Get Your Damn Bicycles Off My Lawn!
Matthew Cutrone, a 17 year old high school senior, had a government class assignment: he was supposed to write to a legislator about an issue he cared about.
Matthew’s mother had be hit by a car while out riding her bike in Suffolk County. Matthew wrote to a local Republican legislator asking about having bicycle lanes to make it safer for people like his mother.
The Republican, Thomas Barraga, has a much better solution. Get the Hell Off My Lawn!
Thomas Barraga
“I have lived in West Islip most of my life and my personal feeling is that no one who lives in our hamlet or for that matter in Suffolk County should ever ride a bicycle or motorcycle,” Barraga wrote. “I cannot tell you how many constituents over the year have told me that they are taking up bicycling for pleasure and exercise. I have told them not to do so but they usually do not listen – 90 percent of those people eventually were hit by an automobile, many like your mother with serious physical injuries.”
Barraga called Suffolk County “a suburban automobile community” and wrote that drivers expect to see other cars, but not bicyclists.
“Reality at time can be difficult for some to come to grips with but giving false hope would be inappropriate,” he wrote.
How ’bout this, Barraga, there are lots of car wrecks. Let’s get rid of cars. There are lots of old white men making America suck. Let’s get rid of …. yeah, Tommy B., I’m talking to you.
Both Matthew and his mother are a fiesta of incredibility over this. They like bicycles. They did not expect this response. Plus, Matthew’s mother wonders where Barrage got the 90% number. Well, Honey, it obviously wasn’t off the top of his head and I can’t get any volunteers to check his butt.
Thanks to Iron Celt for the heads up.
do you mean incredulity?
1Well, this moronic wonder is pure ugly from the top of his shiny bald head to that butt crack no one wants to check!
2Yeah, and 90% of white bald Repugs make up facts to support their narrow-minded, prejudiced opinions. Barraga should be barraged by outraged citizens over this mean-spirited response to an excellent suggestion.
3Linda, your guess is as good as mine.
4Usually when a politician disagrees with the sentiment of a constituent’s letter they reply with a form letter regarding the difficulties of addressing an issue. I have to say that this is the worst form letter I have ever seen.
5I thought the top of his head WAS his butt. 🙂
6Republicans used to be relatively sane before they adopted the slogan, “Reality is whatever we say it is, and don’t bother me with facts.”
So if you ride a bike in this jackwagon’s county and a car kills you, it’s your own damn fault. Who elected this gohmert?
7Barraga, there is gruffness and then there is nothing less than sheer bastardry. You landed with your mouth open in the latter pit.
8Holy Gohmerts! This bald pile of balderdash might move Loopy Louie off the top spot of Gohmert Mountain. At least Krissy Kremlin in NJ attacks adults, albeit frail women over 70, while this empathy free gohmert unloads on a kid. Given a chance for a “teaching moment” with the kid and compassion for his constituents, this gohmert reasserts his God given rights to run them down in a crosswalk with his gohmert substitute gas guzzling SUV.
BTW Jesus, did your Dad ever say that in His book? I can’t recall anything about camels and crosswalks.
Any of the The World’s Most Dangerous Beauty Salon, Inc. live near this gohmert? His lawn needs the full gohmert treatment, as does his porch, steps and driveway. Hopefully there’s a welder among your crew to ‘fix’ his water shut-off valve.
9Here’s betting that he doesn’t give a rat’s ass for the bicycle vote but that motorcycle thing’s gonna hurt.
10All our kids were born in Suffolk County, New York. When we lived in West Islip, it was an unincorporated village of 100,000. There used to be swarms of cyclists, mostly rich teenagers who used to block the street and dare you to keep driving. Kids in our neighborhood did not do that. Our kids learned to ride bikes in West Islip. See, there are no sidewalks in lots of areas. Our kids used to run up and down the edge of Pat Drive and ride their bikes around the block. It kind of depends on where you are, whether it’s safe or not but folks definitely ride bikes there. They SHOULDN’T ride on the highways unless bike lanes are put in. I’m sorry to hear about the GOP guy; I thought it had pretty much turned Democrat up there.
11According to imminent statistician (and comedian) Steven Wright, “42.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot.” including those attributed to Thomas Barraga. Fortunately 100% of pointless Republican legislators die, although most not soon enough.
12I wonder what Mr. Barraga would say about guns – they’re dangerous, after all…
13My guess that Barraga has teams of hit-cars going out to remove the scourge of non-petroleum-using modes of transport and 90% of them report successfully taking a bicycle off the road/sidewalk.
14Don’t be silly,RepubAnon. Who ever heard of a gun being run over by a bicyclist?
15Barraga’s been this way ever since the day his mommy discovered him riding his tricycle in the street.
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