Hansen: Bicyclist-motorist war is silly
Say what you will about unpredictable, self-absorbed bicycle riders. At least they aren't text messaging as they dart in front of you.
And when it comes to accidents with cars, trucks, SUVs and other armored vehicles, cyclists are almost always the big losers.
So what's the problem, motorists? You have something against colorfully attired, physically fit friends of the environment?
Yes, cyclists can be arrogant and superior and careless. Too many zip through stop signs and stray too close to the center line and think they own the road.
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But get used to them. In 20 years, everyone will be wearing stretchy, tight-fitting outfits and football-shaped headgear (or the 2029 equivalent) and sharing the street with smart cars not much bigger than the bikes they're trying to avoid.
OK, time out. I'd like to keep fanning the car-vs.-bike flames and banging the war drums. It's fun and easy.
Too easy, in fact. This long-running cyclist-motorist feud has gone too far and grown too ugly for no good reason. It must stop.
You'd think everyone was screaming about a public health care option or gays in committed relationships becoming Lutheran pastors. This isn't the end of the world like that.
But groups of people don't just have honest disagreements anymore. Their similarities must be minimized and their differences overemphasized and exaggerated until extremists on both sides drown everyone else out.
So why should something as innocent as bicycle safety be any different from a raucous town hall meeting?
Neither cars nor bicycles are going away. It doesn't have to be like this.