Are we supposed to be obsessed with cars?

i only obsess over mine when it's not working

Yep, same here. I refuse to buy a new car and have it depecriate by $10,000 the first 5 seconds I drive it off the lot. I'll stick with my $700 Dodge Caravan that's been running for years and mom's great old Buick Regal, 90 edition in mint shape. I'd dig an SUV but I just don't dig the price.

they're bike killers anyway.

Yeah, I saw a downed bicyclist the other day surrounded by cops and EMS. It was tragic to see him unconscious, maybe even dead, in the road. This was on Lamar Blvd near downtown.

Any idea why this happened? How's that area traffic-wise?

Bad. The motorist who hit him was pulled over also being interviewd by the cops.

yup. bad news. DYK: 85% of serious injuries involving bike accidents could be 'prevented' (from being serious) if cyclists were ANSI or SNELL approved helmets? I know Austin has gone round and round with helmet laws, I just wish people would use their damn noggin and protect it! BTW May is National BIke SAfety Month

Well, how 'bout cars going slower? Or bike lanes? Would that be expensive Big Government-stuff or would that constitute some serious noggin-usin' ? I wonder...

I think bike lanes would be an infrastructure nightmare around here.

yep the East Coast is pretty jammed packed as it is... bike lanes work great here but they cannot be everywhere cars refuse to go slower... get real. They just bumped up the speed limit all across the US a few years ago besides, in a bike lane, with no cars... accidents can still happen.

"So why bother?" - Come on, Stacey! It adds a lot to a city's life quality to have nice sidewalks and bike lanes. They even start to dig that concept over here (and don't tell me our cities over here weren't packed to the brim, jammed, stuffed, full...).

Sometimes Alexander it's not just about a good idea... you've got to find people who'll put it on their agenda, pay for it, build it etcetera... I never even implied that sidewalks and bike lanes didn't add quite a bit to a city... never even thought it one can only be so idealistic though before co-existing with reality starts to take its toll.

Just tell me I'm naive, I've heard worse. ;=} Yes, what you say is why this topic is here. There is a car fetish. It's not about moving or traffic or commuting. It's metal, and gasoline, and nice paint jobs, etc. How far off am I?

In my circle of family/friends, a car = basic transportation. Which is essential because there's no real public transportation over here.

If you're talking about most American males, Alexander, you're spot on...

As to the females of the species, a car changes meaning several times. For a young woman, a nice car doesn't really mean a thing. It's just there. It's her boyfriend's car. Why should she care? For a mother, a car is pure means to do shopping, get the kids around, etc. Typical is the station wagon. When her kids turn driving age, a car takes the role of the tv for the kiddies - mom and dad turn it on to pacify them. So, they buy a cheap crate for the kids to get them out of the house for a while. Play that horrible music somewhere else. Whatever. (Disclaimer: Above unfounded prejudiced statements). For guys, it's nearly always proof for economical prowess or cool. Even moving some rusty affair nearly falling apart can be considered a statement, perhaps of being so cool, you're way to cool to drive a cool car, because THAT would be obvious. (Dis-Disclaimer: Above scientifically proven facts).

I agree with your sentiments, but in most of the households I know, the woman calls the shots about what kind of cars they will purchase. Sure, my husband would love a Porsche 911, but it ain't gonna happen.

Yes, I heard about those shots and American women. Is that what they call domestic violence? Armed to the teeth: http://www.spring.net/yapp-bin/restricted/read/cultures/22.12 So, would you arm yourself to to keep your man away from that vehicle? Who would you shoot first?

I don't need anything so blatant as a weapon to prevent him from purchasing such a vehicle! I can put the kybosh on that plan with one icy stare.

which of course is your weapon of choice...

(A cal.44 or .38 icy stare? Pretty nasty! Gotta be more careful in the future...)

I have a different perspective on cars. Have never driven one, I am not fond of cars or the maniacs who aim at me when on foot, bicycle or anything else not enclosed entirely in steel. I adore cities with trees and bike lanes and grassy places where people can be people. I have spent 4 months in Southern California where perfectly agreeable people turn into profane zealots when the ignition key is turned. It is a terrifying experience being the front passenger on a freeway going at least 75 mph (120.7 Km) and changing lanes without checking. If I were king, everyone would have a car which had a governor on it, would hook up to a system which would drive it, and remove the personality from the entire process.

I nominate Marcia for King!

Thank you, Autumn. It is nice to know someone else is out here crying in the wilderness.

Waaaaaaahhhhh!!!

Marcia, deducting from what I know about you and from the devote behavior of my good buddy Mr Roland, I understand why you don't drive. Admit: You never had to. Enough young gentlemen swooning at your feet, begging to be allowed to drive your groceries home. Or other places. ("Have never driven one" - does that mean "Never owned one", "Never regular used one" or "never moved one, don't even have driver's license"? Does your household have a car or not?)

I think Marcia surfs to the grocery store. :-)

Fair 'nuff! Talking about swooning and the like, my Autumn! I didn't know...

Alexander, those are fair questions and I shall answer them truthfully. I have driven a car once. Had a learners' permit in New York. I was still in college and it fell to my Father to take me out for a drive. I came so close to hitting things on that narrow winding street that he headed for the Bourbon as soon as we got home. He decided my husband would teach me(I was far from married at that point.) Next came my brilliant academic husband whose attitude was...if you scratch yourself, you will heal ..a car won't. 25 Years of this and we were divorced. I have never liked driving - I am frankly afraid of the crazies with whom I share the road. The current SO (not married to him)has so many vehicles and junk around here I cannot stand it...but that is another story. He tried very hard to teach me and decided my reflexes were bad. I have learned the fine art of "waiting til it is convenient" for my shopping, which usually translates into something like when my SO-driver has nothing better to do.

Huh. Sorry. Here, you get the license after serious training by specialized driving teachers, which will cost a couple thousands (approx. USD 2.000 to 2.500, depending on how much driving you need to do). Only when the trainer thinks you have a chance, they let you go through the test (a state-appointed examiner does that). These cars are equipped with pedals for the trainers, so they can break, too.

Ah-so. Correct. And of course they can brake, too.

I just might have learned to drive in Germany. I am delighted to know that such a worth-while system exists - you must have very good drivers there. Congratulations,

And very VERY expensive to learn! Another hurdle/benefit: You must be 18 years of age.

Research came up w/ the finding that Germany's worst drivers have Frankfurt-numberplates, are male and drive BMW's. (Hope Riette never reads this! Guess I already score high on her scala, and another two downsides of three... Sheesh!)

Over here the worst drivers are Young males, and our insurance rates reflect that. (Riette is a most tolerant lady. You are safe)

Cars are heavy machinery people can get killed with (Truism Alert!), and - without wanting to transgress and commenting on stuff perhaps none of my business, perhaps yes - I think it strange that US-driving age starts with 16 (I see the historical reasons for it and the need in the areas without public transport - which is not as widely spread, I guess, as in Europe, because it's all private sector business, right?). It is strange for a European to see kids can have a car, but not even a beer or vote or have their own credit card. Driving has perhaps more to do with responsibility and maturity than one might think. I cannot imagine a boss in e.g. a construction company letting 16 year old move heavy machinery, like bulldozers, trucks, wrecking balls or cranes. Wouldn't they prefer older employees to do that?

they couldn't have those jobs...or operate electric knives, etcetera, until they are 18...

but we (this country) lost a 10-year-old to a one car accident. He was driving it on his parents land... too fast... rolled it... killed. In the more rural areas of this country, some kids drive even earlier. I believe you are eligible for a 'hardship' license at the age of 14 in Texas

they're in the process of changing that, I think...

I believe in the Dakotas there is no minimum driving age. These kids grow up on tractors and cars are a breeze by the time they're teens. Let's face it, traffic probably isn't an issue either. When i learned to drive it was still a high school course. The driver's ed. teacher did have a brake on her side of the car, as I recall.

Nothing changes. Has the Texas law been amended to keep the 14-yr-olds off the roads? Ours are so congested that something must be done. They (the gov't, of course) are in the process of making all curbs and roads bike and wheelchair friendly. Ramps are built where once was curb. Can you imagine the horror of sharing the blacktop with a wheelchair-borne driver when bikes are such a problem? And, we seem to have an inordinate number of jacked-up trucks and souped-up SUV's (ours is one, but we are careful - way too careful...) It does not bode well.

We're growing in to a more bicycle friendly and commuter rail town.

Excellent news. You can afford to do that. Honolulu is battling a truly hugs traffic problem on a finite piece of land. They have already filled in a reef and lagoon to build another runway. It has to end somewhere.

It's not all roses, we have some the country's worst traffic on our major highways, esp. IH35 which runs North and South. Capital Metro has been run by clowns. At the same time, the hike and bike trails are excellent and there are new bike routes all the time. Stacey's done a lot of bicycing in Austin.

I have read that she has... I 35 is that straight shot south from Dallas-Fort Worth, if I remember my map correctly. I imagine it is a major corridor. Geez, is there a place on earth in which the transport and highway system is not run by clowns? They ARE politicians, after all. Scary! Ours are no better - perhaps, a lot worse! Try CalTans for the truly strange. They build the freeways in California and it is a continuous job. I'd love to own the concrete contract...

pretty lucrative, that contract. They're building a doomed to failure bypass road around East Austin that's going right by Bob and karen's house. It's caused quite an uproar. 130 I think they're calling it. No exits, just a straight shot bypassing the town, of no use to the locals.

The cretins did that to whole bunches of Oahu neighborhoods, and to live in one of them is incredible. My son rented a room near a bypass when he was in college. I visited him, and my memory of the place was of dark shadows and an eternally whooshing sound caused by tires on hot pavement, broken by the heart-stopping sound of an emergency vehicle with sirens blaring right overhead. Bob and Karen are right to be upset. Think of what this is doing to their property value!

In Hawaii, at least, concrete contracts are owned by powerful and shady people with connections to people you and I never want to know.

Not sure whether this beongs under Violence or Cars in culture: Bichon Frise Dog Falls Victim to 'Road Rage' SAN JOSE, Calif. (Reuters) - In what police call a bizarre incident of road rage, an infuriated driver grabbed a lap dog from another car and hurled it into oncoming traffic, killing the beloved family pet. Sara McBurnett, owner of the 10-year-old Bichon Frise dog named ``Leo'', said the attack occurred after a minor fender bender in heavy traffic near the San Jose, Calif., airport. ``I just tapped his bumper,'' McBurnett told Thursday's San Jose Mercury News. The driver of the other car, a black sport utility vehicle with Virginia license plates, stormed back and began berating McBurnett. When she opened her window to respond, he reached in, grabbed the small white dog by the collar, and threw it into three lanes of oncoming traffic. ``I'm not doing well,'' a sobbing McBurnett told the newspaper, relating the Feb. 11 incident. ``I keep seeing his little body going under the car. He made a sound I've never heard before. My heart is broken. He was my baby.'' Police said they were pursuing the incident as a case of animal cruelty, and a $5,000 reward has been offered for tips leading to arrest of the suspect, described as a white man in his 20s with a slight build and a goatee. But without license plate numbers or any other identifying information, police said they needed a lucky break. ``I have to be honest. We don't have a lot to go on here,'' San Jose Police Sgt Derek Edwards said.