Editor's note - These two related articles celebrate and mourn lives
impacted by bicycling, cars and asphalt. The first is based on my
knowledge from living in Santa Cruz, a bike-friendly town like Berkeley
and Portland where cars stop for pedestrians and give bikes a break. The
second article is about a bicycling anti-car warrior, my late friend Bob
who of all things worked for decades as a traffic engineer for
California's Dept. of Transportation (Caltrans, or Cal Trance). Our
friend Gar Smith wrote Bob's obituary for the Daily Planet, Berkeley, that
Gar was able to share with Culture Change.
- JL
Manslaughter by Car: a Bicyclist and a Small Pedestrian
By Jan Lundberg
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/743/1/
Our recent article on Bob Berry, recently departed friend of Culture
Change, highlighted his car-free, bicycling lifestyle. He died of natural
causes at the relatively young age of 62, which goes to show that being a
bicyclist and walker do not alone ensure longevity. He was a creature of
habit which did not include being a health nut. But his life was full --
not cut short by some thoughtless driver.
Young people are killed by cars often when bicycling or walking. Zachary
Parke, age 25, was recently killed by a hit and run driver while biking in
a bike lane. Little Zachary Cruz wasn't even six years old when he was hit
by a car when crossing the street with a responsible adult. Can you
imagine how the parents feel about losing their loved ones so senselessly?
Both Zachs spawned strong reactions because of the sense of loss. Zach
Parke's friends and friends of friends mounted the biggest critical-mass
bike ride in Santa Cruz in many years. Little Zach's family made sure that
thousands of people were instructed by police to take better care behind
the wheel. [to see photos and read the rest of this story go to
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/743/1/ ]
_______________________
Climbing a Bikeway to Heaven: Bob Berry Remembered
By Gar Smith
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/740/1/
Robert Stephen Berry
March 18, 1949 - May 19, 2011
It's not every day you find a Quaker church service crammed with CalTrans
(California Dept. of Transportation) employees -- especially when more
than half of them are decked out in tie-dyed shirts. But it's not everyday
that our community says goodbye to a unique Berkeley treasure like Bob
Berry -- a songwriting, pro-biking activist who became so disenchanted
with traditional political parties that, in the Bicentennial Year of 1976,
he dedicated himself to reviving the Whig Party. The invitation to Berry's
June 10 memorial service included a unique request: "The family hopes that
people attending the memorial service would arrive in tie-dyed T-shirts to
honor Bob's free spirit."
According to longtime friend and housemate, Tom Yamaguchi, Bob died
suddenly, after a short illness. He leaves behind a brother, daughter
Avila Birch, a wide circle of friends and CalTrans colleagues and a
legendary library containing tens of thousands of books, many of which are
related to conspiracy research.
Bob was one of the first activists to take to the road with the Bike
Coalition and in support of the Critical Mass bicycling events that have
now become a worldwide phenomenon. His first job after graduating from UC
Berkeley was working as a loadmaster at Zoom Zoom Air, which carried cargo
from SF to LA on a small fleet of propeller-driven DC-3s and C-47s. Bob
felt comfortable working at Zoom Zoom, which he liked to call a "Marxist
Airline." He joined CalTrans in 1983 and quickly moved through a series of
promotions as he proved himself to be an "invaluable" employee.
Bob was active in the Free Speech Movement and in the People's Park
demonstrations. He also worked at the Berkeley Barb, one of the country's
first "underground" newspapers. In addition to tracking conspiracy
theories, Bob liked to spend his free time marching in anti-war rallies
and getting down at Grateful Dead concerts. [to read the remainder of this
article go to http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/740/1/ ]
* * * * *
Culture Change
Publisher and Editor: Jan Lundberg,
independent oil industry analyst
P.O. Box 3387, Santa Cruz, CA 95063 USA
tel./fax: 1-215-243-3144
Send feedback to info@culturechange.org Please don't hit Reply.
REMEMBER that Culture Change depends on you to exist! Please visit our
secure online donation page at http://www.culturechange.org/donate.html or
mail a tax-deductible donation in the form of check or money order to the
above address, payable to "Culture Change/GVI". Thank you.
impacted by bicycling, cars and asphalt. The first is based on my
knowledge from living in Santa Cruz, a bike-friendly town like Berkeley
and Portland where cars stop for pedestrians and give bikes a break. The
second article is about a bicycling anti-car warrior, my late friend Bob
who of all things worked for decades as a traffic engineer for
California's Dept. of Transportation (Caltrans, or Cal Trance). Our
friend Gar Smith wrote Bob's obituary for the Daily Planet, Berkeley, that
Gar was able to share with Culture Change.
- JL
Manslaughter by Car: a Bicyclist and a Small Pedestrian
By Jan Lundberg
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/743/1/
Our recent article on Bob Berry, recently departed friend of Culture
Change, highlighted his car-free, bicycling lifestyle. He died of natural
causes at the relatively young age of 62, which goes to show that being a
bicyclist and walker do not alone ensure longevity. He was a creature of
habit which did not include being a health nut. But his life was full --
not cut short by some thoughtless driver.
Young people are killed by cars often when bicycling or walking. Zachary
Parke, age 25, was recently killed by a hit and run driver while biking in
a bike lane. Little Zachary Cruz wasn't even six years old when he was hit
by a car when crossing the street with a responsible adult. Can you
imagine how the parents feel about losing their loved ones so senselessly?
Both Zachs spawned strong reactions because of the sense of loss. Zach
Parke's friends and friends of friends mounted the biggest critical-mass
bike ride in Santa Cruz in many years. Little Zach's family made sure that
thousands of people were instructed by police to take better care behind
the wheel. [to see photos and read the rest of this story go to
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/743/1/ ]
_______________________
Climbing a Bikeway to Heaven: Bob Berry Remembered
By Gar Smith
http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/740/1/
Robert Stephen Berry
March 18, 1949 - May 19, 2011
It's not every day you find a Quaker church service crammed with CalTrans
(California Dept. of Transportation) employees -- especially when more
than half of them are decked out in tie-dyed shirts. But it's not everyday
that our community says goodbye to a unique Berkeley treasure like Bob
Berry -- a songwriting, pro-biking activist who became so disenchanted
with traditional political parties that, in the Bicentennial Year of 1976,
he dedicated himself to reviving the Whig Party. The invitation to Berry's
June 10 memorial service included a unique request: "The family hopes that
people attending the memorial service would arrive in tie-dyed T-shirts to
honor Bob's free spirit."
According to longtime friend and housemate, Tom Yamaguchi, Bob died
suddenly, after a short illness. He leaves behind a brother, daughter
Avila Birch, a wide circle of friends and CalTrans colleagues and a
legendary library containing tens of thousands of books, many of which are
related to conspiracy research.
Bob was one of the first activists to take to the road with the Bike
Coalition and in support of the Critical Mass bicycling events that have
now become a worldwide phenomenon. His first job after graduating from UC
Berkeley was working as a loadmaster at Zoom Zoom Air, which carried cargo
from SF to LA on a small fleet of propeller-driven DC-3s and C-47s. Bob
felt comfortable working at Zoom Zoom, which he liked to call a "Marxist
Airline." He joined CalTrans in 1983 and quickly moved through a series of
promotions as he proved himself to be an "invaluable" employee.
Bob was active in the Free Speech Movement and in the People's Park
demonstrations. He also worked at the Berkeley Barb, one of the country's
first "underground" newspapers. In addition to tracking conspiracy
theories, Bob liked to spend his free time marching in anti-war rallies
and getting down at Grateful Dead concerts. [to read the remainder of this
article go to http://www.culturechange.org/cms/content/view/740/1/ ]
* * * * *
Culture Change
Publisher and Editor: Jan Lundberg,
independent oil industry analyst
P.O. Box 3387, Santa Cruz, CA 95063 USA
tel./fax: 1-215-243-3144
Send feedback to info@culturechange.org Please don't hit Reply.
REMEMBER that Culture Change depends on you to exist! Please visit our
secure online donation page at http://www.culturechange.org/donate.html or
mail a tax-deductible donation in the form of check or money order to the
above address, payable to "Culture Change/GVI". Thank you.
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