Cycling Around the World

[kenneth cooke]

I have been watching the BBC 1 program about Mark Beaumont's successful circumnavigation of the globe by cycle. I thought it interesting that he negotiated Iran and Afghanistan without trouble only to get mugged and robbed in the USA. Maybe the Yanks should look to their own internal behavior before disrupting other countries who seem to be able to manage quite well without their involvment

 

[Grinding One]

Those damm illegal aliens struck again....be careful about lumping Americans we have all of the nations children here and most would give you the shirt off of their backs if asked(and have) without asking for anything back.
I for one have no problem with anyone...you act right and I leave you to yourself,you try to cause problems ,well .....

 

[MrJay]

That was a great little mini-series, very inspiring. Though I may be biased because it had a bicycle in it.

Funny, Mark didn't say it was illegals or aliens what done it.

 

[Digit]

Having had the pleasure of knowing and working with a sizeable number of USAF personnel I have to add my support to Grinding One's comments.

Roy.

 

[MrJay]

No, I'm lost as to how meeting some USAF airforce personal in Blighty is significant in determining that the people who attacked Mark were illegal immigrants.

It's obviously iffy that the original post singled out the US as some kind of badland based on such a small sample; but come on...

Using the ever reliable internet (which is fortunately brimming with bloggers, made up institutes and think tanks getting excited about illegals in the US) I reckon the illegal population in Louisiana to be about 16,000 (according to a right wing think tank called FAIR) - roughly 0.4% of the general state population (thankyou wikipedia). The Immigration policy centre seems to be of the opinion that for young males aged 18-39 0.7% of the foreign born population (including legit foreign born nationals as well as aliens - so I'm doing illegals a fair old disservice here) are incarcerated at GWs pleasure for state offences compared to 3.5% for native born population. I'm going to do a whopping fudge and assume that the figures for crime perps in Louisiana are roughly in line. (if you think my fudge is bad - and it is - you should see some of the shameless falsification and methodologies being used in the conservative instituteofthisandthat.org type websites I just looked at when trying to find a more reliable estimate)

Anyhow - according to my sophistry and without any evidence to the contrary I make the odds that illegals rather than nationals attacked Mark to be about *thinks* one in half a million - though my maths isn't famously good. Probably illegals then.

 

[Digit]

No, I'm lost as to how meeting some USAF airforce personal in Blighty is significant in determining that the people who attacked Mark were illegal immigrants.

I never said it was, I was referring to most Americans seeming to be nice people. After all, nasty ones tend to a be a minority in most countries.

Roy.

 

[kenneth cooke]

That was a great little mini-series, very inspiring. Though I may be biased because it had a bicycle in it.

Funny, Mark didn't say it was illegals or aliens what done it.

was a passion of mine before ill health- Dawes Galaxy + Campag a great tourer. Also but tour fan enjoy to watch European Tours

 

[Digit]

Where was this programme Ken and is it to be repeated do you know?

Roy.

 

[MrJay]

It ran on BBC 1 after the ten o'clock news during this week. Try iPlayer perhaps?

 

[kenneth cooke]

Where was this programme Ken and is it to be repeated do you know?

Roy.

On the Beeb so you should be able to catch at least the last episode on iPlayer but I don't know how that works. They usually inform viewers that this is possible- sorry information overload I did not see the post above

 

[Digit]

Ta! and being on the Beeb there is certainly a chance I can catch a repeat.

Roy.

 

[MrJay]

:lol:

I have two bikes - a Dawes Giro 500 for summer (wooosh) and a Koga tourer (but not anything like as grand as Mark's) for sensible cycling. Oh, and a trailer. Hoping to do a mini tour (long weekend or something) next month.

 

[kenneth cooke]

:lol:

I have two bikes - a Dawes Giro 500 for summer (wooosh) and a Koga tourer (but not anything like as grand as Mark's) for sensible cycling. Oh, and a trailer. Hoping to do a mini tour (long weekend or something) next month.

I have a friend who has a Tony Oliver- Renolds 635 frame-Campag and he does a month in Europe most years with a small bivi tent and no itinerary. But this ride by Mark Beaumont, something else. His focus and will must be astonishing. I would think he must now have a bright future in broadcasting

re your comment-quote"It's obviously iffy that the original post singled out the US" well that is where he was robbed and mugged- what is wrong with that?

 

[MrJay]

I think having to eat that much every day (the calorific equivalent of 6 Christmas dinners I think they said) is a pretty remakable feat of stamina in itself.

Your sample (1 cyclist) was too small to draw meaningful conclusions in a comparison between the US and Afghanistan/Iran.

 

[Grinding One]

Ok one more time-if you show up somewhere flanting a real expensive bike or tennis shoes In the USA you are being sought out by the have nots.While it is a free country and the police bend over backward being nice...the people who do not have much, Robin hood the people who do.Now the illegals just look over their shoulder a lot because thats what they are criminals,sorry about that but obey the laws and I`ll speak up for you.Come to the country legally and we put you up,feed and house you and give you a job ahead of our own people...but at the present we have millions of illegals and they are not all spanish...a lot of crime comes with these people as they are criminals.I do not mince words ,ever here of the 35 gang?? well we put a lot of them on free bed and breakfast for being bad(in prison) They came from Mexico..an the Mexican government does not want them back.You guys want them??You can travel the roads,break down and 99% of the time you`ll be alright...but break down in the big citys where people live under bridges and check dumpsters for food ,well your in trouble.And we have shelters,food banks and churches that put up a lot of people...but I guess they want no part of it.Maybe they are afraid of people just like themselves.Heck of a way to live...

 

[kenneth cooke]

Hang on- who said anything about the people who mugged Mike being illegals. By that I am assuming you are referring to people fleeing their own country from fear of reprisal. We have alot of asylum seekers in the UK and yes they do get help from our government, and quite rightly. I am only very grateful and count my blessings that I am not in their position. I don't know how I would behave given that situation

 

[Grinding One]

I have been watching the BBC 1 program about Mark Beaumont's successful circumnavigation of the globe by cycle. I thought it interesting that he negotiated Iran and Afghanistan without trouble only to get mugged and robbed in the USA. Maybe the Yanks should look to their own internal behavior before disrupting other countries who seem to be able to manage quite well without their involvment

I rethought about this and your right,we should mind our own business and let the countrys do want they want to too their neigbors and their people.We have too long been the police force for the world.You all will get along so nicely without us.So from now on I`ll just see how you get along by yourselves.
If the USA is so bad can you tell me why people want to come Here??

 

[kenneth cooke]

You quote "If the USA is so bad can you tell me why people want to come Here??"- The answer is, I really have no idea. I admit, I have a desire to visit the Manhattan skyline but I should not want to visit any other part of your country. I did have to attend a conference in 1982 in Miami Florida and I could not wait to get back to the UK. But back to your comment about, and I quote you "If the USA is so bad can you tell me why people want to come Here??". I would have to say that any country that ethnically cleanses it's indigenous people as the USA did with the Native American Indian does not go down well in my book. But I must say Britain must take a little responsibility for that in the fact that it says Columbus discovered America which is absolute rubbish. America was already there and thriving perfectly well without British interference. You will also gather that I was totally against interference within Iraq but of course that was political and oil fueled. It had nothing to do with the Iraqi people and their needs

 

[Digit]

I would have to say that any country that ethnically cleanses it's indigenous people as the USA did with the Native American Indian does not go down well in my book.

Check out Tasmania, New Zealand, and Australia, Ken, to name but a few to add to the book.
Also the 'Native American Indians' that you refer to were not the original inhabitants of the Americas, they were probably eliminated by those NAIs.
Evidence is now emerging that the Americas were colonised long before the 'Proto Indians' arrived on the scene thousands of years later.
If you want some links on the subject I'll be delighted to supply them.

Roy.

 

[MrJay]

This is what happens when people do stupid on the internet. What should have been a nice thread about cycling has managed to turn into an international handbag swinging contest. Classic.

There's a mini film about Marks cycle ride on the youtube.