Now I might be guilty of pre-judging things here but I don’t imagine it’ll be about how bicycles users are vulnerable and statistically cause insignificant direct or consequential (via emissions whilst in use) harm to people.

It’s a cunning plot by Scottish splittists to sow discontent and provoke a civil war in England.

http://realscreen.com/2019/06/28/firecracker-scotland-sets-first-channel-5-commission/

The film will meet a variety of characters, from the cabbies of London and the residents of Surrey who no longer feel safe driving on local roads…

Have I entered an alternate universe recently where everyone is just ****ing stupid?

What is going on with the world? That’s not a rhetorical question.

Why is it acceptable for the media to generate hate towards a minority group based only on anecdotes?

“Characters” is a full-on euphemism here, isn’t it…

It comes to something when you “no longer feel safe” inside 1500kg of crumple zones, side impact bars and airbags because of someone on a bicycle. Probably the sort of people who feel “no longer safe” because a gay couple have moved in next door.

Anyway, probably best not feed the troll and all that. They’ll be looking forward to opening the postbag and reading the emails, no doubt. The more they get, the more pleased they’ll be and the more loudly they’ll say “we were just starting a conversation” (the same “conversation” that gets started a thousand times a year, inevitably by professional doglobbers).

Have I entered an alternate universe recently where everyone is just ****ing stupid?

Yes!

because of someone on a bicycle

I am tempted to watch just to see how these Surrey cyclists do manage to scare them. Do they all ride around with submachine guns and grenade launchers?

I’ve had to stop looking at Twitter (I was only on there for music stuff, then this cyclist fella asked to follow me and now I see all these stupid comments about cyclists that he retweets and it was winding me up. Example – electric vehicles should have a warning noise (so that **** wits crossing the road who don’t look know they’re coming, I presume); twonk’s response “when are cyclists going to have a warning noise?”* So yeah, morons, idiots, **** stupid. Millions of them.
So: “Have I entered an alternate universe recently where everyone is just ****ing stupid?” Nope, it’s this universe.

*please do not respond or make any suggestions on how to respond to this, Ta.

Cars in Surrey are a lot bigger than 1500 kg.

Bez where do you get that T Shirt from ?

https://www.cyclistsdefencefund.org.uk/t-shirts-raise-%C2%A31513

“no longer feel safe” inside 1500kg of crumple zones, side impact bars and airbags because of someone on a bicycle

Probably because they overtake cyclsts at stupid locations such as blind bends etc… so their safety is compromised by the tractor coming around said bend the other way.

so their safety is compromised by the tractor coming around said bend the other way.

or vice versa

unfortunately with increased tolerance comes increased intolerance.
people need a subgroup of other people to be intolerant of and rail against.
cyclists need something writing into the equality act.

Is Channel 5 still a thing? I seem to remember that they commissioned a lot of benefit pron type programmes which coincided with me switching off.

They seem to have a h***-on for middle aged gammon rants and as such are best ignored by the civilised majority.

Now you can’t pick on fatties, gays, gingers, blacks, the disabled, etc cyclists are the next easy target.

As PJM above mentions, I think poor people are still fair game.

Look it’s very straight forwards really, so called “linear TV” is dying on it’s arse. So how does a relatively minor broadcaster like 5 deal with this?

Simple, by going straight for the sort of Dog whistle, DM reader switch flicking topics under the guise of “Documentary” programming. Use the right sort of divisive language, scatter off the cuff comment from recognisable “Man in the Street” types, toss in some shaky footage from youtube, maybe a few selective quotes from that ‘cyclegaz’ fella if he’s still about, light the blue touch paper and step back…
There’s a “Doc’s for dickheads” manual somewhere I’m sure, you can do these things by the numbers for relative pennies…

It’s probably bookended in the schedule with “Sneering at poor people having their stuff Repo’d” and “Copper’s in fast cars chasing stolen Fiesta’s” then a bit of “Ross kemp meets some angry 12 year olds with machetes” because other people’s conflict and misery sells advertising slots…

Don’t worry though, nobody who’s opinion matters is actually watching this shite, it’s on channel 5…

spot on from Cookeea and MisterP – I seem to remember reading that some ITV staff referred to the Jeremy Kyle show as their ‘fighting chavs’ slot !!

Irony is that the majority of people who ride bikes in the UK aren’t poor per se, transport options for those on low incomes are primarily walking and buses

This is excellent. A group of people ranting about something they haven’t seen.
Can we get Dr Fox and Noel Edmonds involved?

“Ross kemp meets some angry 12 year olds with machetes”

I’d watch that. I can’t abide Ross Kemp.

Did someone mention channel 5

😂

Was PlanetX’s newsletter email on this meant to be meta? Was quite amused…

This is excellent. A group of people ranting about something they haven’t seen.

I’ve seen the title, even with the “?” in the title, I’m pretty sure the “documentary” will have “yes” biased agenda despite the journalistic principle .

Watch it for us then @submarined and report back how useful it is for keeping us safe on the roads.

I’ve put this on to record, it’ll no way compete with the shallowness in Love Island so that’ll take precedence.

 Cyclists: Scourge of the Streets?

With the ? It could easily be a rebuttal of the “scourge of the streets” premise. Who knows I’ve not seen it 🙄

Now you can’t pick on fatties, gays, gingers, blacks, the disabled, etc cyclists are the next easy target.

As PJM above mentions, I think poor people are still fair game.

I think you’ll find ginger people are still ridiculed openly. A poor ginger cyclist will have no chance.

Channel what?
The problem with the digital age is that it has given the brain dead bigot an environment where they can spread toxicity and untruths unchecked by the rules of journalistic integrity (when that used to be a thing) and zero accountability.
Free to air TV and media have to pander to it or die to keep audience share, social media acts as an echo chamber and the problem perpetuates…helped by the odd intervention from overseas influences on political matters.

There have always been people this stupid it’s just that you didn’t get carpet bombed by their vile nonsense before.

When someone is defending people holding up ambulances because they can’t concentrate properly and hear the siren due to their banging tunes in the car (my local FB group at the weekend) you know we are headed for a world that makes the film Idiocracy look aspirational.

^ couldn’t agree more.

I think the ? might be important in the title

From the same production company as My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding, so you know it’s going to be fair and even-handed.

http://realscreen.com/2019/06/28/firecracker-scotland-sets-first-channel-5-commission/

The best strategy with this sort of utter arse gravy is not to respond to it directly, but to take it as a call to arms. Go along to a meeting. Respond to a consultation. Badger a councillor. If you shout back at the shouty people you just get lost in the noise.

Sarah Storey won this hands down on twitter

(paraphrasing) “Thursday night on channel5 used to be used as an insult to football teams, seems that nothing has changed”

The best strategy with this sort of utter arse gravy is to not watch it.

Ignore it. It won’t make any difference to anything. Morons gonna moron.

(Your link was already posted in the very first reply)

Promotion of this sort of thing is definitely what’s needed. We can but hope.

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/bury-road-rage-jeep-cyclist-16528814

DezB, that story was exactly what came to my mind when I saw the title of this thread. When things like that are already happening, we don’t need anything else to stir up further trouble.

The ‘company director’ in question lives a stones throw from my house and I ride the route where it happened fairly frequently. I was appalled when I heard what had happened, generally drivers in the area are pretty good, maybe because there are quite a number of cyclists around, particularly as Ironman UK is now routed round the area.

Matt

The ‘company director’ in question lives a stones throw from my house

Don’t know how I’d deal with that.. especially if it had been my kid.
Luckily it’s just something I saw on Twitter – part of a feed that I will no longer read cos it just winds me up!

“the residents of Surrey who no longer feel safe driving on local roads”

Is this part of the Ride London / 100 hate campaign? There’s a lot of anger in Surrey about that. To be fair there are a shit load of roadies out there between April and August practising for the thing (and beyond to get in training for the following year). Though hardly feel in danger driving between the pelotons and I’m not in such a rush that it’s that much hassle to sit back until I can overtake safely. It can easily be a tractor or similar instead of a bunch of bikes.

Still though, we get nice shiny roads on the route (they’ve just been out doing them again). The only decent roads in Surrey that aren’t riddled with pot-holes are the ones for a big bike event and people want to kill off the event.

Have I entered an alternate universe recently where everyone is just ****ing stupid?

We’ve been in this universe since Trump was elected and the Brexit vote, at least.

Probably be a hash up of naughty cyclists filmed by overweight white men and women, who last rode a bike aged 5, then decided to become champion pie eaters, unable to walk anywhere and need to drive even short distances, usually in a taxi, or german branded vehicle.

But its tv the masses watch and keeps facebook and various forums alive while feeding the advertisers in the ad d breaks.

The Guardian preview doesnt hold out much hope of it being a carefully considered look at cycling.

only 1 hour plus till its on.

The Motor industry has huge numbers of lobbyists camped out in Westminster and also spends huge amounts of money with the media so we are never going to get a transport policy that recognises the benefits of cycling and the car is king as far as the media is concerned, anyway doesn’t the 5 in Channel 5 represent the viewing figures?