Is the bike related post ban for real?

Submitted by nomolurcin t3_yj6328 in CambridgeMA

I live in Cambridge - near the intersection of Mass Ave and Shepard St. I ride my bike to work in Kendall on most days. I always feel very privileged to be part of the bike commute “train” on Hampshire St on most days. There are more people riding bikes on that route than driving during rush hour! There are few experiences that make me as proud to be a Cantabrigian as that one.

I’ve also done a fair amount of cycling for sport. I’ve ridden from Cambridge to the Cape, the lakes region of NH, Providence, and many more places. Let me tell you, it’s the coolest feeling ever to do a long ride and realize you just used the two feet to get there.

I’ll also say riding bikes has helped me get out of some very dark times in my life. It’s hard not to smile with the wind in your hair.

If I can get banned for this post, I’ll be very disappointed. I thought Cambridge was progressive city.

One of the mods has said “bike related posts bring out the worst in people”. I disagree. Quite frankly, I think driving brings out the worst in people. I have a driver’s license and I have rented cars in Cambridge several times. I can say first hand that being in a metal cage has brought the worst in me, every time. I become inpatient and angry. I see anything that would lower my speed as an annoying obstacle, not as something that makes my neighborhood more livable.

142

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

ghostestate t1_iumbydm wrote

Banning bike related posts from a massively pro-cycling city, especially because of a personal issue, is nonsense.

Sorry mod, you probably deserved it.

This sub can kick rocks.

80

ExpressiveLemur t1_iumb1fl wrote

I'll say this. If one person is the sole arbiter of what's acceptable and decides to use that power to settle scores it's not really a community.

It's one thing to remove/lock inflammatory posts, it's another thing entirely to say something entirely on topic and related to public interest and safety cannot be discussed.

64

pelican_chorus t1_iumc7de wrote

The r/CambridgeMA subreddit is really odd. I've had perfectly bland posts held up for moderation for days, until I message the mods.

If it's just one mod, I get it, it's hard to make sure this doesn't turn into spam. But then why not add new mods, and/or leave most of the work to the automoderator?

22

akanefive t1_iumljtr wrote

>But then why not add new mods

Then he has less power to make arbitrary rules based on fake stories.

17

repniclewis t1_iumcedg wrote

10 bucks the mod was trying to cut over to the right turn lane onto Comm Ave on the BU bridge and didn't check his blindspot or used blinkers and almost killed the cyclist going striaght, explaining why the cyclist was livid and mod was oblivious claiming he didn't do anything

Just a reminder, this mod also doesn't believe in science/evolution among other things

50

pastramicat t1_iumdrwd wrote

Wow, TIL r/cambridgema has only one moderator and they’re a narcissist clown.

36

riski_click t1_ium8zxm wrote

>One of the mods has said

Unless you're including AutoMod, it looks like there is only one mod..

27

nomolurcin OP t1_ium9leq wrote

Oh wow, I didn’t realize that. I think it would behoove the community to have more than one mod, though I do realize it can be thankless work…

32

BQORBUST t1_iumbht5 wrote

Dude had a bike post, knew he would get shit on, and decided his would be the last word. Lmao

27

pelican_chorus t1_iumci77 wrote

For serious, banning a topic in a subreddit as retaliation to an IRL cyclist that has nothing to do with Reddit is pretty gross.

25

akanefive t1_iumlnqg wrote

And as far as I can tell, there's no way to report mod abuse to Reddit admins.

9

Master_Dogs t1_iumvnad wrote

There's a request page someone noted here: https://www.reddit.com/r/boston/comments/yiy6mj/cambridgema_refugees_new_sub/iulz7ww/

It seems to mostly be if you want to take over moderatorship of an inactive sub though. I tried making a request here: https://www.reddit.com/r/redditrequest/comments/yjb39w/request_utaylorhayward_boston_be_removed_as_mod/?

But the request bot seems to just yell at you if you make a request for a sub with an active mod.

8

akanefive t1_iumemwi wrote

>I thought Cambridge was progressive city.

Doesn't mean there aren't plenty of assholes in the city. (And who knows if the moderator still lives here anyway.) The single rule maker in a community is stifling debate because he's got an unpopular and incorrect opinion.

20

blackdynomitesnewbag t1_iumhdcc wrote

The driver nearly hit me last week when they sped up instead of slowing down at a crosswalk

14

escapehatch t1_ium4qc3 wrote

Is this post for real? Talk about having the point of something go straight over your head. As a former Cambridge resident I gotta say "the problem here is that people don't realize X, I'll just post my long-winded version of [argument made 1000x already] and provoke the same condescending fighting that is the reason for the ban...as an illustration of why the ban is unecessary" is a super-cambridgey take. You are living in a place where you fit right in!

−53

jvpewster t1_ium74rx wrote

>super Cambridgey take

This sub is literally for the people of Cambridge lmfao

45

corned_beef_balls t1_ium51ro wrote

The post about banning bike related posts does exactly what you describe here.

29

nomolurcin OP t1_ium5efj wrote

Interesting insight. I hope your new city/town is a better fit for you!

29

crazicus t1_iumlf1x wrote

Right, real Cantabrigians don’t live in Cambridge! /s

11