. Laugh. Vote.

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Sometimes it’s easier to make your point with a joke rather than a lecture.

Here at Streetsblog, we spend a lot of time bemoaning the the urban design that has pushed people indoors and into cars.  But this video, which reader Erik Griswold tells me is a great “homage” to documentary film-maker Ken Burns, uses stock footage and a voice-over to beautifully and humorously make the point that humans are designing pedestrians in to an endangered status.

The video paints a bleak picture for North American bipeds that reinforces the image that many planners have that people who walk are second-class to people who drive:

Populations still exist in the hearts of cities, in declared safety zones and near institutions of higher learning….Much of the bipeds habitat has been destroyed, and access to their food supply has been made dangerous.

While efforts are underway to save the biped, we may be running out of time.  We must act now before its too late.

For more visit Tom the Dancing Bug at Go Comics

Earlier this year, I saw this comic at Salon about what would happen if other species embraced sprawl development, especially into other animals’ habitat, in the same way that humans do.  This comic came back to mind after the SCAG Board decided to choose sprawl development over a chance to make history and clean our air through smart growth.  Click through to see what happens when Bears decide to sprawl out of the forest.