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news
Velothon Wales course map.pngCouncillor dubs "Cycling Taliban" tweets "banter"
A councillor who dubbed sportive riders as “cycling Taliban” and joked about putting tacks on the road has dismissed his own comments as “a bit of banter”.
Independent Cllr Graham Down, of Monmouthshire County Council, made the comments about the Velothon Wales sportive, in which 12,000 people took part.
He asked on Twitter how to rid Monmouthshire of “pesky cyclists” before calling them the “cycling Taliban” and joking about throwing tacks on the road.
Video: Fixie rider crashes hard at Velothon Wales
In response to a warning about tacks being left on the road by “Velothon protestors” the day before the event, Cllr Down said “Nothing to do with me. Honestly! My bag of tacks is for 2mrw”.
During the 2015 Velothon Wales event one cyclist suffered cuts and bruises after tacks were sprinkled on the road. One person said Cllr Down’s comment was “threatening” and inappropriate for a councillor, while another responded by asking for his resignation.
In response to outrage on Twitter Cllr Down said: “Should I be surprised at the childish vitriol and bile from the Cycling Taliban? Probably not. Just proves I was right about them all along.” He then went on to list cycling misdemeanours he claims to see on a daily basis.
Cllr Down told the South Wales Argus: “I had a concern about the fact that the world is supposed to stand still for these cyclists,” he said.
“When I’ve been walking I’ve nearly been run over and on the roads cyclists in general don’t show a lot of consideration.
“As many of my councillors know I’m thick skinned and I will happily enter debate with anyone. It was just a bit of banter, a bit of fun that some people took the wrong way.”
However, cyclists felt differently, some are concerned the comments will stir up anti-cycling sentiment, while others say they are filing a complaint against the councillor.
Jason Dodd wrote: “Not only is it sad, but it deeply worries me that you have a position of authority. Your comments have been a disgrace.”
@cllrgraham_down pic.twitter.com/p8JEG4PqGV
— Mike Kear (@MikeFKear) May 26, 2016
Monmouthshire County Council’s social media guidance advises employees to “show respect for all”.
It states: “You should be respectful of the authority and your fellow employees. Derogatory comments are always wrong.”
“You must make sure that what you say is factual and avoid unnecessary or unproductive arguments,” it adds.
Laura Laker is a freelance journalist with more than a decade’s experience covering cycling, walking and wheeling (and other means of transport). Beginning her career with road.cc, Laura has also written for national and specialist titles of all stripes. One part of the popular Streets Ahead podcast, she sometimes appears as a talking head on TV and radio, and in real life at conferences and festivals. She is also the author of Potholes and Pavements: a Bumpy Ride on Britain’s National Cycle Network.
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25 comments
@Brooksby
Fair enough. The law remains clear about what are protected characteristics and being a goth is not one of them. This does not prevent Police forces from investigating any offences as if they were hate crimes thereby giving victims access to guidance, counselling and appropriate support services. Depressingly, these sorts of attacks are by no means rare and so many Police forces have chosen to regard goth as a sub-culture and afford victims the extra support.
This however has no impact on the charges that may or might not be brought or the sentencing.
Where I find the comparison offensive is that you seem to be comparing a brutal assault with the big mouthed activity of a stupid councillor who has not committed any crime whatsoever. It is not a crime to dislike cyclists, compare us to the Taliban, nor is it a crime to fantasise out loud about placing tacks to disrupt a sportive.
His isn’t a hate crime. It isn’t even a dislike crime. It is a no crime at all.
@Username
That is a whole new level of nonsense that I absolutely refuse to engage with.
@Bikebikebike
If you cannot tell the difference between a prank and a hate-motivated brutal assault resulting in the hospitalization of a young man …. I cannot help you.
Because, as we all know, attacks or threats against cyclists or people riding bikes or whatever the f you want to call them hardly ever happen.
Placing tacks to disrupt a sportive can lead to serious injury or death, you know, so it actually is pretty f-ing serious.
Anyway...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter_Joke_Trial
That guy got his day in court (actually, several) because of some 'banter', just a joke he'd made on twitter.
The authorities took him to court on grounds of "sending a public electronic message that was grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character contrary to the Communications Act 2003".
And yet he was just having a laugh, and making a complaint, and venting generally, and really those airports just need to develop a thicker skin (after all, saying something or threatening something isn't a crime at all, is it?).
(I appreciate that he finally (after appeals) did walk away, but that's not really the point).
You say potato, I say potato: I bet the blokes who hospitalised the goth just thought that they were having a laugh, too.
I am sorry. Altercations happen after arguments on the road etc but I am not aware of cyclists en masse just being randomly punched in the face, having bones broken and needing to be hospitalised for surgery merely for wearing lycra in public or sitting on a Brompton. Correct me if I am wrong. Similar altercations happen between drivers too, this isn't evidence that either driver in such a case hates all motorists.
Yes there is a difference between placing tacks and joking about placing tacks. You get that, yes?
I agree that was a total over reaction and a complete waste of CPS time and public money ... so you want to so the same thing again with this nitwit councillor? You perceive him to be a serious threat to the health and safety of cyclists in Wales? Or just a nut job with a big mouth who we should file under ignore?
What they thought is not the issue. What they did and why they did it, is.
The thought and the why are usually fairly closely linked...
Someone should find out where he lives and leave a load of roofing nails around the tyres of his parked car(s).
Hey, it's just banter!
Talibanter!
Hi twitter feed
https://twitter.com/cllrgraham_down
If you correct “When I’ve been walking I’ve nearly been run over..." (I'm assuming he means by a cyclist) to "A cyclist didn't run me over" it becomes a lot less exciting.
I didn't ride it last year, but I was in the area on holiday (the mumbles, it was lovely) there were tacks on the road last year, which were removed during the event.
But returned to where they were found afterwards, just in case the owner was looking for them.
(I made that up, but would like to think it was true)
http://www.southwalesargus.co.uk/news/13331317.Cars__punctured_by_Veloth...
throwing tacks on the road ahead of a sportive as a means of action to deter future rides is using violence for political ends. The definition of terrorism, no?
Incitement to terrorism?
Or if I disagree with what the council is doing would it be banter to joke about shooting councillors?
If he objects to the closed roads event then he should attend the due process and oppose it through legitimate means.
How many marathons each year are able to close roads with no objections? why is it the velothon and the pru 100 are seen differently?
Obviously the authorities in south Wales see the velothon as a means of drawing tourist revenue to the region. It seems he has lost the argument. Perhaps the councillor should relocate to New South Wales. it might be more to his liking.
well on a sharp down slope say off Carephilly Mtn it would be classed as attempted murder ?
"I hope he dies an agonising death". No offence meant, it's just a bit of banter, a bit of fun, I'm sure with his thick skin he won't take it the wrong way.
What the heck has gone wrong with our democratic society that people with such attitudes can get elected to public office!?
(And no, I don't wish him to die that way. Unlike him, I have a moral and rational filter between my thoughts, words and actions).
because in the UK and it seems a lot of countries since the collapse of 2007 intolerance has become more and more widespread be it cyclists, immigrants etc ?
All fueled by an out of control press who think free speech as a right means they can denegrate sections of soceity.
Will all cyclists reading this who fall in the area covered by this "persons" jurisdiction please take the time to complain to the ombudsman. As long as all we do is moan on social media about these people nothing will ever change. He needs ejecting asap.
Ah!!!!! banter, the catch all for bigotry in all forms as in "only joking, my racism / sexism was only a bit of banter" which then goes on to victim blame. No wonder he's an independent, no mainstream party would have him.
sounds like he would fit in quite well with Ukip and their views. Love how he says how we block the roads, I guess he never been on the M4 then ?
Like I said, mainstream party, UKIP a one trick pony based around a compulsive attention seeker
unfortunately with over 10% of the vote in the last GE and much higehr than that in some regions they are mainstream.
Given that attacking a Goth for no apparent reason has been treated by one British police force as a hate crime (according to the Grauniad), can someone *please* start treating all of the purveyors of anti-cyclist rhetoric like this in the same way? Please?!?
This councillor says it's all just banter, but does he honestly think that if someone reads his "banter" and goes ahead and does it then it's nothing to do with him?
If only they would! Trouble is, given the prevalence of cycle hating morons, the police would have little time for anything else. Mind you, a few public floggings would probably reduce the incidence of this particularly pervasive hate crime.
I am sorry to say it but I find this comparison to be offensive and trivialises the assault on the innocent goth lad:
No comparison.
Cyclists collectively need to grow a set instead of perpetually getting our knickers in a twist like complete pussies, over harmless nonsense like this from a villiage idiot no-mark councillor.
I obviously didn't make myself clear, fair enough.
We (cyclists) are always being told that "hate crime" is "only" against someone because of their ethnicity or their religion or their gender definition, and nothing else counts.
And yet this kid gets assaulted because he chooses to wear black clothing and listen to a particular musical genre and this *can* be treated as a hate crime? So, if his musical and fashion taste can qualify, why doesn't someone's choice of transport or anything else? Last time I checked, listening to the Sisters of Mercy wasn't a religious devotion...
So, not intending to trivialise the incident but to raise a valid question.
There are plenty of cyclists who need serious surgery, or burying, after they are deliberately knocked-off by drivers who are thinking "ah sure it's only a cylist", a type of thinking brought about by people like this councillor.
Wire strung up across cycle paths.
People being pushed off by passengers.
Reasonably close comparison.
Look, we know you hate cyclists, so why don't you go away and do something constructive?Maybe you could take over presenting Idiot Gear from Chris Evans?