We think it's bad here!

[Dave Davenport]

Mrs D's brother is a cyclist and lives in Western Australia, he's commented on a Facebook post that says that the poster saw a group of male adult cyclists ride straight through a pedestrian crossing as a group of small children were crossing and several of the kids were sent 'flying like skittles' as the cyclists rode off laughing.
Despite the fairly high number of anti cyclist types in the UK, I wouldn't expect many people here to actually believe that happened, but of the hundreds of comments about the post, 90% have taken it as gospel and it's a general free for all on cyclist hate.
I was aware that attitudes towards cyclists are a problem in Australia but I was pretty gob smacked by how angry / nasty / downright mental it seems to be.

 

[houblon]

I think that says more about Facebook than Australia

 

[HMS_Dave]

I bet they still find naked human diagrams in a Science Biology book funny too...

 

[Dave Davenport]

I think that says more about Facebook than Australia

Maybe, but I think there was a much keener desire to believe and probably want it to be true than what I'd expect if it had been posted here, even allowing for the Facearse factor.

 

[Rusty Nails]

Australia!

That bastion of rationality

 

[Drago]

I disliked Australia intensely. Every group seems to hate every other group, and theyre none to politically correct about how they express it. Its like England 50 or 60 years ago, but nastier.

 

[aferris2]

Never had any problems in Australia, whether that was while cycling, walking, or driving. I didn't cycle on many of the main roads there, but I wouldn't do that here either. I think they are some of the most friendly people in the world. I'm sure you can get some areas where it's not as safe, but that goes for just about any country.
Would go back there tomorrow if I could. Would most likely stay there if it wasn't for family here.

 

[Moodyman]

That's social media for you. Give the average Joe a keyboard and see them blossom into a colourful flower.

Anonymity allows people to spout whatever vitriol and prejudice they hold.

I don't wish to make a sweeping generalisation about a country with 25m+ people, but in cricket the Aussies had a reputation for being nasty, particular to teams from the sub-continent and the Caribbean.

 

[HLaB]

For a moment I thought Dave might be talking about this https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id...-shawn-bradley-paralyzed-result-bike-accident

 

[Drago]

The fact that a parliament dominated by car owners was willing and able to legislate to force cyclists to wear helmets in the name of safety, then saw a sharp reduction in cycling numbers but a rise in rates of cycling deaths and serious injuries, but still declines to act to remedy their error, tells me all I need to know about the place.

 

[Cycleops]

Of course this sort of thing is taken far more seriously in Europe. Like the Belgian cyclist who pushed a small girl over and got fined €1.
https://today.rtl.lu/news/world/a/1683277.html

 

[numbnuts]

I disliked Australia intensely. Every group seems to hate every other group, and theyre none to politically correct about how they express it. Its like England 50 or 60 years ago, but nastier.

Having lived there I found the Aussies really nice friendly people and made me very welcome, but that was in the 80s, maybe the "new generation" has changed

 

[Dave Davenport]

I was there for a year in the mid 80's, I think this is a cyclist specific thing that's emerged over the last 20 years or so.

 

[Randomnerd]

I disliked Australia intensely. Every group seems to hate every other group, and theyre none to politically correct about how they express it. Its like England 50 or 60 years ago, but nastier.

Good way to heal division @Drago, by disliking a place you know about, I suppose, from the news and Home and Away. The challenge of race relations in a country where indigenous people suffered genocide must be lost on you.

 

[gavroche]

Last time I was in Australia was in 1995, in Melbourne, although we did travel to the barrier reef and Sydney too. We found the people very friendly and I did go for a bike ride with my brother in law and had no trouble whatsoever. My wife has been there twice since to visit her sister who lives in Melbourne and loves the place.