"Blaming walkers for street danger is like blaming the unarmed for gun violence with the shooter right in front of you."

I'm letting Bluegill have this one. He shared the Broken Sidewalk article on Fb, and introduced it with this:

In a system that's so obviously and consistently designed to facilitate such dangerous automotive speeds, I jaywalk a lot quite knowingly. I walk offensively on purpose. It's currently the only thing that's occasionally effective to get cars to slow down in my neighborhood and so many others. An overwhelming majority of overly privileged, near sociopathic drivers won't police themselves. The City(s) won't do anything about it, either, in terms of comprehensive, inclusive design despite the fact that roughly two-thirds of street funding comes from non-automotive revenue streams. Even when they say they're doing it and spending millions of dollars, they're typically not actually doing it in any sort of sensible, equitable way. Using what you've got, even if it's just yourself, to create a physical obstacle is the only way. Blaming walkers for street danger is like blaming the unarmed for gun violence with the shooter right in front of you.

I couldn't agree more.

"The Modern Moloch": When cars were viewed as child-eating gods to be appeased.

Video: "The Real Reason Jaywalking Is A Crime."

Walking is not a crime: Dunman and others on the scourges of jaywalking in auto-erotic America.

I couldn't agree any more stridently.

Plan to issue fake citations to youth jaywalkers, promote “defensive walking” draws criticism, by Branden Klayko (Broken Sidewalk)

Youth summer program to educate kids on defensive walking and biking.

 ... Of those funds, Bike Louisville plans to spend $11,900 on a program to “educate youths to bicycle and walk defensively.” And part of that means a crackdown on jaywalking. Or at least a fake one. According to the KBBC, “the funding will allow several LMPD officers to bicycle in targeted areas around each of the nine community centers and hand out educational “citations” to youth who are not following the rules of the road.” According to Bike Louisville’s grant application, “The classes will teach our youth to walk and bicycle defensively, to anticipate dangerous situations, and to react appropriately.”

And that has been sparking controversy in online forums.

Louisville’s streets are deadly, built with the sole purpose of moving cars rapidly, and the city ranks above the national average for pedestrian fatalities—it’s not easy for anyone outside of a car to get around. We’re not going to educate our pedestrians out of our street safety problem. And even the most defensive walker is still no match for a distracted driver.