vxbush 6/20/2024 9:43:35 AM

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Occasional Reader 6/20/2024 10:04:29 AM

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Reply to vxbush in 1:

Sorry to hear it and I hope you’re feeling better soon.

So my modest contribution to get the posting started; greetings from Manhattan. One element of the local culture here that I’ve never understood, even when I lived here, is why pedestrians insist on standing almost halfway into the street while waiting for the light to change so; and then Jay walk out in front of moving cars as often as not. This behavior is even more idiotic now than it used to be given the proliferation of food delivery people zipping around on electric bikes, who pay little to no attention to things like traffic signals.

Occasional Reader 6/20/2024 10:16:10 AM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 2:

As in, just moments ago when I saw a guy nearly jaywalk out in front of a large, moving truck. If he hadn’t checked himself at the very less moment, it would’ve been the end of him.

Ridiculous.

JCM 6/20/2024 10:35:26 AM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 3:

Was he wearing noise cancelling headphones?

People in general with phones, noise canceling headphones have lost any awareness of their surroundings. Especially things like, oh, trucks...

... THAT COULD KILL THEM!

vxbush 6/20/2024 11:21:39 AM

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In #4 JCM said: Was he wearing noise cancelling headphones?

I see lots of young folks wearing those and having absolutely no clue what is going on. 

buzzsawmonkey 6/20/2024 11:40:34 AM

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Reply to JCM in 4:

Trucks, yes.   And muggers...

buzzsawmonkey 6/20/2024 11:42:40 AM

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In #2 Occasional Reader said: people zipping around on electric bikes, who pay little to no attention to things like traffic signals.

Traffic signals, hell; they pay no attention to traffic directions.  They are constantly going against the flow of traffic, in both the regular lanes and the bike lanes, and frequently ride their miserable craft on the sidewalk, which has been all but ceded to them as the "electric bike lane" by NYC non-law-enforcement.

vxbush 6/20/2024 11:48:09 AM

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In #7 buzzsawmonkey said: Traffic signals, hell; they pay no attention to traffic directions.  They are constantly going against the flow of traffic, in both the regular lanes and the bike lanes, and frequently ride their miserable craft on the sidewalk, which has been all but ceded to them as the "electric bike lane" by NYC non-law-enforcement.

A local university recently enacted rules where bike users are supposed to dismount and walk their bikes across the campus and then they can resume riding once they are off campus. Of course, despite prolific signs to point this out, I see no one actually abiding by this rule. 

Occasional Reader 6/20/2024 1:14:10 PM

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Reply to JCM in 4:

he was wearing headphones of some sort, yes. You guessed correctly.

even if those things have a “transparency” mode, people are not entirely “there“. Our accumulative situation awareness has plummeted.

Occasional Reader 6/20/2024 1:16:06 PM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 6:

And speaking of muggers: here’s why it’s not a terribly good idea to wear your $100,000 watch on the streets of New York City.

https://nypost.com/2024/06/19/us-news/armed-robbers-steal-mans-100k-watch-outside-carbone-in-nyc/

as an aside, I am irritated by the current misuse of the term “moped“. I guarantee you that what the muggers were riding were not mopeds, rather those now ubiquitous motor scooters.

buzzsawmonkey 6/20/2024 2:00:22 PM

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In #10 Occasional Reader said: I am irritated by the current misuse of the term “moped“. I guarantee you that what the muggers were riding were not mopeds, rather those now ubiquitous motor scooters.

When I was living in the UK back in the early '60s, the silly-looking collapsible bicycle with small wheels that our neighbor got was referred to by the entire neighborhood as a "moped."  I'd be interested in learning what it actually refers to.

vxbush 6/20/2024 2:18:08 PM

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In #11 buzzsawmonkey said: When I was living in the UK back in the early '60s, the silly-looking collapsible bicycle with small wheels that our neighbor got was referred to by the entire neighborhood as a "moped."  I'd be interested in learning what it actually refers to.

Wikipedia seems to want this to be called a small-wheeled bike. Not terribly useful. 

Kosh's Shadow 6/20/2024 2:37:16 PM

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Reply to vxbush in 12:

I'd expect DOT or NTHSA to have a beauraucratic definition of a moped, but didn't find one easily.

Or you could say it is a small motorbike that Moe of the Three Stooges rides.

Occasional Reader 6/20/2024 3:01:04 PM

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Kosh's Shadow 6/20/2024 4:29:43 PM

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Reply to Occasional Reader in 14:
M0'Ped sounds like a rapper name.