Op-Ed: “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”


from Streetsblog.net by WalkBikeJersey

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

This July 4th, we as a nation will celibate these words that shook humanity, and are the foundation of our fledgling Nation and its Declaration of Independence 235 years ago.  Nothing is more American than Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.  I believe that these “inalienable Rights” that we are all “endowed by our Creator” cannot note be infringed upon no matter what the peaceful endeavor one so chooses.

However as someone who regularly walks and rides a bike, I cannot help but wonder if these rights, that form the foundation of our uniquely American form of freedom, does not apply to me when I travel using these modes.  As a free American, I hereby declare that I demand my rights of “Life Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” no matter what legal form of travel I so choose.

Life – I demand the right to walk or ride my bicycle on the public right-of-way without the constant fear that my life is in imminent danger due to:

  • roadway engineering that continues to ignore the practical needs of bicyclists and pedestrians.
  • the poor driving skills of the operators of motor vehicles and the government agencies that continue to allow these incompetent persons to legally operate said motor vehicles with impunity.

http://streetsblog.net/2011/07/05/op-ed-life-liberty-and-the-pursuit-of-happiness/

by B' Spokes

Like most people I live a hectic life and who has the time for much exercise? Thanks to xtracycle now I do. By using my bike for daily activities I can get things done and get an hour plus work out in 15 minutes extra of my time, not a bad deal and beats taking the extra time going to the gym. In case you are still having trouble being motivated; the National Center of Disease Control says that inactivity is the #2 killer in the United States just behind smoking. ( http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/bb_nutrition/ ) Get out there and start living life! I can carry home a full shopping cart of groceries, car pool two kids or just get lost in the great outdoors camping for a week. Well I got go, another outing this weekend.
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