“Fight Putin – Ride a Bike” meme in support of Ukraine goes viral

Ooh cranium!

The unwarranted invasion of an otherwise peaceful and modern democracy. The widescale destruction of civilian infrastructure and the civilians themselves by an aggressive, authoritarian regime on the whim of a deranged tyrant who is clearly suffering some sort of "the nurses are stealing my stuff" style paranoid delusion is probably a tad more important to us who live in Europe.

A USA backed coup? Now that is a political statement. It might be worth you checking out how popular Zolensky is with Ukranian voters.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48007487.amp

grOg wrote:

 it's not lost on me that the current regime in Ukraine are the product of a U.S. backed coup in 2014..

The president (Poroshenko) who came to power as a result of the revolution (not a coup, they are two different things, and though undoubtedly supported by America, not American backed, again two different things) was ousted in the elections of 2019, so whatever is not lost on you, reality and fact certainly are.

grOg wrote:

Why is a cycling site is pushing a political theme?

It's a cycling-related thing that has happened in the world. So they published a news item about it. That's kind of what cyclng sites do.

grOg wrote:

Why is a cycling site is pushing a political theme? I have less interest in 2 former Soviet Union states battling for supremacy, than the dreadful Middle East conflicts or the Vietnam conflict, both engineered by the U.S.; it's not lost on me that the current regime in Ukraine are the product of a U.S. backed coup in 2014..

Why this on a cycling site?  Because someone made a cycling-related thing. And this is a cycling site.

So you're interested in history. A good study!  Unfortunately you seem to have been given some - at best - simplistic textbooks. I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that. May I recommend a quick look at Wikipedia - it's patchy, sometimes contains rubbish, subject to bias (as everything is) but it's often a good place to start for an overview of the past and can point you to other sources for further study. See Vietnam War (the Second Indochina War), List of modern conflicts in the Middle East.

Especially for the Middle East you'll find the Russia / the USSR / the Russian Federation figures just as much in those - an example being Syria (check the "Main Belligerents" section).

Both the US and Russia have a unpleasant record of interference in neighbouring states - as well as those further away - with both having direct or indirect responsibility for some horrendous suffering and body counts. If you live in a western democracy you'll also almost certainly find your own state (or certainly its predecessors) will have bloodied its hands too.

Beyond that why does Ukraine have prominence when we've largely ignored previous Russian invasions (Transnistria, Crimea, Chechenya, Afghanistan)?  Probably because "it's happening next door / to people who look like us". Focusses the mind.

Standard - case of #invisiblebike again (view here).  This operates on all levels, from drivers through the media, planners and politicians (some "but why?" research here and "why we won't spend money" here).  None can see - or speak of - the bikes.

I think the bicycle must be the true vehicle of the ninja the way people's minds just refuse to take them in. #jitenshaninja

I thought it was signifying an eBike

It's an anti-Zwift protest.

janusz0 wrote:

I like the sly use of a backwards "Z".

I don't like it - too much like half a Nazi SS insignia. Also, where's the cross-bar?

Specialized

hirsute wrote:

Specialized

or maybe a tribute to KISS?

Here's a version for those who like crossbars and utility bikes without a squiggle.  Thanks Harry - genius.

twowheelsbetter_uk wrote:

Here's a version for those who like crossbars and utility bikes without a squiggle.  Thanks Harry - genius.

That's better!