... civil discourse is a wonderful and cherished right ...
mitch, the key word there is
civil. I don't have a problem with you expressing your fear to vishnu that, by trying to register a motorized bicycle, it will backfire on everyone. But, the way you tore into him, it was
not civil. It was more like a bulldog tearing into a steak bone, LOL. He had sent me a PM, saying that he felt he was 'dumped on,' and that he 'didn't appreciate getting **** for trying to help.' Rather than replying back in the same manner, which would escalate into even more flames, he let me know about it.
Next, as far as 'free speech' goes. On a discussion forum, there isn't any right to it, for anyone except the forum owner. A discussion forum is the on-line equivalent to a 'letters to the editor' section of a newspaper, with the moderators acting as the 'editors.'
Tom has deputized us to keep things civil, and he's worked out guidelines for us to follow. If we weren't allowed to remove posts that are offensive to Tom, the courts have held that it violates HIS right to free speech, because, as the owner, the forum is HIS expression. (And, Tom is responsible for what's here. In fact, if we left up posts that we knew were libelous,
Tom could get sued over it, as well as the person who made the post.)
***
Finally: (And, this is my opinion only, and not a formal policy...) I don't think that we're going to be able to hide in the weeds much longer. So
many kits are being sold that we are beginning to be noticed, whether we want to, or not. Now, we can continue to hide our heads in the sand, or we can get proactive. Laws are going to be passed, whether we like it or not. If we don't do anything, then the laws will be written by someone who know
nothing about what a motorized bike is all about. And, we'll get **** forced down our throats, probably killing the movement (DOT approved tires and the like.)
But, on the other hand, IF we are proactive, then we have a
real chance of getting laws passed that at least acknowledge that motorized bicycles are, at their heart, really bicycles, and not lightweight motorcycles. That is what happened in Arizona, and we have a law that makes it legal to ride a motorized bike without license, registration, or insurance, and in the bike lanes. Yeah, that law isn't perfect, but, it's a good start.
