Awful.

But might is right in Brazil. Any sociopath can get a car, do something horrendous, and by the sounds of it, get away scot free.

I wouldn’t do a Critical Mass thing, and certainly not in Brazil, the likelihood of an angry driver shooting you or doing something like this is too high. Don’t want to say that the Critical Mass things are right or wrong, or that people shouldn’t do them, but IMHO they are not conducive to whatever end they are supposed to be for.

that is terrible.
bastards like that deserve to die at the wheel of their vehicle in a horrific crass.
imho that is.

IMHO they are not conducive to whatever end they are supposed to be for.

WTF?????

How can you say that when, buy your own admission, you don’t know what the point is?

Sh1t the bed – that is absolutely sickening – very lucky that nobody was killed. Hope they send him down for a long, long time.

it wouldn’t surprise me if something similar happened over here (it already has in USA/Australia)
a car is a very effective weapon for killing people especially when you take into account you can often get away with just points, a 1 year ban and a small fine.
why use a gun when the justice system and the British obsession with the motor car make it so easy.

WTF?????

How can you say that when, buy your own admission, you don’t know what the point is?

A quick trawl of the net indicates the “point” of critical mass events is far from clear or consistent. From my perspective I would say they do have potential to rile and annoy other city dwellers rather than be conducive to harmonisation and consideration which would seem a worthwhile objective to me. I’ve never been on one mind although I have been on the street as one passed by. As an observer it did feel slightly threatening or at least divisive between cyclists and the rest of us which is weird being a cyclist myself and the thrust being one that is supportive of my way of life. I can imagine to someone who is anti everything it stands for it is not going to persuade them to change their minds, rather agitate further negativity. Obviously does not excuse that sort of reaction though! 😯

100% agree with convert.

FWIW I have always disliked groups of people taking over a road to make a point. It is mildly confrontational, annoying, and IMHO not likely to persuade anyone.

That Brazil one looked peaceful and chilled, but then there were reports of an argument with the driver moments before he went nuts and ploughed through the cyclists.

I am in no way at all condoning or excusing what he did. Attempted mass murder is a horrible thing, watching it is very upsetting and made me very angry.

totally shocking. no point speculating as to the accused’s guilt. he’s guilty as sin IMO

Update:

http://road.cc/content/news/31482-brazilian-driver-claim-self-defence-over-critical-mass-carnage-says-lawyer

Self defense? ARE YOU F****** KIDDING ME??!

I wouldn’t do a Critical Mass thing, and certainly not in Brazil, the likelihood of an angry driver shooting you or doing something like this is too high.

While I understand where you are coming from, it really is an amazing thing for some Brazilian’s to be taking action. Yes it is a violent country, but also corruption is still extremely rife. The reason why the country has hardly any trains, is that the car companies lobbied so much that the Governments of the time did not make any investments in rail infrastructure. When driving, the number of lorries on the roads are just a mare, whereas in the UK much freight is by train.

Also, I read that update article, and the guy is an official of the central bank. If he is well connected, then don’t be surprised for his defence of “self defence” to be accepted.

The news is very open about reporting corruption. Last week a 21 year old government official drove his car into a lamp post. He refused a breath test, and the police took him to the police station where he was then released without charge. Anyone else would be prosecuted.

I am involved in work relating to sustainability here, and there are many beautiful projects happening. Obviously I wasn’t at the critical mass, but yeah, these guys really do run the risk of violence against them, although maybe the risk is not always as high as you may think it could be in Brazil. I’ve met many brilliant people over here doing excellent projects.

I reckon if he does get off with “self defence” then he’d better start learning how to do some when he’s not behind the wheel of a car. If there is no official justice…

simonralli2 – interesting info, I know that corruption in a lot of Latin American countries is deep, but the point about trains and car companies I didn’t know about. It is the same in Mexico, cars are a nightmare. I respect that people have the right to protest, and it is good in a way, but I’m not sure how effective it is when you are up against ingrained corruption.

I’d love to go to Brazil though, just some of the stories make it seem it may be a bit dodgy in places!

aracer – I bet he does get off. I also think it unlikely that any of the cyclists will do him in.

Yeah – I can assure you the Brazilian people I meet are just amazing, especially their hospitality and openness to foreigners. But the violence is still horrendous, and Brazilian people still live with the threat of violence and crime daily. You walk around and all houses are more like prisons, with electric fencing and guards at the doors.

But yes, there are fantastic places too and I was checking out an area for biking this weekend. Brazil is just insanely big, and there is plenty of uncharted territory for biking. The only downside is that I was told you need to bike in groups, as there is a big possibility that you will get mugged and have your bike taken. Taxes here mean that consumer goods are twice as expensive, so an £800 hardtail in the Uk would cost £1500 in Brazil. Given the poverty, it is not surprising that this is a danger in the countryside.

The other thing to take into account is that many Brazilians still are psychologically scarred from years of military dictatorship. I have friends in their mid to late 40s who had friends taken from school and university, never to return. It is therefore still quite a big thing to demonstrate (as opposed to say us taking part in an anti war demo or anti tax avoidance demo), as some people will worry about what it means for their reputations and repercussions, especially as much business is done based on personal relationships, maybe more so than we are used to in the West.

Terrible huh, but as I said, I am doing volunteer work in the area of sustainability, and there some brilliant things happening too which yo don’t really see on tv or in the news.

sounds oppressed as hell

I am not too sure oppressed is the right word, but Brazil really is a country of paradoxes for Westerners, as I am finding. However, many undesirable people from the military regime are still actually in power, in parliament or in government, one way or another.

One other thing about city bike riding is that the speed limit is 60 kph, and although that does not sound too fast, when I am in a taxi I can get really stressed, as junctions often do not have a right of way and at that speed there just does not seem to be any margin for errors at all. You dont see too many cyclists, really often because of the heat (it’s been 35 here in the day time), but there are many many motorbike accidents, although some of the riding leaves a lot to be desired in terms of weaving in and out of traffic.

What Brazil needs, especially somewhere like Sao Paulo, is better public transportation to begin with, but that is a long way off. They are really struggling to cope with rain right now, and flooding seems to be occurring ever other week.

OMG – I feel sick!

The worldwide media have reported this, after a period yesterday where I wondered if it would be ignored.

Even the Daily Wail has an article, with words and everything.

The Guardian have blogged this today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/bike-blog/2011/mar/01/diver-brazilian-critical-mass-ride

There will be another protest ride tonight, maybe to ensure that justice is done to the driver?

Dunno how that bloke in the orange saw him coming!

As much as I dislike CM, for reasons puts very well above, that driver has such a disrespect for human life to absolutely beggar belief. One good thing is that this has more or less gone viral, I would hope it is impossible for the Brazilian judiciary to brush this under the carpet.

OMG. Suddenly, I’m in favour of capital punishment.

Well as a qualified Lawyer i can say that the correct term for his claim of Self Defence is Utter Bollocks. I saw this yesterday and assumed every one had the wrong end of the stick and this was a tragic accident resulting from a brake or accelerator defect. Now by coming out with this story he hopefully has convinced the world beyond doubt that he is a culpable sociopath and belongs either in a secure hospital or prison.

Dunno how that bloke in the orange saw him coming!

I’m assuming he heard it.

Well as a qualified Lawyer i can say that the correct term for his claim of Self Defence is Utter Bollocks.

The trouble is, it seems quite a lot of judgements in Brazil are Utter Bollocks.

About 10 years ago I was on a critical mass in london. It was in the days when there was no police escort. Towards the end of the ride it was thinning out a bit. We crossed a bridge and turned onto a road. A 4×4 just drove past with a bike and rider under the front of the car. The rider managed to escape from under the car. The driver jumped out holding a steering lock in his hand. No-one knew what he would do next. He threatened us and then got back in the car and drove off. Soon after a police car came flying past. I think he got caught but no idea what his punishment was.

Here is an update on the situation

http://tinyurl.com/4gjk8ju

This link is to a newspaper article which I put through Babel fish. The driver now seems to be jailed, i.e. is awaiting some form of trial.

Also, this article has a 10 minute video of the incident and event too.

the guy has been caught, he has made Brazil look bad all over the world, im sure the police would have given him the kick in of a life time!

I am at work now so don’t have time to post, but this story continues to be covered in the newspapers quite well. I was reading about the update again in today’s newspaper. I have not seen anything more on tv, but at least the newspapers are continuing with it.

Mr smith – “why use a gun when the justice system and the British obsession with the motor car make it so easy”

Absolutely.