Environmental protester halt the world championship in cycling... one of the best alternatives to fuel driven transportation....
Cycling is environmentally friendly, but let's not equate world championship to cycling as transport. The event itself must have a lot carbon footprint. Still, weird choice of event to protest, but I can see them doing what they can to get the publicity they need.
I think its because of this: https://sh.itjust.works/comment/1915960
I guess big oil has nothing against cycling, as long as its the sport and not the mode of transport...
And if they protested people commuting into a city, a huge source of global emissions, they'd be criticized for that too. People always manage to label protests as the wrong time/place. What they really mean is "protest is fine as long as no one, especially me, is asked to actually pay attention to it."
And if they protested people commuting into a city, a huge source of global emissions, they’d be criticized for that too.
May, just maybe, those aren't the only two choices. Maybe they could also protest in front of offices of politicians and actually reach the people who can change anything.
Yes, why has no one tried that before, 😂
Greenpeace recently protested on top of British PM Rishi Sunak's private mansion while he was away. And they still got swamped with "YoU cAnT pRoTeSt LiKe tHaT" and people coming up with the most contrived reasons to say they are hypocritical.
It literally does not matter how these people protests, people will always say they are doing it the wrong way, because chuds dont actually mean it when they say that. They simply dont want them to protest at all, so they can pretend its not happening.
And maybe, just maybe, the protesters should have a goal of not only getting their message out but winning people over to their side. Maybe a goal of gaining support.
I don’t think this strategy of “annoy as many people as you can” will succeed in gaining any positive attention
100%. The moment you point out that this isn’t the way to go you’re instantly seen as the bad one, that you don’t want to be inconvenienced. It’s so dumb.
I have this big thing I love to go into where I list dozens of better ways of getting media attention and starting dialog, one of the ideas is a big group of well organised people going to clean train stations and educate people on why trains are more climate friendly than cars and why that's important...
Talked up a lot of people involved in and supporting direct action and they all say one of two things 'i don't have time for this' or 'yeah sounds great but I'm going to stick with things that haven't been working for decades thanks'
I really have come to belive that for most people in these things the environment is just an excuse for attention seeking, or the support of these groups acts as a way of telling themselves 'we try so hard but nothing changes' because they don't actually want change, they just want a way of separating themselves from the guilt of consumerism.
It's like the chorus of people saying that it's corporations that use all the plastic, like the list of top ten plastic uses isn't just a list of companies that make products everyone uses - coke is in the list for example, they don't have a massive pile of plastic bottles to swim in like Scrooge McDuck nor do they have some magic power that forces people to buy their drinks. Working together we could change the world, but no one wants to change they just want a moment of self importance and an excuse for being part of it.
This is mildly infuriating but ruining the climate is very infuriating. So I understand the protesting and I hope we're gonna see a good second half of the race.
When you’ve done everything that’s reasonable, and no one in power listens, so have to become unreasonable. And people say, why can’t you just be reasonable?! 😕
What's mildly infuriating is that you are complaining about these protesters without providing any details on the protest.
No worries dude! I got you. Google to the rescue
https://nitter.net/Thisis_Rigged/status/1688142514421661696#m
"Rebecca, 28, “as a trans woman I’ve been told I’m not welcome on the cycling track by UCI, at the same time they allow a petrochemical company to field a team showing they have no real care for people. I take to the track to point out this hypocrisy and stand for a better future”"
What’s mildly infuriating...
No it's not!
"White moderate" pearl-clutching is much more than "mildly" infuriating.
I don't know about this Cycling competition, but the Tour de france thing has more helper cars, truck, cameraman motorcycle. Entire mobile village with caravan, trucks etc. Thats a lot of ecological impact even if indeed Cycling is one of the greenest transportation method.
Yeah a big competitive bike race with corporate sponsors and television cameras has little to do with cycling as a green method of transportation. It’s a bigass corporate gangbang and a fair target for disruption. Only the most lazy, dense observer would look at the Tour de France and think it was there to promote environmentalism.
I don't know the ideologies of the protestors, but I do agree with protesting against "big cycling". Cycling around on a trusty steel bike which you can repair yourself is environmentally friendly. Buying a new carbon fiber bike every few years because it is 2% more aero than the last is not. Instead of standardized parts, the cycling industry wants you to buy cheap ones that break fast, and can only be replaced with their specific parts. They sell this to you by including some upgrades in chains, cassettes etc. The cycling industry is the same as any other industry, it exists to make profits. Truly sustainable things do not come from making profits.
Few "big bicycling" inspires a lot of "small bicycling"
I can see this argument, but I just hate the way the industry is heading, to extract as much money as possible by selling upgrades, new frames, etc etc. The price of a new bike has also risen 2-3x since before COVID and won't go down. Frame materials are becoming more resource intensive, parts are becoming less replaceable and more proprietary.
I've commuted to work by bicycle maybe 2 decades out of my career of almost 3 decades, NEVER with any bicyle worth more than 200 EUR (during my time in The Netherlands I always got second hand bicycles ... well, more likely 4th or 5h hand) and you clearly have no fucking clue what you're talking about.
You're talking about, maybe, the consumer high-end "recreative" cycling, the kind that's sold to fad-following consumers who will at most pull out the bicycle on a weekend day, put on a "Tour de France" disguise (complete with "sponsor" sticks) and go cycle to be seen cycling.
In countries were people actually cycle for utility purposes those are a tiny fraction of people and the "cycling industry" is something else altogether than what you describe. Normal people use normal bicycles which are not too expensive, especially because you really don't want to park a 1000+ EUR on the street, not if you want to come back and still find all of it there.
Further, even at the high-end, the actual pros know how to fix their own bicycles and know the value of standardized components: it's really only the "two-wheel fashionistas" that would go for overpriced bicycles with non-standard elements.
Going after cycling because of a few idiots (and there are idiots in every human endeavour) and calling it pro-Ecology is the pinnacle of stupidity and doing the work of the enemy.
I am indeed talking about consumer high-end cycling, and I see it poisoning peoples minds in my city with their marketing that says to be eco-friendly and cycle to work you have to buy a brand new bike for £1000. I am arguing about the case in my city and the direction I don't want to see cycling in general take. I agree with you that in many places, cycling is much better, the Netherlands is a great example. I am not going after cycling as a whole, just the rich directors of Shimano, SRAM, Trek, Specialized, etc. that have greenwashed expensive high-end cycling and make people believe that they need the latest stuff. I am not saying that the industry is already in a bad place, just that it could head that way.
You clearly didn't read what they wrote, and then went on a tirade about it.
Nothing you said really applies as a retort to the other user's comment.
Have you ever cycled in your life? Because that's not how it works.
Yes, I have cycled a fair amount and raced too. Now I have downscaled my cycling to just getting around. Would you care to elaborate? If I was not clear I would like to explain myself. I knew many people who were always looking for the next upgrade to get a little performance boost, and willing to pay a great deal of money for it.
Why do you think 13 gear cassettes are a thing? The chain has to be thinner and everything is much more precise. Add to that mechanical load and it is much worse for every casual rider in reliability than the older 2x9, 3x9 systems.
And this makes us talk about the fact that cycling is one of the most environmentally friendly alternatives to fuel driven personal transportation.
Yeah, there's a big difference between pro cycling and biking to get around. The pro peloton isn't remotely sustainable—lots of international travel, transfers of team cars, team buses, helicopters, signal relay planes, etc. I suppose no pro sport is green. But biking for transport is one of the most efficient and sustainable.
Yeah, there's a big difference between pro cycling and biking to get around.
Of course, but there's also a big difference between a cycling race and a car race.
Neither are vital transportation, but one is a helluva lot more polluting for entertainment than the other.
Of course. All in saying is that it makes us talk about how cycling is a good alternative to motor transport. Doing the pro peloton to work isn't an option.
I suppose no pro sport is green.
SailGP claims to be trying, although I have... questions... about how they get both their boats and personnel from event location to event location, as well as the use of combustion-powered support boats during races. (Frankly, I won't really believe they're green until they've built a sailing cargo ship to schlep those racing catamarans around.)
Cycling might be.
Cycling the sport isn't. The sheer volume of support cars, media cars, motorbikes at every race is utter insanity.
That's before we get into the sponsorship from oil and chemical companies, and at least two sportwashing teams
sportwashing
For the folks too lazy to look it up:
Sportswashing is a term used to describe the practice of individuals, groups, corporations, or governments using sports to improve reputations tarnished by wrongdoing. A form of propaganda, sportswashing can be accomplished through hosting sporting events, purchasing, or sponsoring sporting teams, or participating in a sport.
Seems the protest was effective then
If you actually would like to read about it: https://www.reuters.com/sports/cycling/protesters-halt-mens-road-race-2023-08-06/
British Cycling is sponsored by oil company Shell.
— Reuters
British Cycling is the Host partner of the championship, according to the official website of the championship (linked to at the UCI website, "Organizer website" section), and its partner is Shell UK (announcement).
Someone pointed it out in the comments before, but it's neatly summarized now 😝
So what is your plan instead?
Interrupting motorsports may give then more sympathy.
My guess is that those "protesters" are paid and organized by some oil industry people (maybe without the activists glued to the floor knowing about this), just to give real climate activists a bad image. I've talked to a real climate activist recently, and she was furious about those "gullible idiots".
It’s a little funny how someone believing an actual literal conspiracy theory would call others gullible idiots.
That's not the point though is it, smartass?
Cycling races are very polluting. Not because of the bikes but because of everything besides the bikes (cars, motocycles, cameras, plastic goodies, ...)
I just assume these dumb protest ideas are actors paid by oil
I stg posts like these are just part of some sort of psyop at this point.
Where did you get that it is environmental protestors?
Maybe bc cycling fans will listen
all this does is to make sure to alienate the cyclists who would actually listen.
Mother fucker we all about to die from climate change and you worried about how it might make people feel bad.
i see
The men’s road race wasn’t temporarily interrupted. When a race is interrupted, it’s done for good because you lose all the positions and momentum.
Hahaha fucking idiots
I find this so silly. I feel that all this does is make people mad instead of getting them aware and informed on what they’re protesting about.
So you're advocating for people being so selfish that the death of a livable environment is secondary to being fully comfortable today?
Yes that is exactly what I’m saying. Not.
I want it to be brought to people’s attention, I want countries to take action. All I hear around me is that people who do this are seen as loonies, as idiots who don’t have anything better to do, which paints a bad picture for the cause they’re trying to bring attention to.
Why... just why?
Yeah why don't they know their place, where no one will notice them???
Yeah don't they know about the free speech circle that exists on the other side of town underneath the freeway overpass next to the river? That's where protests belong!
It's almost like the media is trying to make people hate them so oil companies can get their way.
Don't support these companies.
What's the "acceptable" form of protest in your opinion? Literally anything they do gets an article about how wrong it is, because they are trying to upset those with power.
Yep. Years back the Occupy Wallstreet protests were really gaining traction until corporate media decided to go to the camps and find the most insane examples of people to interview to represent the protest as a whole. The whole thing crumbled shortly after and Wall Street is still ruining running our lives to this day.
An acceptable form of protests not only gets the message across but wins people over to your side. Meanwhile you seem to be claiming that any publicity is good publicity, as if anyone is unaware of your message, and don’t care that you’re alienating the people who could be helping you
No. That's what people like you do who don't even understand the context of the protest.
Edit: And OP, who's likely doing this intentionally to spread his agenda.
Yep, OP’s agenda is succeeding: there was no message getting across, no support gained, and I’m purposely avoiding finding out what their organization is so I don’t have to avoid donating/helping
Noted! I will go burn a few tires to teach them.
British Cycling is sponsored by oil company Shell according to the article.
Do you mind? I'm trying to be righteously infuriated over here.
It's amazing how "righteous fury" people seem to get over folks protesting sporting events because the fucking planet is on fire.
"Oh but couldn't they be more calm and quiet about it, I want to watch the race!"
With participants who likely flew themselves their bikes in from all around the world for a pointless competition. I wouldn't compare an international bike race to a person who rides their bike to work to help the environment.
Sporting events are the best way to reach hundreds of millions of people to deliver the message. Athlete flights are a tiny price to pay for it. And protesters literally fucked it up. Because they are dumbfuck attention whores and nothing else.
I'm sure they had many sponsors? Admittedly, I've done zero research...
Visit https://www.cyclingworldchamps.com/ and scroll to the bottom. Neither Shell nor Ineos are on the list of sponsors.
Seems the protestors didn't either.
The protestors too. So? XD