OFF THE WIRE
http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20100712-OPINION-7120316 Yanni worse than motorcycles - 7/11/2010Taylor Swift filming new video in Kennebunk - 7/8/2010 Letter to the Editor Opinion July 12, 2010 2:00 AM
In response to the recent letters to the editor regarding loud motorcycle noise: Give me a break! Are you people kidding me? You're blowing this all out of proportion. You're acting as if these motorcyclists are a gang of hardened criminals racing through small-town America tearing up the streets, scaring little old ladies, raping and pillaging. Get a grip. What happened, did you folks run out of other things to complain about? No little kids to yell at for walking on your lawn? No dogs to kick? Maybe you need to lay off the cappuccino and calm down, stop and smell the flowers. Live and let live.
This is America. Many have fought and died so we as a country can live free. Many of these motorcyclists are veterans like myself who enjoy riding bikes. There's a lot more noise pollution out there than a few motorcycles going down the street in your neighborhood. Leaf blowers for one — how annoying, especially first thing in the morning. How about weed whackers, and worst of all, Yanni.
This in my opinion has nothing to do with loud exhausts and everything to do with attacking motorcyclists as a whole.
People generally do attack things they don't understand or are afraid of. That's why bigotry is alive and well in this country.
You can plainly see this in the latest letter to the editor by C.R. Jones, who ironically shows her own ignorance by saying loud motorcycle riders have small brains and other body parts. That's the kind of remark an immature jealous teenager would make. C.R. Jones wants to ban all motorcycle parking in downtown Portsmouth. Why, I thought this was about loud exhausts. Ahh, her true colors are showing. See, this is not about loud exhausts at all, it's about hating motorcyclists.
C.R. Jones and her husband love to sit in Market Square and people watch. I can just imagine the conversation going on between the two. "Look at those dirty bikers, they should all rot in hell. Why won't the police kick them all out of Portsmouth?" I don't think it stops with hating motorcyclists though. The conversation, I imagine, also goes: "Look at her with all those piercings — ban all people with piercings from Portsmouth" or "Look at that person with the ugly little dog — ban all ugly little dogs from downtown" or "Ban all little kids from downtown; they're too loud." Let's burn all the books I don't like. Run everyone who's not a white Anglo-Saxon protestant out of town. See how this kind of hate can get out of control?
Portsmouth is a multi-cultural small city. It's that way because of the people who live and go there. It certainly wouldn't be very interesting if everyone in Portsmouth looked and acted the same. By the way, C.R. Jones, tourism is alive and well downtown; those motorcyclists aren't driving anyone away. Matter of fact, I see plenty of tourists walking over to look at all the bikes. The majority of motorcycle riders out there are hard-working, taxpaying Americans just trying to have a little fun during the warm weather. The local police will deal with the very small few who rev up their bikes and make too much noise. They have in the past and they will in the future. As for you folks and your constant complaining about motorcycles — take a pill!
Brian MacKenzie
Kittery, Maine
