Dems: No Health Care Bill in 2009

In what is sure to be a surprise onto the White House, Democrats are now admitting that no Health Care Reform Bill will be passed or signed this year.

http://abcnews.go.com/m/screen?id=8987651&pid=4380645

While President Obama has been publicly confident about the bill, the myriad of problems to be worked through have been daunting for legislators and the public. The fact is that we are looking to overhaul a problem 50 years in the making, and it will take time to pick and choose which parts to keep and which to throw out, especially since the Democratic Leadership has made it clear they have no interest in smaller bills which address only select parts of the problem.

Sunrise and bicycling, the perfect combo?

Posted via email from The Bike Nomad

"Light exercise" reduces death risk by 60%

I took up the bicycle purely as a way to lose weight, when I realized it was out of control.  But for many, there is not as obvious a trigger for action as the number on the scale.  A new study gives us a really good number to get us onto a bike:  60% increased survival rate for those who do light exercise.  The increase was seen by those who did only 50 minutes of walking or bicycling three-times-a-week, saw huge gains in their survival rate.  This was especially pronounced for those under high stress from their jobs or other life circumstances.

If you ever needed a reason to get onto two wheels, this has got to be it!

Posted via email from The Bike Nomad

Too Good Not to Post

Here is a true story posted by someone on Neal Bortz' website in a comment section of one of his posts.

"A few years ago, I pulled into a 7-11 and a car was running in the parking lot. A guy was getting into it and I told him that he was taking a big risk doing that. He said, "I hear ya" and drove off. I went in to get my caffeine jolt and a guy comes running in saying his car had been stolen. I'd been speaking to the car thief.

I live in MD and it is against the law to keep a car running unattended. The guy not only lost his car, but was cited by the responding officer."

Too Funny.

Bikes vs Cars on the Roads

A key problem facing cyclists as we try to expand our numbers is how to share the road with automobile-drivers.  Communities around the country are struggling to determine the best way to encourage life on 2 wheels, without making it less safe for those involved.  Some advocate dedicated bike paths and "bikeways" to keep confrontation between bikes and cars to a minimum, while others  believe that "claiming the road" as equals is the best way to promote equal treatment.  Studies show the more people biking, the safer the ride is, as motorists become used to dealing with cyclists and thus are more tolerant.  Yet, cities seeing fewer accidents with a rising number of cyclists are also seeing a rising severity of injuries.

What do our readers think?  What is the best way to encourage cycling, while keeping it safe?

Posted via email from The Bike Nomad

Crimson under bright skies

Crimson under bright skies
Originally uploaded by nomad7674.

CIT Files for Bankruptcy

CIT picked Sunday afternoon to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. CIT had been considering bankruptcy for some time, but finally had to do it. The government had hoped to stave off the bankruptcy by lending CIT $2.3 Billion earlier this year.