Critical Mass Carnage (GRAPHIC VIDEOS) 132

Someone did what they always wanted to, forgetting for a moment that they couldn’t get away with it. Just like Michael Bryant in Toronto… except he did get away with it. Some psychologists estimate that 5% of people are pure sociopaths. Frightening. As a teacher I would not say so many children are, but their parents? For certain.

First person perspective of the incident, in HD: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XL3g4vPK30&t=0m45s

Condolences to the injured, I hope the driver goes to jail for life !!

Much love from Vancouver bc canada

Anonymous, you have got to be kidding me. Place the primary blame on the cyclists? What kind of moron are you? So because these people were holding up traffic and being a nuisance they deserved to be run over and the driver holds no fault? That’s called attempted murder, and the last time I checked, is not excused when the victim(s) are causing a delay in traffic. The only behavior that deserves to be punished is your ignorance.

If your desire is to disrupt someones life by causing a huge traffic jam. Don’t be surprised when someone disrupts your life by running you over.

well since I know I’m not the sleaziest person in the world (that goes to driver of the VW Golf!)… I have to say, I was most concerned with the cute blonde seen before this heinous act occurred: http://i.imgur.com/CxErk.png

PHEW!!! She’s safe! http://i.imgur.com/cK3wk.png

Bullshit drivers, exist everywhere…unluckily…!
He could be very upset and nervous and stressed by the situation, but he could have found a way of making the bikes move, passing slowly without running over.
This is the kind of animal, who live a fuckin, stressed life.

Do not feed the trolls…….

The next time someone is walking too slow in front of me, I’ll just beat them over the head with a crowbar.

Oh wait, that doesn’t make any sense either.

F-ing trolls.

I hope everyone makes it out okay, and I hope this driver is prosecuted to the furthest extent of the law.

im indifferent to the cause. however, do CM riders not agree that a ‘hidden’ agenda lies amongst the ranks whos goal is just to ‘troll’ traffic? you call us trolls for pointing this out but in reality– can you honestly say you arent trolling automobile traffic?

aw i think it’s cute when people run over bicyclists .. <3

According to some the equation goes like this:

Traffic laws > Moral laws

This is exactly the type of psychotic thinking that leads somebody to try and kill people en mass. I am just glad this lunatic did not succeed, fuck him and those rushing to his defense. I hope they hang that cowardly dog lover up by the curlies.

May God help you if you deliberately try to kill another person because they ran a red light or put forward into this world such a cruel idea.

Talk about messed up! However, honestly? I lived in San Francisco for many years, and nothing brought my blood to a boil more than Critical Mass jerks, and their mob-mentality on-road bullying and traffic rioting. Then they turn around and blabber on about how bicycles “share the road” with cars? What a joke. While the stated intention of the rides is in theory a good thing, they have no right to bring normal traffic to a standstill, selfishly inconveniencing everyone and halting the normal operations and flow of the road. Yes, this incident is tragic, but honestly? Sick as it may be, it kind of makes me feel good inside to see it, based on my many, numerous personal experiences dealing with Critical Mass jerks. Yes, get people on their bikes to raise awareness (I’m all for increased bike riding), but be a jerk in the process and sympathy is in no way yours to have.

stupid cyclist and even more stupid driver. funny how ppl try to compare those cyclist with a kid riding a bike to school.

Yep I argee with one of the anonymous. Don’t feed the trolls. Cause shit like this can happen. Sorry to say.

You have his name. Find him and make him pay.

I’m the same Anon who posted the initial “intent of harrassing and impeding” comment. I’m not trolling, I’m just telling you how the vast majority of people feel about your stunts. And I’m not saying the driver’s actions were acceptable — as I wrote, fines and jail time for the bikers are the proper thing — I’m just saying that I understand.

To draw an analogy, the Westboro Baptist Church has a “right to free speech”, too. I doubt anyone would shed a tear if, after inciting a family by protesting a loved one’s funeral, someone were to throw a Molotov cocktail into one of the Westboro minivans as it was hauling the Phelps family away. In fact, were I ever to learn that I had a terminal illness, that would be on my bucket list of things to do. I’d even bring marshmallows and a long skewer.

You “Critical Mass” types aren’t Westboro by a long shot, but you aren’t winning any friends, either.

Or, let me try to put it another way — perhaps an anecdote is in order. Back in high school, I dated a chick who was a year older than I. We were sorta serious, and she was always talking about “when we get married.” She went off to college and, unbeknownst to me, became a total slut. When she came back home at Christmas, she told me tearfully that she had been drunk and in bed with some guy she’d been blowing and doing anal with (as I learned that evening, she was one of those Catholic “technical virgin” types) for several months, and he had “raped” her, so she wouldn’t be a virgin on our wedding night after all.

My reaction was apparently not what she expected.

I still ride, just not as my primary means of transportation any longer. But I ride in a polite manner, without impeding the flow of traffic, and with an eye out for dangerous drivers and nutcases. Three thousand pounds of mostly steel vs. an eight-ounce plastic-and-styrofoam helmet, hmmm.

And I have to wonder how well the ambulances were able to react to this event, given that the Critical Mass bikers were deliberately snarling traffic. Did any of them die because the ambulances were delayed in getting to the scene of the accident/assault? Maybe you folks should think about that the next time you shut down a city center — doesn’t have to be you personally, it might be YOUR grandma in an ambulance with her brain cells dying away rapidly because of a stroke as the ambulance crew tries to figure out an alternate route around you assholes to get her to the ER.

It’s up to you folks, though. If you want to rise up in self-righteous wrath and try to crush automotive society under your 700C tires, well, I can’t honestly wish you luck, but I’ll at least hope you don’t get too badly smashed up. Mostly because you’d probably stiff the ER and transfer the costs onto the rest of us.

Anyone can talk shit until theyre laying on the pavement with bones broken. Then you wouldnt think its right. Because it was done to YOU. just like it was done to them.

Disagreeing with you =! troll you stupid fucking faggot.

A troll doesn’t actually believe what he posts.

i lol at ppl who think any driver will intentionally run over cyclist that ride their bike properly. the critical mass however, is not. When u begging for it, sometime u will crosspath with the sociopath.

reality check:

it will take a generation or more to change the driving culture of latin america, and most of the developing world. i don’t think most of us are prepared to comprehend just how *few* rights bike-riders (let alone pedestrians) have on the streets of these kinds of cities. and mind you, porto alegre is pretty “civilized” for latin america, but i am sure that the regime of driving there is just as described by a commenter i read elsewhere (who is also apparently from the south of brazil): “people tend to do what ever the fuck they want on the roads.”

i was the victim of this mentality myself, in mexico city, as a pedestrian in 2001. my cousin and i were crossing a crosswalk at a red light, and we were hit by a car that barely even slowed down after mowing us down. i suffered only minor injuries, but my cousin broke numerous bones and had to undergo over 5 years of therapy just to walk straight again. the driver, obviously, got off scott free.

drivers in big latin american cities (and that includes, arguably, ALL DRIVERS there, even those who are themselves sometime pedestrians) simply do not respect or even recognize the need to respect people on the road—crosswalks and red lights be damned. it’s simply not part of the culture. worst of all, as soon as you get in a car to drive, you tend to become just like everyone else—a manic driver—because it’s the style of driving that everyone else engages in. this kind of driving culture simply doesn’t require you to change your mentality to suddenly respect pedestrians and others on the road. it’s one of those horrible contradictions of “modernity” (like how we still think driving is safer than flying, even though it’s quite the opposite, see lehrer on “the science of fear”).

so for me, the thought of undertaking a critical mass in a city where this is the rule is more than provocative: it verges on suicidal and irresponsible. this doesn’t even begin to make the blatant violence this driver exhibited any less heinous (and notice i am posting with my real name), but these kids, better than anyone, are aware of the fact that they live in a culture where cars are the undisputed kings of the road, and the only thing that “belongs” there (supposedly). this is a culture that honestly believes that if you’re in the way of a car, “it’s your fault if you’re hit.” and this notion is often upheld legally (!). so i’d say this is *not* the best place to challenge that with only your bikes and bodies to slow them down.

still, i hope they are not deterred by this tragedy. somebody’s got to challenge the madness of driving culture in these places. but maybe next time it would make sense to hire a police or other escort to block potential assholes. that is, assuming the police would even cooperate (and that’s a whole other question)…

Email do assassino ricardo.neis@bcb.com.br

For the people here who somehow think that the people on bikes in Brazil on Friday somehow deserved to be hit by that car they should take a long look at this list of interviews with Critical Mass London participants;

http://bit.ly/740QRh

Do I see punks and jerks? Do I see people ‘attacking motorists’? No. I just see people exorcising their right to assembly and protest, out having fun and taking part in the Friday night traffic jam which happens every day anyway, CM or not.

Some people ought to be ashamed.

The question is right of way. Motor vehicles by their nature, take *all* the space. They prevent the emergence or mass adoption of better ways of movement. In short, the cars and trucks BLOCK our rights of way just as totally as the private property on both sides of the road. Here is my commentary on CARS: http://rosehill.net/cars.htm

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I can see something positive about all this.

Road rage is specially prevalent in places with traffic chaos.

Porto Alegre has surpassed its critical point of traffic chaos. The number of cars has grown too much.

the BR116 road that connects the 1.4 million people city to its 3 million people metropolitan area its an eternal traffic jam. Inside Porto Alegre itself the conditions are NOT better, even though the city is full of buses.

The fact most streets are narrow does not help at all.

The Porto Alegre Subway should had been built at least 20 years ago (if not before). The city still has no subway, although it has a single metro line connecting the city center to the metropolitan area.

Maybe the Federal Government, having this brand new proof (among many others) that Porto Alegre transit is HELL ON EARTH, will finally build the 2nd line, inside Porto Alegre, and help alleviate the problem.

“1) This is Brasil…not the US, Canada, or anywhere in Europe. Although people in those areas may piss themselves on a regular basis on the sight of cop while driving…”

Get real. I live in Canada, and I’ve seen plenty of people do spectacularly dangerous things right in front of police and not get pulled over.

The police in Canada pull over people in major traps when they need to fill up their quota for the month. Other times, you drive at your own peril.

And in Canada, I have also been harassed many a time just for shaking my head at some idiot driver who was putting my life at risk.

It seems police don’t take reckless driving seriously anywhere. Probably because large amounts of the population don’t care, and drive without the care and consideration required. In other words, large numbers of people are thoughtless selfish idiots everywhere. Or at least most places.

It seems from the video that this wouldn’t have happened if the cyclists were actually sharing the road…following the rules of the road.

So many of you are self-righteously indignant …put the driver in jail forever… the riders deserved to own the whole frigging road.

Come on. This was a passive aggressive demonstration. No, I wouldn’t try to hit a bike rider…this would piss me off completely.

What’s the difference between getting pissed off at someone and running someone down with your car? Is that what some commenters are asking?

If we can’t control our reaction to anger, we have some serious problems…

I think you have to be an idiot to blame the cyclists for the violent over reaction by the car driver.
But I don’t buy for a minute, that there was not a number of cyclists who provoked the driver.
Come on- That is just a given.
Not making excuses for him or his actions.
But just like the Toronto case, there is more to the story.
PS- If you know Toronto, I would like to know where all you bike riders are on Jarvis ???
They ruined a main artery to accommodate a bike lane that I hardly ever see being used.
Hmmm. Guess the smog created by all the bumper to bumper traffic is worth the handful of cyclists that end up using it for the 3 months of good weather.
I like you S.O.B’s (south of Bloor), but as a delivery driver I gotta say you really dropped the ball on that one.
Unless you want to pay $10.00 for a carton of milk you have to allow for commercial deliveries.

“Losing 3 minutes of your time because of a jerks-parade is enough for you to atempt to kill people?”

Are you f-ing kidding me? It’s NEVER 3 minutes. I’d be understanding of a 3 minute delay. The last time I got stuck because of a Critical Ass ride, I sat through 6 revolutions of a light for a total of 15 minutes, and I was late to work. There was no alternate way for me to go; I was trapped. These are also the same idiots that took 200 bikes on the INTERSTATE at rush hour and slowed traffic to a crawl. Give me a reason to respect you and you’ll get it. Act like an idiot and I’ll call that like I see it too.

If you want to get respect, you have to GIVE it too. You will not get respect by breaking laws, being rude and inconsiderate, and delaying hundreds, if not thousands, of people for your cute little bike ride. If you want to impede traffic, pay for a permit and hire the police officers necessary to close the roads. Funeral homes do it EVERY day, and you’ll notice that funeral processions GET respect.

Next time there is a critical mass anywhere in the world, everyone should have their D-lock handy for smashing cars that attempt to kill cyclists.

If you are a car driver and you have been held for for 15 minutes….IT DOES NOT GIVE YOU THE RIGHT TO KILL EVERY CYCLIST IN YOUR PATH SO YOU CAN GET TO WORK!!!!!!

Every single critical mass in the world from now on should be more militant against car drivers.

FIrst of all, cars are necessary for some. Get over it. I bet in an ideal world, this wouldn’t be the case, but it is. Secondly, as a pedestrian, I find people on bikes a bigger menace than people on cars when it comes to lack of respect for other people and safely using the roads. The number of time’s I’ve nearly been run down by a cyclist far exceeds the number of times by a motorist. Thirdly, it’s a free world. Bob rides a bike, Steve drives a car and Mark walks… whatever. Let people do what they want.

Anyway, I hope someone brings this monster to justice. If he truly was behind the cyclists for blocks, that’s ridiculous and scared? Give me a break! That’s absolutely no excuse whatsoever. It’s like me walking up to a stranger late at night and murdering them, because they looked sinister, eh? Ridiculous.

Incidentally, Mr S, I’d like to know where you’re getting your information from… actual prevalence of sociopathy in it’s ‘pure form’ of ASPD is on average 1-3% of the global population, or are you including Millon’s subtypes, which are sometimes considered ASPD? Or are you just throwing around the phrase ‘sociopath’ devoid of its clinical meaning? Pretty sure as a teacher, or even as a skilled psychiatrist, one couldn’t look at a person on go ‘Ding! Bob, we have a sociopath!’, and equally, ASPD, as with all conditions, has levels of severity and various causes, so one cannot assume that all of these 3% are dyed in the wool maniacs with no coexisting conditions which could explain its presence and role. It cannot be diagnosed in minors, but may begin to manifest in children even at a young age, and is often correlated with such things -as- family, homelife and interpersonal relations.

The ones who said the driver had the right to do it, because the riders were holding up the traffic, should be sent to a mental institution. Plain and simple. Come on guys, I’m not a fan of getting stuck in traffic jams, but that’s no reason to go berserk. Last year there was this stupid 10k in my city, and it cut down most of the big arteries, so I pulled over, turned off the car, and went to get some mineral water and watch the runners. Most of the other drivers were honking and shouting like mad dogs. Pathetic seriously. You can’t always get what you want.

Thank you Jamie, for the first rational response that I’ve read to this terrible situation. Now, let me add a quoate from my 6 year old grandaughter, “sometimes in life you have to do things that you don’t want to do; and, just deal with it. Like homework, I don’t like it, but I just have to deal with it.” Now, if a 6 year old can understand that, what is wrong with all you adults that are on here making some sort of excuse for the driver of the car? He should have his driving liscense revoked for life! He has proven that he can not drive a motor vehicle and “deal with it”. Some time in jail is most certianly called for “attempted murder, for any reason, is still attempted murder”. I worry about his son, and the lesson he will learn if his father walks away scot free! I don’t care where you are in the world……NOBODY ANYWHERE should be allowed to “get away” with this type of behavoir. Maybe he needs to spend some time in a mental hospital, there could most certianly be hidden issues that we as the general public do not know about. Let’s all pray that it is resolved in a way that will be good for EVERYONE.

Death to Ricardo Neis! If he doesn’t get locked up for life I am wondering how much a hit man costs in Brazil… He needs to be taken out of society before he drives at someone else. And other drivers who think he is funny/justified need to be shown the consequences of acting like that.

David, in case you didn’t notice, many of the people commending the driver are from Canada and America.

Haven’t yet seen somebody from Brasil step in and say they all deserved to be run down for delaying traffic with their protest.

Anyways, nice try, it would be easy to write it off as savage Brazilians, but that isn’t the truth. Many Canadians hold the same ignorant attitudes and have half-heartedly thrown their support behind a nut job terrorist like this guy by making statements like “they were asking for it”.

Ok, sure… and rape victims with short skirts? Them too? Maybe these people would be more comfortable in a repressive regime somewhere else.

>>Secondly, as a pedestrian, I find people on bikes a bigger menace than people on cars when it comes to lack of respect for other people and safely using the roads. The number of time’s I’ve nearly been run down by a cyclist far exceeds the number of times by a motorist.

Why is that then? Are these maniac cyclists attempting to run you over on the footpath? Or are you walking in front of them?

In my experience pedestrians are very careful not to get in the way of cars, but couldn’t care less about jay walking right in front of cyclists.

I’ve crashed a couple of times avoiding pedestrians – all this talk of respect and following road rules, etc. just leaves me cold.

The lunatic who ran over the cyclists should never be allowed to operate a vehicle again. The trolls who justify road rage should look at themselves and ponder how foolish they appear. Us and them – drivers vs cyclists, pffft. A car no doubt empowers people on the physical level but the delusion that it somehow makes you better or more important than others is just that, a delusion.

I have ridden a bike for decades, I have driven along with bikes for decades in the USA. I frankly think that anyone who has an issue with the Critical Mass riders causing a disruption has some anger issues.
If you have ever saddled up on a bike and had a car “brush” by you when you are riding, in the right of way (not in the middle of the road by the way) and you see your life flash because some douche bag is too hurried to have respect for a rider then you might change your mind. At the same time, the biker, in general should keep more to the side (not on the shoulder where the bumpy road will damage the bike) and be aware of traffic.
The moron in the video deserves to be bamboo pole smacked in the public square. Self defense indeed. What an irresponsible, angry, psychopath, and any verbal defense he says to say he had the right to run over someone just proves more that he is a complete liability hazard.

I want to know what you bike riders do for food ?
How did that stuff get in the stores ???
How about the water???
How about the electricity ???
Etc..etc…etc…
Think that stuff just happens magically ?
Get off your high horse.
ROFL to the few who actually want to get more “militant” against cars.
Good luck geniuses- Give the maniac in the car a legal defense.
Hope for your fellow riders sake they didn’t do that to the driver from Brazil.
If he feared for his and his kids life- he may just have a case.
Parts of Brazil can be a lot more violent and volatile than Toronto, and Bryant got off HERE.

And answer my question about Jarvis.
Where are all you bike riders. The weather is nice and it took 25 minutes to do what used to take 4 to 5 minutes in rush hour traffic.
(Every day)
Bumper to bumper- hundreds of cars and trucks idling belching out emissions.
Just so 6 bike riders could go by ???
(shakes head in confusion).
I recycle, take transit and support local farmers, before you start the hate fest.
-True North-

I am stunned by this terrible tragedy. In one moment of weakness, a man yielded to impluse and abandoned a beautiful vehicle which he will probably never get back. Also, it will be a bitch to wipe or tweeze off all the little pieces of bikies from its tyres.

Hahahaha! HONK HONK!!

Was a U-Turn completely out of the question?

I think bicyclists have a right to the road too. But bicyclists want it both ways. They run through stop signs which cars dont do. They can impede the flow of traffic. Ive seen it. Riding down the street two abreat holding conversations, when they could easily yield to faster traffic (not speeding traffic, mind you), they won’t. Ive seen them do this, then whip around the front car in the left turn lane at a light. A car cant and wont do that. I was trolled by a bicyclist promendaing lazily don the center of a road listening to an ipod. I gave a tap of my horn, yes a tap, not a blare, and she extended her arm and flipped me off. Then she held it out the length of the road and smiled back occassionally. What could I do about that? You bicyclists here tell me that? Ive been to blogs where bicyclists are openly bragging about angering drivers, ‘oh I could tell he was pissed, I could tell he probably would have loved to run me over…’. There’s a saying, when you go looking for trouble, you’ll probably find it.

When you admit bicyclists today can behave just as badly as drivers, and that, espcially these days, some bicyclists are deliberately out to cause problems to make their political point, then Im with you. I hear nothing here from bicyclists that woe is us, poor misunderstood, disenfranchised people. In LA Weekly recently, they said they will deliberately go out of their way these activists. If you’re in the current active bicycling community you know what Im talking about, and to say anything else, is frankly and blatantly disengenuous. K, pal?

Wow! This is quite the toxic comment thread! My heart goes out to the Crit Mass riders who were attacked.

FWIW, this incident (and this comment thread) shows why the CM celebratory protests are still needed and still relevant. For those not familiar, one aim of civil disobedience (and “corking” other traffic to allow the Mass to proceed is indeed civil disobedience) is to raise awareness of an issue, so that the more reasonable voices are more likely to be heard. By comparison to the anger-provoking CM riders the leaders of such organizations as Rails to Trails or Adventure Cycling seem very reasonable indeed.

IMO, so long as car-driving sociopaths continue to get away with murdering cyclists, the CM rides will be needed. And, in my book, welcome.

One more thing. If i see someone on a bike fucking with someone in a car, i shadow them till I find the right moment to T Bone. If i get it just right it is possible to run them completely over. It is the only thing I have seen that works with some of you. So, if you come and ride in my neck in the woods and you happen to see the letters BLTD painted on a wall somewhere. Beware. When it comes to assholes on bikes, we, and there are a bunch of us, live by this motto. Better Living Thru Destruction.

Yes James that must be it. Obviously any sane rational person would think just like you. Its guys like you that got those riders hurt. Your stupidity. Lead on James. You are born to it.

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I’m convinced that posting comments has become an outlet for the angriest, most ignorant sociopaths. The ridiculous ‘comments’ on both sides of this issue are mind-numbing. If you read this series of comments and aren’t depressed, you must be one of them.

This is absolutely horrible. I’ve seen aggression in DC with Critical Mass (which I’m actually leaving for in a few minutes) but nothing like this. Absolutely disgraceful. I’da cut the dudes balls off and shoved them so far down his throat is came out his ass. And yes anonymous, that blonde chick was bangin! straight edge too! My type of woman!

People get sick and tired of these belligerent, passive/aggressive bicyclists purposely and willfully blocking traffic with these “critical mass” events, which are explicitly designed to purposely disrupt the flow of traffic.
Every now and then one or more of them gets hit by a car…it goes with the territory.
If they’re going to purposely be rude, belligerent idiots, than occasionally they can expect to encounter a rude, belligerent person in return.
I have not pity whatsoever whenever I hear of a “critical mass” bicyclist getting hit by a car.

Good job trolling. got me rilled up for a bit. Then i realized that your pathetic.

Troll detected

Yow, that “Anonymous” troll is a sick woman. I hope she seeks help. I hope she doesn’t have children.

Ah, yes, holding up traffic so you’ll be a few minutes late to come home and watch your shitty sitcom TV show is enough justifiable reason to nearly kill people. I’m Pro-Choice and if Pro-Lifers protestors were blocking the road I’d be hella annoyed, totally, but I wouldn’t plow into them like a maniac.

TROLL go back under your bridge.

Job well done !

While the driver’s actions clearly appear criminal, the event should provide some reality checks: 1. taking both lanes is also clearly selfish, rude, and obnoxious. 2. Other CM hole riders need to share the road like other humans to reduce the chance of another incident like this. 3. How did the injured get to hospital? On a trailer pulled by a bicycle? On a motor vehicle, that’s right, despite all the children’s vehicles around.

The manner in which Critical Mass is ridden is, whether by carelessness or intent, perfectly designed to piss drivers off to the maximum degree. I’ve seen this group in Austin, Texas, and at least there it is definitely ridden with a “take the streets back”, rather than a “share the road” mentality.

Riding in one long, solid mass is simply neither safe nor feasible without a police escort – and stationing bikers to bodily block traffic in only compounds the potential for driver frustration and road rage. I would be annoyed at this riding style if I were driving and late to work, and I love to bike more than almost anything. To further put a person in front of a car with the purpose of “corking” it in flouts every rule of the road we, as cyclists who share the road, are supposed to obey.

As bikers, we rightfully expect drivers to share the road with us. Refusing to share in return is childish, foolhardy and dangerous. I suggest Critical Mass either revise its ride policies to be more road-and-driver-friendly, procure a police escort for their activities, or to quit biking altogether until they mature enough to do so with proper care for the safety of themselves and others on the road.