Fahrradsozialismus

German ridefastmake 1800 speedhaste, Selflive doubleplusgood

Though without full knowledge of the affair about initial agreements & settlements from both sides it is unwise to make any comment, but it is a proud tradition to root for the underdogs regardless of legal & moral correctitude - though one could always argue about what can be construed by the term “underdog” and its specific interpretation under this particular circumstance, but such things should come from the heart, not the mind.

It is not too often (or perhaps it is not often enough) you see such defiance against the currents of globalisation where profit reigns supreme. Of course conditions of the workers in mass manufacturing plants in developing countries are bettered in absolute terms, and the economic progress & social stability implied by such inflows of foreign capital does wonders for market confidence, so that they too can one day become a developed nation, so it all seems like a win-win situation. But without even suggesting the neo-impreialist undercurrent of such mode of development & the inherent condescension of the morality behind it, the smaller manufacturers in the developed world are also direct victims. Call it petty provincialism, but keeping local things local has its quaint charms.

Civic to Conder via Weston. Good commuter route for those living in Weston to Tuggeranong. Also a good alternative route to the City going passed the scenic Molonglo River instead of via Woden.

Tour de Aldis! If you must have weird & wonderful German candies from all of the ACT Aldi stores in one day (or other equally legitimate reasons), knock yourself out.

I’ve always wanted one of these dutch workcycles, they look great, and can carry pretty much anything you throw at it. They are the perfect solution if you have small kids or have extreme cargo needs. I was delighted to see something similar today on my way home from the City, I’ve always thought these types of trikes would be quite wide, but in reality they take up little more space than a normal bike, and certainly no more room than a recumbent trike you often see in Canberra.

The Trike is an Christiania from Copenhagen, available in Australia from PS Bikes.

On a somewhat related note, saw this video on the development of bicycle infrastructure in Copenhagen over 40 years, some very heartwarming comments by the commuters, as well the cute, inescapably Scandinavian accent.

In stark contrast, another great cycling culture - the Chinese, especially in cities like Shanghai & Beijing, is slowly marginalising cyclists in favour of automobiles. Bikes are no longer allowed on many of the roads, and existing dedicated cycle lanes are either removed or narrowed in order to accommodate the exponentially increasing traffic burden. There are even some academic studies (not surprisingly funded by an auto company) suggesting that bicycles are a cause of major traffic congestion, and even recommending the reduction of bicycle use. It is true that traffic regulations are often taken as subtle suggestions by many road users, unfortunately a phenomenon witnessed in many other aspects of life as well in China, but it is ludicrous to even suggest that bicycles places a heavier burden on traffic conditions than cars. It may be a sign of progress where more and more people are able to afford private cars, but it is sad to see the loss of one of the things worth preserving.

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Melba to Civic via Jamison. Obviously not the best commuting route if you live in Melba, but a great way for getting into Civic if you live on the Southern side of Lake Ginninderra. The route is quite scenic once outside of Cook, and convenient for shopping in Jamison.

Civic to Tuggeranong and Woden. The route takes you right pass Woden Plaza & Tuggeranong Hyperdome, and the cycle paths are quite good for either commuting or exercise. Lake Tuggeranong is small but quite beautiful. Taking the path along Erindale Drive instead of Lake Tuggeranong gives you some variation.

A somewhat less sophisticated online bike building interface than BikeCAD, but it is fun nonetheless, and being Japanese, you’re practically guaranteed some delightful wackiness.

Just in case you get hungry on the way:

Why like most people today, by make a fashion statement about it of course! By wearing 100% original authenticated official cycle socialist merchandise not only demonstrates your unwavering devotion to the revolution, you’ll also be engaging in a social experiment of capitalist market economy which in the end would undoubtedly prove beyond any reasonable doubt that a centralised collective system is the only way for goods & services to be distributed.

Visit Cafepress to get yours today. Offer strictly unlimited - for a limited time only!

As I’ve only got a basic account, so only one item can be had for each type of product. If you see any design you like but would like it on something else, don’t hesitate to let me know.

There are already many ways showing you how to fix a camera to your bike when you riding, and it couldn’t hurt to have another. The parts are simple enough:

1 x Manfrotto quick release plate
1 x Bicycle light mount with padding

I initially thought about getting a small ball-head and clamping that to the bar, which would allow more control of angles, but decided that it was probably overkill for my purposes, as I doubt that I’d be shooting from the bike that often, and just wanted something small and not too obtrusive. A slight complication rose with the original camera mount screw on the plate which was too wide at the base, and thus could not be moved once the clamp is fastened, so I replaced it with one from an old flash clamp which had a smaller diameter. Haven’t taken the rig out for a extended ride yet, but it seems sturdy enough, at least for little compacts like this one. I’d advise against having the camera mounted for any extended period of time anyway, as I doubt most are designed to withstand shocks for such durations.

From Melba to Civic via Gungahlin, probably not the best commuter route to Civic if you live in Belconnen unless you feel like a bit of exercise, but it is a very pleasant ride with a gradient resembling the one through Bruce, though the distance is longer making the climbs easier. The cycle paths in these newer suburbs are wider & in better condition, and the ride along Gungahlin Drive is very scenic, with a long strech of well paved cyclepath for sprinting on. The route is also very good for commuting if you live in the Gungahlin area and want to get to either Belconnen or Civic on bike paths alone.

A short ride around Lake Ginninderra, not quite as scenic as Lake Burley Griffin, but a good start for some light exercise if you live in Belconnen. Also there are a few nice restaurants & cafés next to the lake.

There’s an article from the Socialist Left Party of Austria that carries the namesake of this blog (the only other result for Fahrradsozialismus as of 8 September 2007, incidentally), though my initial inspiration came from a term with a more sinister (ironically not in the Latin sense) connotation. Out of sheer curiosity, and armed with what little Germanic fragmentations left scattered in my brain and a dictionary, I was able to figure out the gist of the article.

It focuses on the diminishing number of free city bikes on the streets of Vienna due to theft, with the government claiming that basically people are simply not good/honest enough for the system to work. Whilst the article itself seemed a somewhat feeble criticism of capitalism whilst offering little constructive suggestions itself (apart from introducing an egalitarian distribution system, the answer to all your problems) as to how exactly the system can work. As fond of Utopian ideologies as I am, the article unfortunately did not make the inherent contradictions of capitalist economics any clearer to me. Having heard of such systems before, it did however made me wonder as to exactly how such system works. To my delight I found that the system was not a failure after all and is going strong, though it seems that it is no longer ran by the government, and now attracts a nominal fee (perhaps to the mortification of SLP that a capitalist venture came to the rescue).

The project itself, named Citybike Wien, is simple enough; there are stations around the city where bikes are stored. All you need to do is register an account linked to your bank or credit card either at the terminal or on their website, after which you can then check the bike out. Not unlike short loans in some libraries, the rent rate is free for the first hour, €1 for the second hours, €2 for the third, and €4 for every subsequent hour up to 120 hours, with a flat rate of €600 for bikes not returned after that time, thus making it more ideal for short distance commutes. There are over 50 stations in the city, each housing at least 10 bikes.

The system is of course not unique to Vienna, with similar programs either private or public in other European cities such as Copenhagen, Paris, Barcelona, Stockholm, and apparently some cities in the United States.

It’d be interesting to see a similar system introduced in cities like Canberra. Hubs are located at major shopping centres & bus interchanges, but with a modified time-frame. The free period is perhaps 4 hours, targeting the tourists & leisure riders, and a nominal fee of say $2 (anything less than a single adult bus fare) for 12 hours usage blocks, for the occasional commuters, allowing people to comfortably cycle from the various bus interchanges to work & back.

This of course needs to be a government-funded or subsidised program, as it’d offer very little if any financial return, but is done as a public service, plus it’d look rather good in any pollie’s portfolio.

It is true that most Australian households already have bicycles, but still relatively few use them for commuting, so the question is that even if such a program is initiated, with such firmly entrenched car culture, are people more likely to cycle to work? That is difficult to answer, but I do know that although most of the bikes are fine for the occasional Sunday outing, but they are not the utility/city bikes designed specifically for commuting. Perhaps such program cannot be introduce alone in places like Australia, but more crucially must be part of a wider scheme designed to alter the perspective Australians have toward commuter cycling.