Idiots on the bridge

[Tomo 0]

NZ Herald article

I was actually in favour of some form of pedestrian and cycleway attachment to the harbour bridge, i thought it would be a novel addition. However im appalled at how protesters essentially took over a major piece of infrastructure, halting all traffic north!! Not the place for people to protest, and they did it the wrong way without NZTA or Police approval, forcing their way through police barricades!?! They should have been met with a riot team and cuffed in my opinion. I was heading south over the bridge at the time and just couldn't believe it, they ended up getting walked over by police.

Just crazy. And it probably wont even help their cause.

[blakamin 0]

typical f**kin cyclists

[e30plz 1]

Such a stupid idea to hold a protest on the Harbour Bridge..

And now as you said it wouldn't have helped their cause one bit..

Edited May 24, 2009 by Poontangsquibble

[Lucan 196]

i was driving my mate back to Orewa for work and got caught up in all this crapp, not impressed with the law...

[Driftit 2078]

They are planning to do it again now. I all for organising a Bimmersport cruise over the bridge with a crapload of sour off milk filled water balloons to throw at them. Seriously.

[DRTDVL 0]

this screwed us around today... MLM was going to pick me and bravo up to look at an e30 for his girlfriend, but he couldn't get to us so we had to drive ourselves out to piha. But not knowing if the bridge was completely closed or not we had to go via Massey from a place 3 min from. The bridge.

Funny to hear the orgAnisor didn't cross over the bridge.

[greenday-rulz21 6]

I had to go over the bridge. Went down to try and get on the ponsonby on ramp. Blocked. Then downtown. Blocked. So after I was stuck in traffic for 1 hour I had to go the Greenhithe way.

Arrived 2 hours late. Soo pissed right now.

Although it was nice to have an excuse to be in the car for that long.

[jjs 64]

Taser the muppets.

It's same sandal wearing green party supporting idiots who turn up protest. How many of them would actually bike or walk over the bridge if you were legally able to? They are little more than bored no hopers who love "sticking it to the system" by getting amongst a protest.

[Cress 0]

my flatmate got "invited" to attend the bridge crossing, he thought sweet a chance to run accross the brigde etc. As they were inviting schools buisnesses etc, so he thought it was legit. it wasnt until about a few days later it was a protest.

He was not impressed about how they were advetising it, he would have been even more pissed off about it if he had turned up to find out it was a protest.

they should have jumped off the bridge while they were there.

[sp8s 1]

You mean something happened north of Bombay

[Forrest 35]

Only in Auckland....

[jordyboy2 0]

Well there was sweet jack all happening in matakana today, made my day so damn long

[Apex 693]

I think Van Halen said it best. Jump, go ahead and jump.

[bravo 35]

Meh, even though it was a piss around for us like DRTDVL said, it doesn't bother me. Even if you don't support their protest you have to support their right to protest. Even if you don't support some of the underhand tactics to garner support, you have to admire the craftiness of it.

There haven't been any decent protests in nz for awhile - people are getting weak and PC. It's about time something like this happened to get the blood flowing and to get people fired up about something instead of sitting behind their computer screens whinging.

Sure a minority disadvantaged a minority, and I'm waiting for the stories of people who's health suffered due to the traffic backups, but if you believe in something you should stand up and make a point.

[M325is 0]

Sure a minority disadvantaged a minority, and I'm waiting for the stories of people who's health suffered due to the traffic backups, but if you believe in something you should stand up and make a point.

Yeah, some lady was on the news in tears as she really needed to get over the shore, didn't say why but no doubt a dying aunt or something.

As for jumping, did anyone else hear about the guy holding up traffic in japan, he was up a building or something high threatening to commit suicide, it went on for hours. One onlooker got extremely pissed off with the dude, climbed the building shook his hand then pushed him off. Unfortunately for the dude who fell, survived by hitting a half inflated bouncy thing, fortunate for the guy who pushed him as he wont get done for murder.

[briancol 3]

The protesters actions were blatantly criminal. They broke the law by walking and cycling over the bridge and disobeying the orders of the police. For that, they should all have been arrested although with 2,000 protesters and about 20 police, that scenario was impossible.

If you watched channel 3's news last night, the Harbour Bridge authority stated that they would like to see cycle and pedestrian lanes added but, until another harbour crossing was built, it would be impossible as the current bridge wasn't strong enough.

The protesters knew this and yet they are prepared to put the entire bridge in jeopardy and the saftey of motorists just to get something that will be used by only a few cyclists.

[Lucan 196]

As for jumping, did anyone else hear about the guy holding up traffic in japan, he was up a building or something high threatening to commit suicide, it went on for hours. One onlooker got extremely pissed off with the dude, climbed the building shook his hand then pushed him off. Unfortunately for the dude who fell, survived by hitting a half inflated bouncy thing, fortunate for the guy who pushed him as he wont get done for murder.

haha yeah i read about this! had been holding up traffic for 5 hours or something!

The old man who climbed up to push hims a legend...

[bravo 35]

On the subject of protests, there's an academic article on pages 52 and 52 of the latest Otago University Magazine that draws a correlation between the higher cost of university and the introduction of internal assessment to the number and type of protests undertaken by students. Interesting reading.

OU Magazine

See also another very interesting article on the credit crunch (first few pages). In fact the whole magazine is usually worth a read if you are a thinker like myself. I'm subscribed to it.

[bravo 35]

“Agitators are a set of interfering, meddling people,

who come down to some perfectly contented class of

the community and sow the seeds of discontent. That is the reason why agitators are so absolutely

necessary. Without them, in our incomplete state, there

would be no advance towards civilisation.”

-Oscar Wilde

"...we now see student politicians using other

methods to promote change: well-researched submissions,

use of the media to present arguments, negotiations

behind closed doors, lobbying through ongoing dialogue

and relationship-building with those in authority. All of

these were common in my day as well – and arguably more

effective than protests even then – but few things grab the

spotlight better than a really big protest march!”

-Otago University Students Association General Manager, Ross Blanch

[bravo 35]

The protesters actions were blatantly criminal.

So is sitting on your hands on an issue (any issue) you feel passionate about.

BTW just to reiterate - I couldn't care less about the pedestrian access on the bridge - I don't even live in Auckland, and wouldn't use it if it were there.

[Tomo 0]

Updated article

I agree that you should stand up for any issue you feel passionately about, but I find civil disobedience with blatant disregard for others reprehensible. They managed to have that side of the bridge shutdown as a tanker carrying oxygen supplies to North Shore Hospital was going through, and now threaten action that will make this incident look like "a walk in the park"? What extremist tactics are they going to use next, chaining themselves to all lanes of the bridge?

I think there were a few determined protesters and a whole lot of sheep there yesterday, once one broke the fence the whole herd went through. And parents bringing along their kids who are too young to make their own decisions? Its wrong...

My dad works with the Auckland Motorway Alliance, and tells me the group have been consulted with, there was even a bus service setup to facilitate their needs of carrying people and their bicycles across the bridge and this had to be shut down as they refused to use it. That is likely to be the best they're going to get until another harbour crossing is made and any further efforts are downright stupid.

I am however disappointed that the Police failed to manage the demonstration appropriately, they clearly did not have a strong enough presence and should have forseen what a group of 2000+ people could have had in their minds having failed to get approval, and should have held the line.

[bravo 35]

Updated article

What extremist tactics are they going to use next, chaining themselves to all lanes of the bridge?

True, there's a fine line between protest and terrorism. That said, I can't believe the furore over a hour or two delay. An accident causes worse and happens far more frequently.

[Tomo 0]

Yeah, not so much the delay as the precedent. If this is what we can expect from protesters from now on, here comes anarchy.

[briancol 3]

So is sitting on your hands on an issue (any issue) you feel passionate about.

It is against the law to cross the Harbour Bridge on a bicycle or on foot, so they broke the law.

There are other ways of protesting than blatantly breaking the law.

[bravo 35]

Tomo - that's a little bit alarmist don't you think? If one illegal protest = anarchy, then we'd have been f**ked years ago. Maybe you're not old enough to remember protests of yore? (Anti-vietnam, anti-nuclear, anti-apartheid??? and more.)

PS: I know I'm sounding rather pro-protest. I'm not. Half the time protests are just whinging buggers with nothing better to do.

I'm just pro getting off your arse and making a fuss for a change.

Plus its not a bad topic for a debate on a Monday at work.