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Recreational Bicycling in Texas 8

Recreational Bicycling in Texas
Photo by James Schwartz / The Urban Country Austin, TX – In North America, bicycles are primarily viewed as recreational toys. They are racing machines, exercise devices, mountain climbers, and weekend cruisers. It is uncommon in most North American cities to see a significant amount of people in their regular clothes using a bicycle for ...

Canadian Cyclist Harassed At U.S. Border 25

Canadian Cyclist Harassed At U.S. Border
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers on the lookout for “terrorists” – Photo by Mateus_27 With the United States mulling over the possibility of building a fence across the Canada-US border and a Secretary of Homeland Security falsely claiming some of the 9/11 terrorists entered through Canada, it’s not surprising to hear about Canadians encountering ...

Journey Through Black America 3

Journey Through Black America
Photo of Baron Hilliard on his journey across America – photo by Baron Hilliard Black communities across America still face significant challenges – more than 40 years after Martin Luther King Jr.’s death. The country has made significant progress since the dark days of slavery – or the pre-MLK days of segregation – but institutional ...

Drive Fast 4

Drive Fast
Bolinas Ridge Rd. car commercial photo courtesy of Jim Collier It’s not very often I post other people’s content without adding my own perspective, but I really enjoyed this post entitled “Drive Fast” on Kent’s bike blog: “It’s not very often that I dispense automotive advice. Today, I am. It is Sunday and I’m going ...

What’s Hard About Biking in Washington DC? 6

Photo by James D. Schwartz / The Urban Country Washington DC resident and filmographer Monica Gray asks fellow bicyclists what’s hard about biking in Washington DC during the 2010 DC Tweed ride. In many ways, the answers could have come from any city in North America: “In rush hour – uh, angry and impatient drivers.” ...

I Am Responsible for the Gulf Oil Spill… 5

Photo courtesy of IBRRC on Flickr I am responsible for the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill. I claim responsibility for the 11 deaths, 17 injuries from the explosion, and the millions of marine and wildlife that have been killed or displaced as a result. Yes, I am responsible for releasing an estimated 1.9 million to ...

United States Moving Forward After Decades of Neglect 13

Photo by James D. Schwartz / The Urban Country In an important announcement last week, the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) has said “the establishment of well-connected walking and bicycling networks” will be part of all federal-aid transportation projects. The announcement came out in the form of a Policy Statement that was signed on ...

Recession Ready? Interview with Michael Bevins

In a series of articles entitled “Recession Ready?”, The Urban Country is interviewing people around the world who are affected by the recession to understand how different people are coping. For a complete list of interviews, choose the “Recession Interviews” category on the right navigation. Mike Bevins lives in beautiful Huntington Beach, California, just outside ...

Dear President Bush… 2

As the end of your term in office approaches, you are now beginning to reflect on your leadership through one of the most controversial presidencies of all time. The last 8 years will forever change the world and the future of the United States. In your bid to win the Presidency back in 2000, you ...

CIA Covert Directive NSC 10/2 1

As I study for my history exam tomorrow, I figured I’d share a tidbit of history about the CIA. On June 18, 1948, the CIA was given a National Security Council directive (NSC 10/2). From the State Department website: NSC 10/2 directed CIA to conduct “covert” rather than merely “psychological” operations, defining them as all ...