Harry and the Giant Zucchini of Doom!

Harry BarryCat and the Giant Zucchini of Doom!

Our delightful Melbourne weather has been a bit 'Darwin' of late. We're planning on slicing this GZoD! in two via a bowsaw, constructing a sturdy outrigger and paddling down Merri Creeks fearsome rapids. Now onto sustainable transporty type stuff.

Flashback to an earlier more innocent time. The time was the late 80's and the radio station I was listening to was still playing records, not carts. The needle skipped and unintended hilarity ensued. With apologies to the late great Robert Palmer, but this old memory rose to the surface when I read the following. Funny that.

.. Might as well face it, you're addic.. Might as well face it, you're addic .. Might as well face it, you're addic .. Might as well face it, you're addic .. Might as well face it, you're addic ..

US 'addicted to oil'
US prize fuckwit President George W Bush will say "America is addicted to oil" and must develop technologies to address soaring petrol prices in a State of the Union speech today that argues against a US retreat from Iraq and the war on terrorism.

In jolly Melboring: Plan to axe cars from city centre
Cars will be driven out of the city in favour of public transport and bicycles under a radical new council strategy that abandons plans for a multibillion-dollar cross-city tunnel and suggests slashing speed limits in the CBD. Under Melbourne City Council's draft strategy, commuters would be "weaned" off cars.

Article is currently depicted online with a Saab ad, with a bicycle + roof rack. Oh again, the unintended humour... seriously though, to "ween" commuters off cars, combining this council strategy with tax breaks, ie: rebates & salary sacrifices might prove more successful. Despite being a *Inner Northern Suburbs Cultural Imperialist* (INSCI) I dislike people being forced into changing situations without resources being readily avaliable (fate/peak oil precluded here!) I can walk out the front gate & within 1 minute be at a tram or bus stop. 5 minutes I'm at a train station. 20 minutes on the bike and hey presto, I'm in the CBD. Not everyone has that opportunity - and denying people the scope to adapt easily can create resentment. And possible failure of a very well intended scheme to get cagers out of their boxes.

:: The Age Your Say :: aus.bicycle discussion thread :: Further evidence that planners tend to forget that peoples legs aren't painted on: Transport planners out of step on walking* :: Melbourne Walk 21 Conference 2006 ::

This weekend we're off to the Austral Wheel Race. BYO: one swivel bar stool to be strategically placed next to infield bar. Hang on, didn't somewhat similar dodgy thinking get me into trouble two months ago?

*Look, there's that bloody Saab again!