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PostPosted: Fri Jun 19, 2015 16:29 
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:gatso2: From the London Evening Standard

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/a ... 24967.html


Angry cyclist films woman eating bowl of cereal behind the wheel of her Land Rover




Ben Morgan

Published: 17 June 2015


Updated: 13:05, 17 June 2015

This is the moment a woman was caught on camera driving in rush hour at a busy junction – with the steering wheel in one hand and a bowl of breakfast cereal in the other.

Cycling instructor David Williams, 47, captured the footage on his helmet camera as he was riding in Hampton Court, south-west London, at around 8.45am yesterday.

He spotted a middle-aged woman driving a £50,000 red Land Rover Discovery spooning the cereal into her mouth as she waited at the approach to Creek Road.

The woman simply shrugged and pulled away when challenged.

Mr Williams told the Standard the driver’s behaviour was “so bonkers” he had to share the video.

He said: “She looked like a normal, everyday mum on the school run. Then I saw her putting spoonfuls of cereal in her mouth holding the wheel with one hand.

“I encouraged her to put the bowl down. It was quite bonkers. I think maybe it was porridge or muesli.

“She just shrugged her shoulders. The fact the car was moving makes it completely unacceptable.

“She was coming up to a junction and there was a lot going on around her and the view in front of her wasn’t great. It was dangerous.”

Mr Williams, a father of two, has handed the footage over to Surrey Police who are analysing the video to identify the driver.

He said: “I’m passionate about road safety and I don’t feel she should be able to get away with this. When you see something this idiotic you just want to share it with the world.

“It absolutely beggars belief that someone would think this was any way to behave in a vehicle.”

Since he uploaded the video yesterday afternoon hundreds of people have taken to social media to lambast the driver.

One said: “It is genuinely insane what some people do while driving. Still, she’s in that big car so I’m sure she’ll be fine.

While another added: “Good catch. She won’t be doing that again in a hurry.”

Section 8 of the Highway Code states drivers should avoid distractions such as eating, drinking, smoking, map-reading and arguing with passengers or other road users.

In 2005 a nursery nurse who was stopped because she was holding an apple while driving was fined £60 and ordered to pay £100 costs.

One man was caught eating a KitKat while driving on the M3 near Winchester and issued with a £20 fixed penalty for not being in control of the vehicle. The fine was later retracted by police who admitted it was “inappropriate”.

A Surrey Police spokeswoman confirmed that officers were investigating.

Well observed, Mr.Williams. This is precisely the sort of inconsiderate, careless driving that speed/red light/bus lane cameras DON'T detect! Congratulations for being so vigilant. Excellent.

I hope that stupid woman "does porridge" for this offense. Pun intended!

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PostPosted: Fri Jun 19, 2015 22:08 
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Of course cyclists can do this without any risk of the same treatment being applied to them, given that they do not carry licence plates. If they did, all this video vigilantism would abruptly come to an end.

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PostPosted: Fri Jun 19, 2015 23:23 
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There is a certain delicious irony in stories about a cyclist having a good wallow in a bath of self-righteous outrage at the sight of some other road user breaking a rule... :roll:


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PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2015 13:59 
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Mole wrote:
There is a certain delicious irony in stories about a cyclist having a good wallow in a bath of self-righteous outrage at the sight of some other road user breaking a rule... :roll:


Why? Do you think the cyclist that took the video is a lawbreaker too?


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PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2015 22:58 
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Quote:
Why? Do you think the cyclist that took the video is a lawbreaker too?


CERTAINLY. Not in control of their conveyance( I said !"their", as you may wish to conveniently forget ,sometime in the future, that it was a Woman, not a robot or something from Pluto etc( or a CCTV CAMERA) that used at least one hand to hold the recording device that recorded these images, BE IT ON/IN A CYCLE OR CARRIAGE. But then ,perhaps the good lady filmed this when turning ( left/right- apply as applicable) ,and took a long time to return her arm to the handlebars.
of course as PeterE said
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Of course cyclists can do this without any risk of the same treatment being applied to them, given that they do not carry licence plates. If they did, all this video vigilantism would abruptly come to an end.


I note of course that our resident cycle HAS yet to defend/condone/condemn the actions in a wildlife conservation ship park of so called cyclists ( after all they ride cycles, so are cyclists), mutilating a wildlife park. NOW, if it was 4x4v blokes- he/it would be straight in with the verbals. But in this case, cat/Badger/Fox has had his tongue( and perhaps his inner tubes)

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PostPosted: Fri Jul 03, 2015 23:52 
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weepej wrote:
Mole wrote:
There is a certain delicious irony in stories about a cyclist having a good wallow in a bath of self-righteous outrage at the sight of some other road user breaking a rule... :roll:


Why? Do you think the cyclist that took the video is a lawbreaker too?

I said "a" cyclist, not "that" cyclist.


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PostPosted: Sat Jul 04, 2015 21:21 
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Mole wrote:
weepej wrote:
Mole wrote:
There is a certain delicious irony in stories about a cyclist having a good wallow in a bath of self-righteous outrage at the sight of some other road user breaking a rule... :roll:


Why? Do you think the cyclist that took the video is a lawbreaker too?

I said "a" cyclist, not "that" cyclist.


That's even worse.

Do you apply such prejudice to other parts of your life?

So a cyclist can't pull up a driver acting like that because other cyclists break the law?

That's ridiculous.

I see people driving cars breaking the law too, does that mean I should assume all drivers do and that a driver can't comment on the behaviour of other drivers?

And by extension using your twisted logic any driver certainly can't comment of the behaviour of any cyclist, because just this morning I saw a driver using a mobile phone behind the wheel, whilst speeding. with your lgic, that means ALL drivers are culpable for his behaviour.

I think you're so far down you little hole of prejudice you really can't see the implications of what you're writing.


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PostPosted: Sun Jul 05, 2015 00:26 
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weepej wrote:
That's even worse.

Do you apply such prejudice to other parts of your life?

"Prejudice"? Oh purrrr-lease! Cyclists, as a group, have a (well deserved) reputation for being "less-than-rigorous" in their observance of traffic regulations. By all means though, feel free to mount your high (cycle) and assume a suitably shocked and affronted air...

weepej wrote:
So a cyclist can't pull up a driver acting like that because other cyclists break the law?

That's ridiculous.

Where did I say that? The cyclist can (and has) pulled up a driver for breaking the law. I was expressing wry amusement at the irony of the situation. An irony that shall continue to amuse me, because of the attitude that I see so many cyclists displaying towards the law.

weepej wrote:
I see people driving cars breaking the law too, does that mean I should assume all drivers do and that a driver can't comment on the behaviour of other drivers?

What you should or shouldn't assume is your own affair, but I'm not sure that drivers commenting on the behaviour of other drivers is that relevant to this topic? This was a cyclist commenting on the behaviour of a driver. (Well, a bit more than "commenting", in fact). If it had been a video of a cyclist busy being outraged by the behaviour of another cyclist, it might, I suppose...?

weepej wrote:
And by extension using your twisted logic any driver certainly can't comment of the behaviour of any cyclist, because just this morning I saw a driver using a mobile phone behind the wheel, whilst speeding. with your lgic, that means ALL drivers are culpable for his behaviour.

Ah, but then, this WASN'T a driver commenting on the behaviour of a cyclist, was it? As I have already said, any road user is free comment on the behaviour of any other road user. In fact, I could go further and say that any road user is free to don a camera and go off in search of any other road user(s) to be outraged by, and post the resulting videos on social media (if that's what floats their boat) - but a quick count on Youtube will soon show that videos posted by cyclists seem to be "rather well represented" in that respect.

weepej wrote:
I think you're so far down you little hole of prejudice you really can't see the implications of what you're writing.

On the contrary - not only "see", but resolutely and unapologetically stand by. If cyclists want to change my "prejudiced" views of their behaviour, such that I don't express wry amusement when they post videos of other groups of road users breaking traffic regulations, they know what they need to do...


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PostPosted: Sun Jul 05, 2015 09:51 
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Your prejudice is blinding you I'm afraid, and law breaking motorists are much more of a danger to us all than law breaking cyclists.

Quote:
Two-Thirds of US Drivers Break the Law Behind the Wheel - A fifth do it on a daily basis.


http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2014/09 ... the-wheel/

Quote:
AA survey says more than 40% of motorists text and drive

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19568368

Quote:
Half of drivers admit breaking traffic laws


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... -laws.html


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PostPosted: Sun Jul 05, 2015 10:02 
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botach wrote:
that it was a Woman, not a robot or something from Pluto etc( or a CCTV CAMERA) that used at least one hand to hold the recording device that recorded these images, BE IT ON/IN A CYCLE OR CARRIAGE. But then ,perhaps the good lady filmed this when turning ( left/right- apply as applicable) ,and took a long time to return her arm to the handlebars. .


Massive comprehension fail again botach. The camera was helmet mounted, not handheld.

botach wrote:
I note of course that our resident cycle HAS yet to defend/condone/condemn the actions in a wildlife conservation ship park of so called cyclists ( after all they ride cycles, so are cyclists), mutilating a wildlife park. NOW, if it was 4x4v blokes- he/it would be straight in with the verbals. But in this case, cat/Badger/Fox has had his tongue( and perhaps his inner tubes)


And that's just off topic.


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PostPosted: Sun Jul 05, 2015 22:04 
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I could reply to your off topic remark, but unlike you I do not descend to personal remarks and dragging up items of NO relevance to a particular post. My comment was to highlight how you choose to ignore any post you cannot make political capital from .

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PostPosted: Sun Jul 05, 2015 23:44 
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weepej wrote:
Your prejudice is blinding you I'm afraid, and law breaking motorists are much more of a danger to us all than law breaking cyclists.

Quote:
Two-Thirds of US Drivers Break the Law Behind the Wheel - A fifth do it on a daily basis.


http://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2014/09 ... the-wheel/

Quote:
AA survey says more than 40% of motorists text and drive

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19568368

Quote:
Half of drivers admit breaking traffic laws


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... -laws.html


I think you're missing the point. I never claimed that motorists DIDN'T break the law. I merely expressed amusement that one of a group of road users (also with a less-than-perfect reputation when it comes to compliance), should choose to draw it to the world's attention! It's the old "post-and-kettles" thing that I'm sure you'll be familiar with.


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 00:15 
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BUT in the ideal world of the blinkered cyclist, kettles do not exist. Pots might, to be sited on a wall and ( like mushrooms ) have stacks of manure thrown on them .

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PostPosted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 20:32 
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Mole wrote:
I merely expressed amusement that one of a group of road users (also with a less-than-perfect reputation when it comes to compliance), should choose to draw it to the world's attention! It's the old "post-and-kettles" thing that I'm sure you'll be familiar with.



Which group of road users are you talking about?

If you're going to be simplistic and divide road users up into two groups, the same can be said of both groups.

So car drivers can never complain about cyclists because many of them break the law, and cyclists can't complain about drivers, because many of them break the law.

You see I think drivers as a group (not that I think we should think like that) are equally as bad as cyclist as a group at obeying laws.

I think you don't.

I think you're prejudiced.


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 20:58 
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botach wrote:
BUT in the ideal world of the blinkered cyclist, kettles do not exist. Pots might, to be sited on a wall and ( like mushrooms ) have stacks of manure thrown on them .


What laws do you break when you drive botach?


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 21:21 
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weepej wrote:
Mole wrote:
I merely expressed amusement that one of a group of road users (also with a less-than-perfect reputation when it comes to compliance), should choose to draw it to the world's attention! It's the old "post-and-kettles" thing that I'm sure you'll be familiar with.



Which group of road users are you talking about?

Something tells me you're asking a question you already know the answer to? :scratchchin:

weepej wrote:
If you're going to be simplistic and divide road users up into two groups, the same can be said of both groups.

Indeed it can - and no, I don't think I ever said there were only two groups of road users? I was certainly talking about two particular groups in this thread because those are the two groups mentioned in the original post. I don't think that's unreasonable?

weepej wrote:
So car drivers can never complain about cyclists because many of them break the law, and cyclists can't complain about drivers, because many of them break the law.

That would certainly be a nice situation to be in, but alas, seemingly not possible. In fact, this particular thread was about a cyclist deciding to do just that.

weepej wrote:
You see I think drivers as a group (not that I think we should think like that) are equally as bad as cyclist as a group at obeying laws.

"Equally" eh? Well, I'm glad you've put that on record! (...makes mental note to bookmark this thread...)! :lol:

weepej wrote:
I think you don't.

You're right. Given the sheer number of motorists compared to cyclists on the road at any given time, you're pretty much bound to see more of them breaking some law or other. In fact, given the VASTLY greater number of laws that apply to motorists, it's pretty much a dead cert that you're likely to see more instances. Being as objective as I can though, I feel that in my own observations, I see a greater PERCENTAGE of cyclists breaking one or other of the (relatively few) laws that apply to them, than I see motorists. However, when it comes to the number of self-righteous videos of wrongdoing being published online, on the other hand, I think the cyclists win hands-down.

weepej wrote:
I think you're prejudiced.

I would expect nothing less of you! :lol: However, as a chance to use my "quote of the day", courtesy of the (ex) Greek finance minister, "I shall wear it with pride"!


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PostPosted: Mon Jul 06, 2015 22:59 
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weepej wrote:
botach wrote:
BUT in the ideal world of the blinkered cyclist, kettles do not exist. Pots might, to be sited on a wall and ( like mushrooms ) have stacks of manure thrown on them .


What laws do you break when you drive botach?

Another answer with a question. Go back to school, weepy- that's an age old sales technique, used by sales folks when they are desperate and out of answers to an awkward question . Let's reverse the question and you tell us what laws you don't break as a cyclist, rather than what laws you ,undoubtedly do break.

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PostPosted: Tue Jul 07, 2015 21:17 
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botach wrote:
weepej wrote:
botach wrote:
BUT in the ideal world of the blinkered cyclist, kettles do not exist. Pots might, to be sited on a wall and ( like mushrooms ) have stacks of manure thrown on them .


What laws do you break when you drive botach?

Another answer with a question. Go back to school, weepy- that's an age old sales technique, used by sales folks when they are desperate and out of answers to an awkward question . Let's reverse the question and you tell us what laws you don't break as a cyclist, rather than what laws you ,undoubtedly do break.


I don't break laws as a cyclist or a driver. I don't ride or drive through red lights, I don't speed in the car, I don't ride on the pavement as a cyclist and I obey all traffic signals, on both modes of transport.

Now you botach.


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PostPosted: Thu Jul 09, 2015 22:32 
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I'm sad :-(

In the past month I have : -

Walked to a pub miles away in my Chris Brashers because the weather has been lovely. (A pedestrian)

Cycled, goodness knows how many miles, to enjoy our countryside which I couldn't do on foot tbh. (A cyclist)

Rode my motorbike to a wedding in Hereford, an RC Abbey, (As a BIKER) :-)

And driven approximately seven or eight different cars further than many, or most, do in a year or more. (A 'Hidious' car driver).

So who, or what, am I and what defines me? Who or what do I make generalisations at?

If I try to answer that, it is 'grist to the mill' for sure...

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You will be branded a threat to society by going over a speed limit where it is safe to do so, and suffer the consequences of your actions in a way criminals do not, more so than someone who is a real threat to our society.


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PostPosted: Fri Jul 10, 2015 14:06 
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We all use different modes of transport but the key issue is how you behave when partaking in any of these activities.

For example, when a pedestrian, did you have your earphones in and were oblivious to external sounds? When cycling, were you in Lycra, head down trying for a PB? On your motorbike did you weave in and out of traffic at high speed? In the cars did you run red lights and tailgate?

As we have said many times, it is the responsibility of all road users to look out for their safety and that of others. All modes of transport are fine providing basic rules are observed for the benefit of all. There are no discrete groups of road users. To pinch a political slogan, we are all in it together.

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