Barack Obama says he's a reformer, but apparently he's in hoc to Big Bike: "In a private 20-minute meeting with members of the Bikes Belong board of directors, told them if he were elected president he would increase funding for cycling and pedestrian projects." I think it'll be fun to have a president from a big city.
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The Bike President
20 Jun 2008 09:03 am
Comments (33)
"I think it'll be fun to have a president from a big city."
About time. The Democrats get all their votes from the cities and what do they do for them? Nada. I mean, the last Democrat to even talk about the question was Jimmy Carter when he visited the South Bronx, but what did he do about the problems? Again -- nada. What did Bill Clinton do for cities in eight years: cut their residents off welfare. Worse than nada. So, about time.
Although his faults are many, Bush does come from a big city. For many, many years before being governor, he lived in Dallas, and even Austin is edging close to big-city status these days.
And for that matter, his father (a Houstonian) also was from a big city.
Or do Dallas and Houston (the fifth and sixth largest metros, IIRC) not count as big cities because they're not liberal and/or on a coast?
Has Obama had any meetings with anyone where he didn't promise to increase funding for whatever they wanted? He's also going to increase rural giveaways (e.g., farm price supports), and give suburbanites more money, right?
How is this a federal concern? This guy wonders:
http://bannedindc.wordpress.com/2008/06/20/obama-courts-the-bike-vote/
Reminds me of a line to the '40 year-old Virgin', "so you ride a bicycle and do magic". When we see Obama pull a quarter from behind some kid's ear, he'll have the geek vote wrapped up.
How is this a federal concern? This guy wonders:
http://bannedindc.wordpress.com/2008/06/20/obama-courts-the-bike-vote/
"Bush does come from a big city. For many, many years before being governor, he lived in Dallas, and even Austin is edging close to big-city status these days. And for that matter, his father (a Houstonian) also was from a big city."
Did either of them actually live in an urban neighborhood? Or did they live in three-car-garage compounds in suburbia? I honestly don't know the answer to that question, but I'd bet heavily on the latter.
There's a world of difference between "living in a big city" and "living in a large metro area."
Dallas and Austin are not "big cities" in the sense that matters. Austin is moreso than Dallas, because it's got a lot of students, but it isn't big enough to require public transportation aside from buses and traffic issues are limited. Dallas is a relatively small, barren downtown surrounded by suburbia. There are only a handful of real cities in this country; Chicago is one of them, so Obama will be our first "city President" in some time.
This actually forms a big part of my support for him. I live in Manhattan, and I think there are things we need done in terms of planning, funding, etc. Even in areas where I haven't heard him say anything or take a stance, I tend to assume that he'll "get it".
This and his speech in Michigan on infrastructure (including regional high speed rail networks) are in the positive column, IMO.
Bush didn't actually live in Dallas. He lived in Highland Park, which is completely surrounded by Dallas, but still suburban in spirit and politics.
Bush senior grew up in Greenwich, CT. Hardly gives him a city mentality.
Big Bike? Good name for a gay bar.
LaFollette Progressive:
Obama lives in the Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, near the University of Chicago and the proposed site of the Olympic stadium (should Chicago get the nod for 2016). I think he's on Greenwood between 53rd and 57th.
Houston doesn't count as a city because it's not a city--it's a big, bloated exurb.
I'm actually trying to figure out the last time we had a big city president.
It wasn't Bill Clinton (Little Rock).
I wouldn't count George H.W. Bush (he lived in Washington for many, many years before becoming president, but I'm sure not urban DC).
It's probably not Reagan (Santa Barbara? It's hard to peg where really rich people actually live).
It's not Jimmy Carter (Sumter County, Georgia, population 32,532).
It's not even really Gerald Ford (Grand Rapids, Michigan).
It's not Richard Nixon (Orange County).
It's not Lyndon Johnson (Gillespie County, Texas, population 20,814).
Apparently JFK, who represented Boston in the House, was the last president who was somewhat recently affiliated with an urban area prior to his presidency.
Weird.
I always thought he was on Kenwood, and I go to the school.
Have those of you talking about how Houston "doesn't count" ever actually been here? Sure, a lot of folks live in far-flung exurbs, but where I live (Montrose) and where GHWB lives (Tanglewood) are very much "city" places. My house has a "walk score" of 77, which is higher than the 71 for Obama's Greenwood street.
You guys act like Chicago, Washington, etc. don't have enclaves of less-dense-than-it-should-be, near-town, rich white people. People living in Highland Park (like GWB), while they have a suburban-feeling neighborhood very much have to deal with "urban" problems like lack of parking, crime, public transportation, etc. GHWB easily could walk from his house to either of the buses I take to work.
New York obviously is different, but it's also considerably different from Chicago and D.C. Houston and Dallas are a lot more like Chicago and D.C. (in terms of density, need for a car, availability of transport and other public services, etc.) than Chicago and D.C. are like New York.
For your Katy/Woodlands/Kingwood, I'll raise you a Naperville, Joliet, and Waukegan.
The bike trail from Obama's Chicago South Side neighborhood (Hyde Park) to downtown (the Loop) might just be the best bike trail in the United States. It's got Lake Michigan to the east, the skyline of Chicago on the west, and it's in the middle of urban parkland.
Looks like Obama lives on Greenwood just north of 51st street. Sounds like he's just across the street from the KAM Isaiah Israel synagogue.
I'll add that, of course, that obviously GHWB and GWB didn't make city issues a priority. But that doesn't mean they weren't from big cities.
Looks like Obama lives on Greenwood just north of 51st street, across Greenwood from the KAM Isaiah Israel synagogue.
Looks like Obama lives on Greenwood just north of 51st street, across Greenwood from the KAM Isaiah Israel synagogue.
in hock, not in hoc
in hock, not in hoc
TH -- Just to be clear, by "either of them" I was referring to the two George Bushes. I'm familiar with Obama's old stomping ground in Hyde Park.
Actually, the feds decided that increasing bicycle and pedestrian commuting is a federal concern years ago. Specifically the The Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) Improvement Program , created in 1991 as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA, democratic congress) funds bicycle-related transportation projects. Continuation of the program was authorized by the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21, republican majority) in June 1998 and the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU, republican majority) in August 2005.
CMAQ specifically funds both
1. Bicycle and Pedestrian Facility Projects – The CMAQ program finances both bicycle and pedestrian facilities that reduce travel by automobile (many recreational facilities do not make good CMAQ project candidates).
and
2. Bicycle Parking Projects – These projects create or increase the availability of parking facilities for bicycles and promote the use of bicycles, thereby eliminating auto trips.
I'm pretty sure improving air quality and mitigating congestion in major cities, through which freight must pass quickly to maintain economic growth, are federal concerns.
"Have those of you talking about how Houston "doesn't count" ever actually been here? Sure, a lot of folks live in far-flung exurbs, but where I live (Montrose) and where GHWB lives (Tanglewood) are very much "city" places. My house has a "walk score" of 77, which is higher than the 71 for Obama's Greenwood street."
When was the last time the Bushes walked anywhere in Houston? When do you think was the last time they went to a grocery store?
They're not *of* Houston, they're only *in* Houston. I'm sure they limit their contact with the commoners of the city to the absolute minimum. They might take their Secret Service motorcade to the occasional country club or high society event, but that's it. They could be anywhere.
Didn't Bush Senior live in a *hotel* in Houston for years and years?
I would think the Bushes (Junior or Senior) have only the vaguest notion of real city life at this point, having lived at such a distant remove from it for so long, even if geographically they've been living in the middle of cities. Cities for them are only what their motorcades speed through on the way to golf or a fundraiser.
"Have those of you talking about how Houston "doesn't count" ever actually been here? Sure, a lot of folks live in far-flung exurbs, but where I live (Montrose) and where GHWB lives (Tanglewood) are very much "city" places. My house has a "walk score" of 77, which is higher than the 71 for Obama's Greenwood street."
When was the last time the Bushes walked anywhere in Houston? When do you think was the last time they went to a grocery store?
They're not *of* Houston, they're only *in* Houston. I'm sure they limit their contact with the commoners of the city to the absolute minimum. They might take their Secret Service motorcade to the occasional country club or high society event, but that's it. They could be anywhere.
Didn't Bush Senior live in a *hotel* in Houston for years and years?
I would think the Bushes (Junior or Senior) have only the vaguest notion of real city life at this point, having lived at such a distant remove from it for so long, even if geographically they've been living in the middle of cities. Cities for them are only what their motorcades speed through on the way to golf or a fundraiser.
Obama has only recently entered that kind of bubble.
Dallas and Austin are not "big cities" in the sense that matters. Austin is moreso than Dallas..
You're joking, right? You might want to compare the ethnic makeup between Austin and Dallas (and any other large city for that matter). Austin is lilly-white.
Jon H: I can buy that. Houston and Dallas are big cities, but GWB/GHWB weren't city-dwellers, at least not in any sense that matters. It strikes me that the relevant issue is that Obama only recently has become an elite, rather than that he has lived in a big city.
Walk Score is BS, anyone with an urban planning degree will tell you the same. They count convenience stores as grocery stores; martial arts dojos as schools; tile outlets as hardware stores; and public storage facilities as clothing scores. Population density is what makes a place urban.
"How is this a federal concern?"
SRSLY? You don't see how transportation infrastructure is a federal concern? It has and obvious and important impact on environmental and energy issues. Obviously increasing federal funding for bike lanes ain't going to solve the myriad of problems arising from global warming, or solve the energy crisis, but they are an important component of any solution to both problems. And as Matt said, it's nice to think about the possibility that we'll have a president in a few months from a city who understands the value of this.
bottomofthe9th:
New York obviously is different, but it's also considerably different from Chicago and D.C. Houston and Dallas are a lot more like Chicago and D.C. (in terms of density, need for a car, availability of transport and other public services, etc.) than Chicago and D.C. are like New York.
I can't speak towards the relative need for a car, the availability of public transportation and other services, but in population density, there are clear differences between Chicago and the two Texan cities.
The population densities of the five cities you mentioned, according to Wikipedia:
NYC: 27,147/sq mi
Chicago: 12,470/sq mi
DC: 9,015/sq mi
Houston: 3,701/sq mi
Dallas: 3,605.08/sq mi
Comments closed July 04, 2008.
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Heads in the Sand
This is great news. I rode to work for the first time today and it was amazing.
Posted by eriks | June 20, 2008 9:28 AM