I am being roundly abused by a small minority of cyclists on twitter who seem to think that because they are saving the frigging world, none of their number can do any wrong. I feel that I have walked into a hornets nest. These cretins seem not to appreciate the fact that use of the word SOME in my article makes it clear than I am not attacking all cyclists merely those who display nauseating self-righteous arrogance.
It is as if I have attacked a religious cult – the way these folks lash out. They assume that I am a motorist. That is not entirely correct. They assume that I have no idea what it is like to cycle in a town. That one is 100% incorrect. And they assume that I think the road belongs to motorists. One might argue that since motorists cough up c£40 billion a year in various taxes for using cars and lorries and HMG spends well under £30 billion a year on all transport items that in fact the roads DO belong to motorists rather than cyclists who pay nothing. But I am not making that point. But to suggest that folks who cycle in the centre of the road, slowly so that they can use one hand to make a call on their mobile phone or those who cycle through red lights and across zebra crossings or those who ride so slowly around roundabouts as to inevitably delay traffic is to me a valid criticism. But you cannot criticise cyclists and so I get a hail of abuse. That is just my point: the self-righteous way that ALL cyclists are defended when my point was merely to attack a selfish minority makes my point for me. But for the zealots facts do not matter, you just cannot criticise any member of the brotherhood.