View Full Version : MAG,s day of action.
goz1960
10-05-12, 10:40 AM
Sorry if it's already on here. Just pinched it from another site...
MAG's National Committee has voted for another day of action to remind those MEPs who aren't bothering to engage, that Riders Are Voters and that politicians are elected to represent our will, and should not impose theirs upon us.
- There is no evidence to support plans to curtail modifications
- We want to retain the right to modify our bikes
- We want the right to choose ABS
- And while not part of this Type Approval Regulation, the EU Parliament has written to the EU Commission to ask that they propose 'warning jackets' for all.
- Again there is no definitive evidence for compulsory Hi-viz clothing, but there is plenty of evidence that teaching other road users to look can reduce casualties.
- We want the right to choose what we wear, hi-viz or not.
Our day of action will be June 24th 2012 and I hope you'll join one of our rides. This time there will be 12 massive demos, one in each of the 12 EU Parliamentary constituencies.
Start time will be 13.00hours, just like September 25th was last year.
The actual start points are being finalised and we'll let you know as soon as they are, but the sheer size of the expected turnout means that we are in the process of securing suitable sites and are in discussion with Highways Authorities and Police forces.
Anyone know what is happening locally???????
I'll be there standing up for my rights and those of my fellow bikers again.
No excuses people we need to stand strong
Definitely up for it. If it was introducing cures for genuine concerns by experienced bikers then fair enough, but legislation by politicians who haven't the first clue about riding a bike?? I don't think so!
goz1960
10-05-12, 10:38 PM
This is only next month cant find any other information anywhere anyone else have any info on local starting point?.
i agree with what they stand for but i got caught up in this on the motorway last time and just couldn't help thinking what arses they were for not letting anyone past for over 40 mins
Don't let that put you off standing up for your rights
Crosbie
11-05-12, 11:57 AM
i agree with what they stand for but i got caught up in this on the motorway last time and just couldn't help thinking what arses they were for not letting anyone past for over 40 mins
Firstly if we let everyone pass there would have been no point in doing it as the majority of cars would have driven past without a second thought or glance.
Secondly, i think in the majority of cases the police were at the front of the demo (they certainly were on the M4 ride to Bristol) to keep a constant 40 rolling road block so even if we were all in the inside lane the cars couldnt have gone anywhere.
I for one will be doing it again! :)
I was in the M4 ride as well and MOST bikes were in the first 2 lanes. Crosbie is right. It was the traffic cars at the front that had the road "rolling" blocked. There was a police car in the 3rd lane stopping everyone passing. I was quite near the front and could plainly see that the Police were stopping the cars that had built up in the 3rd lane, getting any further. There were some pretty pissed off motorists in that 3rd lane as well. No doubt if i had been stuck there, i would be pretty narked as well. BUT, there had been plenty of warnings leading up to the event. I will do it again next time. and the time after, and the time after and the time after. TBH i am pretty pissed off at having to bend over and take it all the time. If you believe in something, stand up and say so.
The trouble is in this country there is too much apathy. That's why we are paying stupid prices for fuel. >:(
i was on the M1 and M5 and was caught up twice, i know it's prewarned and am not against it but maybe it should be a couple of junctions on the motorway and not for miles, when we did pass them pulled on the slip road i didn't see any plod (not to say they weren't there somewhere)
nothing wrong with standing up for your beliefs Nelly and i'll never stand in the way of someone doing so
Causing a nuisance is precisely the point of making a protest otherwise it'd slip by completely unnoticed - look at the French for example with their blockades of Channel Ferry Ports and Autoroutes and so on every time something upsets them. If the FFMC (their equivalent of MAG) get pissed off about something they'll bring city centres to a complete standstill to convey their message.
If action affects nobody, then nobody will notice it and the message won't get heard, and nothing will ever be done about it...
It's up to us folks, if we ever want to change tyres, brake pads, brake lines, chain & sprockets, air filters, exhausts and the like for anything of our choice rather than original equipment, it's time to take a stance on it rather than be terribly British, do nothing and then whine about the lack of choice afterwards...
so how about doing just that like the French and all converge on the city centres and bring them to standstill?
just to be clear i am NOT saying any protest should not be done and may even consider taking part if work permits.
The problem I have with these protests is that my perception is that a lot of proposals people are protesting about aren't actually being proposed in the first place. People get all emotive about "personal rights" and don't bother to actually find out what they are protesting about. You then get the Chinese Whisper effect as the rumours get spread out across the country and suddenly we're complaining about things that are'nt being proposed.
I would have a lot more time to engage in a protest if I felt it was being organised as such and not as an emotional attack on our perceived historical right to do whatever we want. I believe the protests lose all of their power as soon as the opposition can prove that its not based on fact. If the biking community really wants to achieve something it needs to be clear and transparent about it, as the only way to succeed will be to win over the hearts and minds of those that are'nt bikers.
Causing a nuisance is precisely the point of making a protest otherwise it'd slip by completely unnoticed - look at the French for example with their blockades of Channel Ferry Ports and Autoroutes and so on every time something upsets them. If the FFMC (their equivalent of MAG) get pissed off about something they'll bring city centres to a complete standstill to convey their message.
If action affects nobody, then nobody will notice it and the message won't get heard, and nothing will ever be done about it...
It's up to us folks, if we ever want to change tyres, brake pads, brake lines, chain & sprockets, air filters, exhausts and the like for anything of our choice rather than original equipment, it's time to take a stance on it rather than be terribly British, do nothing and then whine about the lack of choice afterwards...
Agreed.
Take two simple examples:
450,000 people marched through London against (mainly) the Hunting with Dogs act. It was HUGE, well behaved and at the weekend as we were asked to do so by police - very little TV coverage and didn't change a single thing !
A few hundred anti pole tax protesters (the ones that caused the main problems) closed bits of central London, caused damage to buildings etc, but managed to get massive TV coverage and eventually the end of the pole tax as it was then.
If the Countryside Alliance had put 450,000 people into Central London on a weekday and said they would do it again the following week and the week after, they would have got what they wanted very quickly I'm sure.
I'm not for doing riot, but mildly inconveniencing a few people on the motorway for fifteen minutes won't change anything IMO.
G
Will save the merits of going out witha couple of good lurchers for a hare or two or a nice Goshawk & pointer for a pheasant for another thread :-)
The problem I have with these protests is that my perception is that a lot of proposals people are protesting about aren't actually being proposed in the first place. People get all emotive about "personal rights" and don't bother to actually find out what they are protesting about. You then get the Chinese Whisper effect as the rumours get spread out across the country and suddenly we're complaining about things that are'nt being proposed.
I would have a lot more time to engage in a protest if I felt it was being organised as such and not as an emotional attack on our perceived historical right to do whatever we want. I believe the protests lose all of their power as soon as the opposition can prove that its not based on fact. If the biking community really wants to achieve something it needs to be clear and transparent about it, as the only way to succeed will be to win over the hearts and minds of those that are'nt bikers.
Agreed also, especially about the "Chinese whispers". Although I think you may well be able to get things done that aren't popular with the majority if you are smart & forceful enough.
wiltsdan
11-05-12, 02:42 PM
Well I'm up for it ;D
Hav'nt heard any news about it though?
so how about doing just that like the French and all converge on the city centres and bring them to standstill?
Agreed. The problem with the MAG protest is that it didn't raise awareness. A co-ordinated ride through London would do far more.
The problem I have with these protests is that my perception is that a lot of proposals people are protesting about aren't actually being proposed in the first place. People get all emotive about "personal rights" and don't bother to actually find out what they are protesting about. You then get the Chinese Whisper effect as the rumours get spread out across the country and suddenly we're complaining about things that are'nt being proposed.
I would have a lot more time to engage in a protest if I felt it was being organised as such and not as an emotional attack on our perceived historical right to do whatever we want. I believe the protests lose all of their power as soon as the opposition can prove that its not based on fact. If the biking community really wants to achieve something it needs to be clear and transparent about it, as the only way to succeed will be to win over the hearts and minds of those that are'nt bikers.
+1. Could not agree more. There needs to be clarity and facts surrounding this and not opinion.
i for one would support a (peaceful) protest if it was aimed in the right direction, couple of thousand bikes parked in the centres by the right depts would certainly do more for awareness then out the way on the motorway would it not?
goz1960
11-05-12, 06:37 PM
Me too im well up for it, who knows what next lets not get walked all over.
redken1
11-05-12, 08:39 PM
"A few hundred anti pole tax protesters (the ones that caused the main problems) closed bits of central London, caused damage to buildings etc, but managed to get massive TV coverage and eventually the end of the pole tax as it was then."
Gerry, with respect, it wasn’t quite like you described.
Nearly 250,000 people marched on London that day in 1990 and millions more in cities across the UK.
I resided in Scotland at the start of the 89/ 90 financial year when the Tories used the Scots as guinea pigs, introducing the poll tax a year before England and Wales. In electoral terms, they are still paying the political price north of the border for that decision, to this day.
I actively joined the anti-poll tax movement in June 89, by which time the campaign was building momentum.
Local groups opposed to the tax, calling themselves Anti-Poll-Tax Unions (APTUs), were formed throughout 1989, and there were an estimated one thousand in Britain by the end of the year. In opposing the poll tax The APTUs adopted a variety of tactics, including encouraging non-payment, organizing protest marches, and resisting bailiffs.
Community networks were set up to look out for and resist bailiffs, and the operation was such a success that debt collecting firms in some areas went out of business. Edinburgh saw APTUs patrolling areas with cars and radios to watch for bailiffs, and in London cab drivers carried out the same role. Baliffs offices were occupied, and in Scotland hundreds of people, myself included, successfully defended houses against the forced entry and removal of goods by sheriff officers.
The ever increasing numbers of protesters were starting to play ‘hard ball’ and by August of 1990 one in five had yet to pay, with figures reaching up to 27% of people in London. 20 million people were summoned for non-payment. Many local authorities were faced with a crisis, and councils faced a deficit of £1.7 billion for the next year.
The dogged determination of millions of ordinary people continued in to the autumn culminating in a government u-turn and the resignation of the Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in November of 1990, [smiley=thumbsup.gif]
I know this post is long winded (campaigns usually are), but my point is that if you believe in something strongly enough, sometimes you have to be prepared to remove the boxing gloves and fight the opposition toe-to-toe.
:)
OK, so I gave my post a little "spin" Ken ;)
I agree, a few bolchy Scots may have been involved as well ;D
But your last sentence says it all and I'm pleased to agree with you [smiley=thumbup.gif]
Come the revolution....
redken1
11-05-12, 09:53 PM
Had to start my spiel somewhere Gerry ;)
Plan tactics on Sunday over an icecream ;) ;D 8-)
Last Train
11-05-12, 10:05 PM
Ice cream !
Did somebody mention ice cream !
:D
I'm up for it!...and if there is ice cream, even better.
Demo, demo, demo = go slow! :D
**** Date has been anounced ****
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?msid=209892293638329074775.0004beba54a2e16d768c 1&msa=0
24th June 2012
Sounds good to me 8-)
Geordie Stu
16-05-12, 09:40 AM
The Southwest ride is Taunton to Plymouth Southbound or Northbound from Taunton Start Point TBC to Bristol Gordano services.
the end of the pole tax as it was then."
phew!!! that was lucky cos wouldn't wanna be paying tax on my pole :D
ehhh oh well yeah if I can get along I'll be where it's at :)
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