LINDSAY ON RESISTANCE

I got an interesting email. 

It was a YouTube link and entitled 2WMR resistance or something. 

I don't know who sent it to me. The sender thingy said it was the resistance themselves and I suppose 'resistances' have ways of getting your email address - "Vee haff detailed files", and all that.

So I am thinking ... well I am actually thinking "What's this shit", but I am hoping, "This is it! This is what we've been waiting for!" 

In nanoseconds my mind, already a bloody scary place, conjured up images of dank warehouses where bikies who actually give a stuff gathered to make bombs and plot to throw them at nasty, anti-motorcycle people. I imagined passwords and codenames. I want in and I want a codename! Can I be Snow White? Nah, wait, too conspicuous and besides Walt Disney'll be turning in his fridge! I know, how about Finger Lime?

It's immaterial. The only warehouse is the one on the music video with a band playing a song, like they do in music videos, and blokes doing stunts on bikes 'n' shit.

Unless I am missing something, there is no resistance. Motorcycling is still the apathetic minority group, a stepping stone for politicians and pigs who work for government departments and need to subjugate someone to prove their worth. Cool song, but. Might listen to it again, but this 'resistance' BS seems to be just a cool thing to say - like when the Grand prix association, a chardonnay-quaffing bunch of anything-but-motorcycling pouffes give the nod for the MotoGp to use the phrase, "Riders Unite". 

It's pretty sad really, but you've come to expect that from a Lindsay Swift letter, eh! Well a pessimist in an informed optimist.

Sadder still is there are real mobs out there who, while they don't make bombs nor even outsource bombs and throw them into Vic Roads buildings (more is the pity), do give a stuff.

There are others who claim to be your 'representatives' but sit in the lap of the very swine they are supposed to be fighting. Why else would they stand on freeway overpasses while two thousand bikes ride beneath them in protest of anti-motorcycle measures?!

There are plenty of shops and importers and distributors too, who are happy to take your coin (you'll notice a pattern there) but give fuck all back. Some will- and I thank them, but for the most part, it's just gimme, gimme, gimme and having a protest ride advertised in their window or leaving a petition on their counter, well, we don't want to upset anybody eh!

But the real tragedy is that this video will attract five hundred times the hits that a legitimate motorcyclists' rights group will. Plankton who ride motorcycles will be bopping their empty, consumer heads to this song, but that's the extent of their "resistance".

Actually, speaking of the MotoGP- y'know "riders unite" and all that-  I asked one of the organisers if he could mention a protest coming up at his general morning proclamation to the marshals. There are several hundred marshals, almost all of whom ride motorcycles and all of whom - bar none - would be affected by anything the government does to enserf motorcycle riders.

I've never heard such a pissweak response about how he couldn't be seen to be doing that sort of thing. Government funding was mentioned!

I could go on, and usually would, but I have home brew in the fridge ...

Vive la resistance? Just like "Riders Unite". Yeah, fucken right!

Lindsay Swift