When my daughter lived in 'Dogpatch' in San Francisco, the neighborhood started experiencing a string of street robberies. People were being jumped as they walked to the local grocery or went about their day. The Hells Angels have a club in Dogpatch. It wasn't far from where she lived.
Perhaps your first thought as you read the above might have been that the Hells Angels were responsible. After all, they are lumped into 'that group'.
But you would be wrong. The members of the Hells Angels protected their neighbors, setting up around the streets and making sure there were no more attacks. One of the members followed my daughter home from her trip to the store so she wouldn't have to worry. He made sure she was safely back inside before riding off with that unique Harley sound you described.
In the story I posted last week I talked about the man who took 20 minutes out of his day to walk my husband and me to the museum in Balboa Park. He was really kind and generous. What I didn't mention in my story was that he was covered with tattoos, clearly visible because he wore a sleeveless t-shirt. Why not mention it? Because the story was about his kindness, not about the labels someone might attach to him. The tattoos had nothing to do with whether he was kind or not. But the mention of them might have influenced readers. Perhaps if we stop attaching labels to others we can begin to remove the stigmas attached to them.
It is good to have some curiosity about people. Opening up to the possibility that another person may have a thought or a concern worth listening to, instead of immediately judging them on surface characteristics, including contrasting preferences about a lot of issues.
PS I'm familiar with both rice burners and Harleys. Did some long distance riding in my younger days (not actually driving them myself - except the dirt bike my dad let me have until I got too many burns from the muffler). I remember being amused at the blockades for missile testing at White Sands - totally different treatment when in an 18 wheel truck, in an RV or on a motorcycle. Same people every time but the differences in how we were treated was enormous.
You have chosen a brilliant metaphor here, Mark. It perfectly clarifies the point that "loyalty to almost any group entails putting on blinders which protect the member from alien thoughts or different ways of thinking." Excellent!
Wow, Mark! Your post and Shannon's both hit my email within 10 minutes of each other today and you both wrote about motorcycles and our interconnectedness. Here's a link to her post today, I love what she writes at her Substack, called Unapologetic Old Bitch, hope you will enjoy it too. I dunno, maybe you already read her.
A long, long time ago my boyfriend and I took a trip on a Honda 400 from California to Calgary, Canada for the stampede. You, Shannon and I have a love of motorcycles in common.
Oh, one more thing, one of my sons is a very talented motorcycle tech.
Rabbi Sharon Brous has her first book out, “The Amen Effect”. Many YouTube’s from TED talks and book tour. She discusses “tribal” thinking as a good thing (a congregation caring for one another) and the danger when the tribal walls grow too thick, as in Israel and Gaza. It’s not a new thought: the fate of the race and the planet depend on our making “our tribe” bigger and bigger until there are no walls at all.
The Superbowl taught us that Kawasakis are mullet worthy: business in the front, party in the back. 🤣
I remember being about 20, and I was in retail. We rented tuxedos as part of it: I HATED tuxes. This was also when everyone was wearing grills. (You know, like how the hipsters wear fake glasses? They wore fake braces.)
Anyway, after a very long day, I was not thrilled to have to deal with yet another highschooler. He had a grill, and a look, and I judged him on my previous experiences.
He turned out to be one of the best people I ever interacted with, and that memory still haunts me, 20 years later.
I don't get out in the world much, but reading blogs and books has shown me the value of knowing both sides. There is still no guarantee I will like or approve of it, but I'm a better person - I hope! - for listening.
I have always loved those chance encounters, the interesting grandma sitting next to you on plane, the monk that you meet when both of you take refuge from a driving rain under an overpass. Riding a bike, especially as a gal on her own, has juxtaposed me many times with people I just would not meet in my regular life, and I feel the texture of my life has been so enhanced by these disparate folks. Recently at a get together to celebrate the life of man who loved and collected people and bikes I had a great conversation with a thoughtful and well spoken trumper, whose ideology is diametrically opposed to mine, but we found such common ground on so many things I think we were both surprised.
When my daughter lived in 'Dogpatch' in San Francisco, the neighborhood started experiencing a string of street robberies. People were being jumped as they walked to the local grocery or went about their day. The Hells Angels have a club in Dogpatch. It wasn't far from where she lived.
Perhaps your first thought as you read the above might have been that the Hells Angels were responsible. After all, they are lumped into 'that group'.
But you would be wrong. The members of the Hells Angels protected their neighbors, setting up around the streets and making sure there were no more attacks. One of the members followed my daughter home from her trip to the store so she wouldn't have to worry. He made sure she was safely back inside before riding off with that unique Harley sound you described.
In the story I posted last week I talked about the man who took 20 minutes out of his day to walk my husband and me to the museum in Balboa Park. He was really kind and generous. What I didn't mention in my story was that he was covered with tattoos, clearly visible because he wore a sleeveless t-shirt. Why not mention it? Because the story was about his kindness, not about the labels someone might attach to him. The tattoos had nothing to do with whether he was kind or not. But the mention of them might have influenced readers. Perhaps if we stop attaching labels to others we can begin to remove the stigmas attached to them.
Thanks for bringing this topic to light, Mark.
It is good to have some curiosity about people. Opening up to the possibility that another person may have a thought or a concern worth listening to, instead of immediately judging them on surface characteristics, including contrasting preferences about a lot of issues.
PS I'm familiar with both rice burners and Harleys. Did some long distance riding in my younger days (not actually driving them myself - except the dirt bike my dad let me have until I got too many burns from the muffler). I remember being amused at the blockades for missile testing at White Sands - totally different treatment when in an 18 wheel truck, in an RV or on a motorcycle. Same people every time but the differences in how we were treated was enormous.
You have chosen a brilliant metaphor here, Mark. It perfectly clarifies the point that "loyalty to almost any group entails putting on blinders which protect the member from alien thoughts or different ways of thinking." Excellent!
Wow, Mark! Your post and Shannon's both hit my email within 10 minutes of each other today and you both wrote about motorcycles and our interconnectedness. Here's a link to her post today, I love what she writes at her Substack, called Unapologetic Old Bitch, hope you will enjoy it too. I dunno, maybe you already read her.
https://open.substack.com/pub/orangepurpleblue/p/riley-sends-her-love-18?r=8ez20&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
A long, long time ago my boyfriend and I took a trip on a Honda 400 from California to Calgary, Canada for the stampede. You, Shannon and I have a love of motorcycles in common.
Oh, one more thing, one of my sons is a very talented motorcycle tech.
Rabbi Sharon Brous has her first book out, “The Amen Effect”. Many YouTube’s from TED talks and book tour. She discusses “tribal” thinking as a good thing (a congregation caring for one another) and the danger when the tribal walls grow too thick, as in Israel and Gaza. It’s not a new thought: the fate of the race and the planet depend on our making “our tribe” bigger and bigger until there are no walls at all.
Always wanted to ride a Harley. One day I will go for it.
The Superbowl taught us that Kawasakis are mullet worthy: business in the front, party in the back. 🤣
I remember being about 20, and I was in retail. We rented tuxedos as part of it: I HATED tuxes. This was also when everyone was wearing grills. (You know, like how the hipsters wear fake glasses? They wore fake braces.)
Anyway, after a very long day, I was not thrilled to have to deal with yet another highschooler. He had a grill, and a look, and I judged him on my previous experiences.
He turned out to be one of the best people I ever interacted with, and that memory still haunts me, 20 years later.
I don't get out in the world much, but reading blogs and books has shown me the value of knowing both sides. There is still no guarantee I will like or approve of it, but I'm a better person - I hope! - for listening.
I have always loved those chance encounters, the interesting grandma sitting next to you on plane, the monk that you meet when both of you take refuge from a driving rain under an overpass. Riding a bike, especially as a gal on her own, has juxtaposed me many times with people I just would not meet in my regular life, and I feel the texture of my life has been so enhanced by these disparate folks. Recently at a get together to celebrate the life of man who loved and collected people and bikes I had a great conversation with a thoughtful and well spoken trumper, whose ideology is diametrically opposed to mine, but we found such common ground on so many things I think we were both surprised.
Thanks for making this really important point, Mark.