Mysterious Ghost Bike Making Neighbors Uncomfortable

These are "agenda driven" acts of protest by the NYC bike community used to extract the exact reaction from the person noted in the article. To create a strong emotional response-which in turn brings attention to the cause.

The only problem is, contrary to many of the postings here, not all cyclist struck by motor vehicles die or are injured due to the actions of the driver. Many, and I stress many, are caused by the cyclist's own reckless riding behavior.

There is not anyone who wakes up in the moring and says, "Hey maybe I'll head out and move down a bike rider today." As in most accidents, there is culpability on both sides.....just saying.

As far a legit memorials go, they should be dignified and appropriately done. Otherwise thier valve is cheapened- which becomes an additional victimization of every person who dies permaturly of accidental or intentional death (in the case of murders).

Like giant graffiti murals of people who have been murdered? Those are loving tributes.

Parenting aside (not a fan of her style..), Ghost Bikes are important and moving public memorials and should only be placed at actual sites of fallen riders or they risk losing their authenticity. As the city issues teethless misdeamenor citations to most the drivers who kill bicyclists, its an important issue and this is one way of bringing that to light,...that bikes ARE traffic and should provided safe passage upon city streets.

As opposed to the intrusive, towering, sancrosanct politically-imposed behemoths on public property that are forced upon us regarding horrible things that happened in the 1930's & -40s, or on 9/11, the bikes are a walking-by day-to-day reminder of the fleeting nature of life, especially when you are in the spot where a real person lost their real life. No problem, take a moment, think...

Josh Hanft - "... We’d like to see the bike moved. It is not an appropriate place for such a memorial."

Really? Fuck off. There memorials for the Holocaust all over the world including the United States. The Holocaust happened in Europe and not here. Can we deem that inappropriate since it didn't happen here? Oh yea. Let's get rid of them altogether since parents might have to talk about it when their kids see them.

Exactly. Death is inconvenient. And should not hidden away. It's part of life. A reality. It should be where people can see it. If only we had a healthy attitude about death.

I bet you are great fun at parties.

I totally am!! It goes with the territory of being awesome.

Are you comparing the willful slaughter of millions of Jews, Gypsies, gays and leftists to the accidental deaths of a few score individuals, many of whom died while deliberateley not observing traffic rules?

"Are you comparing the willful slaughter of millions of Jews, Gypsies, gays and leftists to the accidental deaths of a few score individuals, many of whom died while deliberateley not observing traffic rules?"

Are you saying that one person's death is any more significant than another person's death?

Don't answer my question by asking me another! That's a very stale technique.

I repeat: Are the willful deaths of millions not more significant than the accidental death of a single person?

Your whole schtick is very stale. We shouldn't have ghost bikes but Holocaust memorials are ok because the deaths are more tragic! Bullhockey.

the comparisons i was trying to make were "appropriate" locations of memorials, memorials, and not the acts of tragedy.

why can a parent explain memorial of a tragic event but not about a ghost bike? both relate to death, mais non?

and what's wrong with putting a memorial on a sidewalk? does it have to be in a park or something?

tragedies happen all the time. whether we put up a memorial or not is another matter. why don't we put a memorials for victims in natural disasters? or the victims of genocide in uganda/other nations?

so in a sense, i guess i am comparing the two acts of tragedies. both are sad but both have their own little memorial. whether they're appropriate or not is another matter.

and how do you know that these people were breaking the law while riding their bike? if you get run over by a car while crossing a red light, should we say you deserved it b/c YOU didn't observe the traffic law?

It is a sidewalk, not a cemetery. Fine put some biker memorial in Billyberg. and then Fuck off.

Anyone who complains that they have to be a parent to their child should have that child taken away. I worry for you, little Murphy.

On a lighter note: "It doesn't just happen to dead people, either - horses, fiddler crabs - Did you know even a potato can die?"

That bike looks a little small for a 9 year old.

I feel a little resentful toward this article for making me want to punch Monica Murphy in the face

I can't believe Monica Murphy provided her real name. For her sake, I hope she was misquoted.

ghost bikes are dumb

What do you tell your kids when their pet dies?

guess what? people die. yes, they do.

I find it funny after my nephews knew about death, every question is now Did He Die? to almost everything.

Wow what a POS excuse for a parent.

do motorists even know what ghost bikes are?

I agree the ghost bikes are really important and should never ever be removed. Cyclists are second class.

I drive a lot and so do my friends. We all know about the ghost bikes. They are a reminder that EVERYONE needs to be more careful and watch out for each other.

That's a good question. I drive everyday and have never heard of ghost bikes until I read this article.

I think the Ghost Bikes are positive and necessary. First, they are a constant reminder to people driving that they should be more aware of bikers and peds. Second, knowing someone that has a ghost bike, it's a nice reminder of their life every time I happen to pass by.

Do these same people complain about the memorials to FDNY outside every firehouse in the city?

But there are NO memorials to firefighters at the individual sites where they died!

No macabre reminders on public property. Who would deny a plaque on a firehouse to heroes who selflessly sacrificed their lives that others might live and who would dare reference them as mitigation for these morbid bikes on our sidewalks?

Nor are there memorials to victims of fires. Tens of thousands of people have died in fires in NYC's history, yet no plaque memorializes them. Why not? Are there lives less important than other's?

In fact, much of lower Manhattan was devastated by the Great Fire of 1835 and yet not a single historical marker commerorates that tragedy. Indeed, most people aren't even aware of it.

Nor are there permanent memorials to victims of fallen buildings, violent crime, gas leaks, tragic accidents, etc.

Is NYC to be turned into a cemetery occupied by people, or will we recognize that these ghost bikes are less a memorial to the fallen dead than a ghoulish ploy to cynically promote a political agenda?

"No macabre reminders on public property"

Macabre? It's a white bike.

If you see a white ghost on a public sidewalk, is that not macabre?

If there wasn't any accident where a kid was killed on a bike, they should remove it.

If it's only because some moms and people in the area don't like how it makes them feel or they are trying to shield their kids from the concept of death, they should just move to Narnia.

You guys did not disappoint me.

no doubt....Robotic Poster Army, Pawns of Gothamist, activate!

It's a bike chained to a pole. Move the fuck on. You want it removed? Clip the fucking lock. Does it make you resentful that you have to tip toe through piles of dog shit that inconsiderate dog walkers and owners don't pick up?

Monica Murphy -- you are the kind of person who has ruined my neighborhood. Resentful? Someone else's child DIED -- and you are given a "teaching moment" to explain to your child that he/she needs to be careful on the streets of NY.

Please, move to the suburbs.

And one more. Exactly!

"It makes me a little resentful that I had to speak to my child about it," says Murphy. "I don’t know what the purpose of placing the bike here is."

Really? You're very strange.

First, no one said you "have" to do anything, you over-protective neurotic mess. You could elect to shelve the conversation until such time as your child can handle it (as I and millions of other parents do all the time with kids). But, more importantly, you resent having to have an open and honest conversation with your child?

That's pretty fucked up.

Seriously, if my mom didn't want to explain something to me she would just say "I don't know." And I would accept that because I was a child. Also, if you want to shelter your children from things, NYC is not the pace to live!

+1

oooh the poor little snowflake! getting a dose of reality! little baby Jesus is crying now for sure.

To the mother who feels resentful for having to talk to your daughter about death: Grow the fuck up.

She should just hire a nanny to raise her child because obviously she doesn't have the capacity or desire to speak to her own child properly.

As a parent, I absolutely agree. This is a great talking point, and as a parent, it's my job to deliver the information in a way I see appropriate. Not to pretend it does not exist.

Not only does she need to grow up, she needs to stop acting like an entitled person and teach her children to handle things appropriately rather than ignore them to the point of major neuroses where you are uncomfortable talking about reality and life.

Hold up --- she lives in a tony part of the UWS. Kids don't find out about this sort of thing until they head off to the Ivy League school their parents can afford. Cut them some slack.

I believe the entire text of the mother's comment read like this: "It makes me a little resentful that I had to speak to my child about it, I don’t know what the purpose of placing the bike here is. Now where did I put my drinky-poo?"

I'm trying really hard not to laugh in the office. "Now where did I put my drinky-poo?" Hahahahaha, you win this thread.

+1 (in this case, '1' being equal to the godless eternity of death)

I couldn't agree more...

Sorry your child can't be completely clueless forever.

I bet her kid will look both ways for about a week before entering back into NY mode which is cross and drivers can f off.