Let me start by expressing my sincere disappointment with several proposals that passed across USA. They have to do with amending the state constitution to add a clear discrimination. This is understandable for the random bigot states, but it is really incredible that something like this happened in California. California is probably the most progressive state in the US, but looks like there is a large enough number of homophobic and discriminating people that something like this can pass. Unbelievable.

But, let me ask you something else. Regardless if you believe with discriminating proposals or not, how can the state constitution be modified by a simple and actually weak majority? By weak, I mean less than 50% of voters. In California there are over 17 million voters and only something over 5 million voted for this proposal. I usually associate a modification of constitution with a two third majority.

Now, this is where it gets weird. There was a “measure B” on the ballot, which has to do with a specific improvement of public transportation around the city of San Jose. It does not matter if you agree with it or not, but here is the interesting part. In order to pass this measure, you need a two third majority. And since only 66.41% people voted yes, the measure lost. By .25%.

Ok, now, let’s compare these two referendums. The amending of constitution requires a simple majority, while the referendum on spending some money requires two third majority. Think about this one for a second. Constitution versus spending money. Human rights… Money… Now you know where the priorities are. Think about this as you are contemplating a 850 billion dollar bailout for the financial industry without a referendum.

Human rights should always be protected. Any constitutional change that limits human rights should be passed extremely carefully. At least two thirds majority if not a two thirds of all the registered voters. On the other hand, financial conservancy is a good thing, but it if spending large amounts of money to bail out car companies and spend enormous amount of money to build roads without any referendums, it is interesting that this require two thirds majority.

Today is an election day in USA. Here in California, people will most likely elect the “that guy” as opposed to “that other guy”. In any case, make sure to
GO OUT AND VOTE! and HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

I don’t really want to tell you who to vote or what other measures and propositions to vote yes or no on. I would like to ask you something though. Either vote for something, that you believe it, even if that is a candidate that does not stand a chance, or if you vote for the least bad, make sure to keep them accountable.

Most people talk about keeping politicians accountable, but they don’t really act on it. For example, a recent minority party suddenly become a majority claiming that they will do a sweeping changes that people want. Once they came in power they actually supported most of the extremely bad policies. Some of them were so bad that the previous majority did not managed to pass. And there is no accountability, since the same new majority will probably be even stronger this time around. Their excuse is that they do not have big enough majority and that the president will veto things. But, what I really think is that they are afraid of losing their precious money from their supporters. Remember, it is not the people who elect a candidate but their financial supporters.

So, if you are a USA citizen, do your civic duty and vote. Then, make sure to get your vote counted. And I don’t mean by taking photos of ballots or doing all this other things to prevent voting fraud. Make sure your vote is counted, by making sure the things you are voting for actually do happen. Vote based on issues and not a person.

Finally, I heard of this and I think everybody should join the Million Mad March. It is a

one million angry people to gather with us in the streets of their state capitals and march in protest of the direction that our country has taken, and the dissection of the people’s role, towards what seems to be our eventual removal from the political system meant to protect and represent us.

So, one more timemake sure to
GO OUT AND VOTE! and HAVE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

Here is a little video from my recent trip to Slovenia, where I did a lot of cycling. Among other, I biked from Ljubljana to Koper and then to Novi Grad, Croatia. All together about 107 miles.

Enjoy.

I love “I’m a Mac…” commercials. So, I was super happy when I saw those:

Make sure to see other ones too:

• Another one
• and another one
• and yet another one
• More videos..

And make sure if you are in California to vote No on Prop 8. And when voting, make sure to vote Yes on Prop 1a and Yes on Prop 2.

As it stands, I have only two more months left to complete this year’s goal of a century a month. Last couple of months, I did everything from trying to challenge myself on Santa Cruz mountains, finishing my fastest century on Waves to Wine, go on unsupported century around Mt Hamilton, and finally did an unsupported almost double century in Napa. I wonder what I will do in November and December.

So, since there is two months left before the new year, I am asking you to help me find a more challenging goal for the next year. Here are some suggestions:

• 6 double centuries
• 24 centuries
• 12 unsupported centuries
• Century on a unicycle
• …

Well, let me know.

Great song by Pet Shop Boys called “What Keeps Mankind Alive?:

You gentlemen who think you have a mission
to purge us of the seven deadly sins
should first sort out the basic food position
then start your preaching, that’s where it begins

You lot who preach restraint and watch your waist as well
should learn for all time how the world is run
However much you twist, whatever lies you tell
food is the first thing, morals follow on
So first make sure that those who now are starving
get proper helpings when we all start carving

What keeps mankind alive? The fact that millions
are daily tortured, stifled, punished, silenced, oppressed
Mankind can keep alive thanks to its brilliance
at keeping its humanity repressed
For once you must not try to shirk the facts
Mankind is kept alive by bestial acts

You say the girls may strip with your permission
You draw the line dividing art from sin
So first sort out the basic food position
then start your preaching, that’s where it begins

You lot who bank on your desires and our disgust
should learn for all time how the world is run
Whatever lies you tell, however much you twist
food is the first thing, morals follow on
So first make sure that those who now are starving
get proper helpings when we all start carving

What keeps mankind alive? The fact that millions
are daily tortured, stifled, punished, silenced, oppressed
Mankind can keep alive thanks to its brilliance
at keeping its humanity repressed
For once you must not try to shirk the facts
Mankind is kept alive by bestial acts

Mankind can keep alive thanks to its brilliance
at keeping its humanity repressed
For once you must not try to shirk the facts
Mankind is kept alive by bestial acts

Happy World Vegetarian Day!!

Go VEGAN!

Today on my ride to work, I broke my personal and probably most people’s record in the flats. And I am not only talking about the quantity but also quality.

Ok, start from beginning. I just recently moved to a new place in San Jose. Now my commute instead of involving suicide missions on Matilda Avenue in Sunnyvale, I just jump on the Guadalupe Trail at my condo and ride that all the way to Alviso. I have to cross a single road. The bad? Well, the Guadalupe Trail is currently mostly packed gravel. But it is totally worth it. Especially on my fixed gear. I zip at 20 mph and not worry about the cars.

Well, today in the morning I was waiting to cross the single road I have to cross and as everywhere in the Bay Area, the intersection has the car friendly but bike unfriendly sensors. So, I jumped on the sidewalk and pressed the pedestrian button. On the way back on the road I went through some brush. When I started to ride, I notice my tires are covered with some brown stuff. So I stopped to remove that and to my horror realize that the stuff was about a hundred thorns per tire. After removing couple of them, I heard the tire deflating.

So, I walked back home and switched to my road bike and zipped using the surface roads to work. Those roads are actually pretty good backup, especially since there is actually less traffic on them and are generally faster than my old commute from Sunnyvale. That is even though my new commute is close to 8 miles and my old one was close to 6 miles.

But back to my tire problem. I have not yet taken the tire apart, but I am convinced that what I will see is a tube littered with tiny holes all over the place. Coworker recommended I get the puncture proof tires. He recommended Armadillo. I guess I will see. It would be nice to find some with a more aggressive profile than a regular road tires. Something that will work good on the gravel.

Watch in “real-time” the ice melting.

Well, I guess there is going to be more water for everybody.

EC and I attended a road bike race on Sunday in Benicia, California. This was my first road race and it showed. I did several rookie mistakes, but I finished the race and I was not the last. And hey, sustaining close to 25 miles per hour for 30 minutes with lots of turns is actually pretty good. After about two thirds of the race, the pack dropped us and a small group of us was trying to finish the race. That meant no real drafting, no real pace line. We were all over the place. But all said and done, we were not the last.

Couple of things for the next time:

• Practice taking corners at hight speed. One time in the corner 4 I hit the road with my pedal, which freaked me out for every turn from there on. That slowed me down significantly.
• Get warmed up before the race. Starting racing with a cold body may work for 10 minutes but not for 30 minutes
• Eat after being warmed up not on a cold stomach.

What a perfect week for a great biking song:

S-s-s-s A-a-a-a F-f-f-f E-e-e-e T-t-t-t Y-y-y-y
Safe, bike!

[Spoken]
We can bike if we want to
We can leave your friends behind
‘Cause your friends don’t bike and if they don’t bike
Well they’re no friends of mine
I say, we can go where we want to
A place where they will never find
And we can act like we come from out of this world
Leave the real one far behind
And we can bike

[Sung]
We can bike if we want to
We can leave your friends behind
‘Cause your friends don’t bike and if they don’t bike
Well they’re no friends of mine
I say, we can go where we want to
A place where they will never find
And we can act like we come from out of this world
Leave the real one far behind
And we can bike
Bike!

We can go when we want to
Morning is young and so am I
And we can dress real neat from our helmets to our feet
And surprise ‘em with the victory cry
Say, we can act if want to
If we don’t nobody will
And you can act real rude and totally removed
And I can act like an imbecile

[Refrain]
I say, we can bike, we can bike
Everything out of control
We can bike, we can bike
We’re doing it from wall to wall
We can bike, we can bike
Everybody look at your hands
We can bike, we can bike
Everybody takin’ the cha-a-a-ance

Safety bike
Is it safe to bike
Is it safe to bike

S-s-s-s A-a-a-a F-f-f-f E-e-e-e T-t-t-t Y-y-y-y
Safe, bike!

We can bike if we want to
We’ve got all your life and mine
As long as we abuse it, never gonna lose it
Everything’ll work out right
I say, we can bike if we want to
We can leave your friends behind
‘Cause your friends don’t bike and if they don’t bike
Well they’re no friends of mine

[Refrain]

Is it safe to bike, oh is it safe to bike [6x]
Is it safe to bike

It started! “If you are not with us, you are against us…” Isn’t that so. Well, looks like people that do not agree with establishment will be put to jail. Among them my favorite journalist and an awesome person Amy Goodman. Why, well, because she is trying to show public how things like 1st amendment and various other freedoms are great for invading countries, but prosecuted with a military force in this country. Be careful Glenn Greenwald, you are next!

• Scenes from St. Paul — Democracy Now’s Amy Goodman arrested
• Amy Goodman and Two Democracy Now! Producers Unlawfully Arrested At the RNC

Goodman was arrested while attempting to free two Democracy Now! producers who were being unlawfuly detained. They are Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar. Kouddous and Salazar were arrested while they carried out their journalistic duties in covering street demonstrations at the Republican National Convention. Goodman’s crime appears to have been defending her colleagues and the freedom of the press.

Please help Amy spread freedom!

Should the bikes be on the roads? Well, this is a tricky question… for some people. For me it is pretty simple. Yes. But, let’s go baby steps. What is the best way to travel? It turns out the most efficient way is bike. The least efficient way is a single passenger car. In between are things like trains, buses, walking, etc.

But what is the cost of each mode of transportation? Well, walking is pretty much free. For biking, you got to buy a bike. Most people will say that trains are super expensive, because you have to build tracks etc. But what about cars? What is the cost of a car? Well, let’s do a quick math. My assumption is that we buy a car and throw it away 10 years later.

• Normal car: $17,000
• Gas for 10 years at 22 mpg and 15,000 miles per year and $4 per gallon: (15000 / 22) * $4 * 10 = $27,240
• Oil changes every 3000 miles: (15000 / 3000) * $15 * 10 = $750
• Repairs let say $500 per year: $5,000
• Insurance and registration is another $900 per year: $9,000

Did I forget something? Anyway, according to my math, the total cost of having a car for 10 years is about $58,990. But is that the total cost of driving?

Let’s start by comparing this to a bike. Not completely fair comparison, but let’s try it anyway:

• Normal bike: $800
• Panniers, trailer: $600
• Tubes, break pads, let say 10 tubes a year ($5), 2 tires a year ($20), 2 sets of break pads a year ($20): $1000
• Repairs let say $200 per year: $2,000

Did I miss something here? Well, the total is $4,400. And this is for a bike that is tuned twice a year, gets new tires and break pads once a year, has panniers, trailer and so on.

Ok, how about public transportation. Assuming you live in the Bay Area, you are looking at the cost of a bus and Caltrain, Bart, Ace, or Amtrak. So, you are looking at anywhere from $5 to $12 per day for the commuter rail, and couple of dollars per day for the bus if you need a local connection. Assuming the worst, you are looking at $2 for a bus in the south bay, $6 for the Caltrain to San Francisco, and another $1.5 in San Francisco. This twice a day is $19 per day, which in 10 years is about $49,400. But this is the worst case. Also, all public transportation modes have 10 rides or monthly plans. Also, there are commuter tax breaks for the public transport. All these incentives can lower the cost of riding down to couple of $100 per year.

So, according to this, whoever can bike to work should. There is significant saving in that. So even ignoring impact on environment, health, and time, this should be enough motivation for most people to change their transportation habits.

Here are some random pages I saw and I thought were cool/funny/interesting/crazy:

• Pay off your share of the US national debt

Transportation

• Bike to work is healthy
• Energy cost of movement
• Live longer, run
• Cool and scary photos of traffic from space

Vegan

• Naked chicks protesting against UK guards wearing fur
• E. coli in Whole Foods beef

Social Security Number

• Protect your SSN
• How secure is your SSN

I am consistently harassed by car drivers when I ride bike to work or back home. Most of them seem to be annoyed by the fact that I am on the road where they think only cars should be. But according to CA Department of Motor Vehicles, I have all right to be there:

Permitted Movements from Bicycle Lanes

21208. (a) Whenever a bicycle lane has been established on a roadway pursuant to Section 21207, any person operating a bicycle upon the roadway at a speed less than the normal speed of traffic moving in the same direction at that time shall ride within the bicycle lane, except that the person may move out of the lane under any of the following situations:

(1) When overtaking and passing another bicycle, vehicle, or pedestrian within the lane or about to enter the lane if the overtaking and passing cannot be done safely within the lane.

(2) When preparing for a left turn at an intersection or into a private road or driveway.

(3) When reasonably necessary to leave the bicycle lane to avoid debris or other hazardous conditions.

(4) When approaching a place where a right turn is authorized.

(b) No person operating a bicycle shall leave a bicycle lane until the movement can be made with reasonable safety and then only after giving an appropriate signal in the manner provided in Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 22100) in the event that any vehicle may be affected by the movement.
Amended Sec. 5, Ch. 674, Stats. 1996. Effective January 1, 1997.

In other words, if there is no bike lane, and this is not a freeway, I have a right to be on the road. Also, if there is potentially damaging stuff or some other obstacle on the bike lane, I can go on the road.

I want those pants:

Interested in some awesome Japanese vegan dishes?