His whole persona and behaviour are very childish…
The good thing is though, that despite his anti-cycling stance, he and others like him are losing the argument, now more than ever, and they know it, hence the recent attempts at provocation.
Look at:
Growth in numbers riding – club, solo, commuting, sportifs
Growth in numbers coming to watch organised events – TdF, ToB, even the Prudential thing
Local government
Central Government
Boris
Even Jeremy Vine/Daily Mail (as odious as they are, they suss out public opinion and preach it like it was their own idea which is self-reinforcing)
It does feel like public opinion is tipping more towards cycling than away from it right now, lots more proper passing than close passing on a typical ride.
It helps that our love affair with the car is ending – driving in the UK is such a crap experience these days, and expensive. People are realising how much damage it does. The younger generation are less and less likely to want to drive and in 10/15 years time, they’ll be the the adults who form public opinion.
So in time Jeremy Clarkson and his ilk will slink quietly away and sulk/tantrum about something else… he knows he’s on the losing side and when he realises he’ll lose popularity from preaching his ‘anti’ agenda he shut up about it – he’s a smart player at the end of the day