Shocker: Transportation Communism Fails

• February 24, 2009

A student at the University of North Dakota wants more bikes for his “green bike” program.

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) A University of North Dakota student senator says he’s working to revive a borrowed bicycle project on campus.
Kyle Wanner says the Green Bike project provides students with bikes to get to class and around town.
Wanner wants more donated bicycles for the project.

So why does he want more bikes? Because all the other ones were stolen or wrecked.

Wanner says the project began last year with about three dozen bicycles, which are painted green. But he says there are only about 10 bikes left. He says most of the bikes were stolen, lost or ruined.

I am shocked that people would take advantage of property that wasn’t theirs like this. It almost seems like giving people things doesn’t actually inspire any sense of responsibility or community spirit.
Who would have thought that?

Tags: Asshats, Domestic Issues, North Dakota News, Politics

http://www.undsccc.com/ GregP

Trivia: Kyle Wanner was one of the opponents of a bill demanding the UND Housing authority reconsider the ban on weapons in the UND Apartments last spring. He said something akin to “There’s no reason why you would need a weapon in a UND Apartment.”
richNJ

It was also tried in other cities around the world. This is what happened in Paris and Lyons.
http://www.gadling.com/2007/05/22/bicycle-utopia-free-bikes-in-paris/
All the bikes were either stolen, repainted or locked up for one owners use. Now you have to have a credit card and pay 150 euros if you do not return the bike.
http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/ Jay W.

Aly said:

It is hurting. Student fees were used to pay for this project, and more than 20 decent bikes were destroyed for no good reason.

Not saying I don’t believe you, as I have no reason to doubt your word. But I was wondering, what were the student fees used for? I was under the impression the bikes were donated. Fliers? Ads in the campus newspaper?
http://www.valleydeals.com/cgi-bin/board2/YaBB.pl Kevin

The cost is minimal considering the bikes are all from the police auction

Someone in the private sector originally paid for those stolen bikes and were never compensated for the loss.
http://vdvfamily.com/ Sphagnum

How the heck did he want that to work…. leave three dozen bikes laying around and HOPE they don’t get stolen? Come on! What a maROON!
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Yeah but people aren’t stealing them to keep. I would think they steal them for a purpose and leave them laying around.
SigFan

Really ugly bikes – you would have to be pretty desparate to steal one of those things.

This is a classic illustration though of what something for nothing usally comes to. More nothing for everyone.
http://proof-proofpositive.blogspot.com/ proof_positive

How would you know if a bike you use and then leave for others to use was stolen?

By the fresh coat of Krylonâ„¢ and the “for sale” sign!
http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/ Jay W.

I agree this wasn’t the most well-thought business plan in the history of time, but other than making this Wanner guy look foolish, it isn’t really hurting anything.

The next step though, is to ask for taxpayer funding. Then this goes from useful illustration of why supply and demand doesn’t work when the commodity is free to a terrible use of tax money.
http://pocketjacksblog.blogspot.com/ Jay W.

I guess it didn’t sound that organized to me. More like the one guy did this on his own. But I’m sure you’re right. But whoever got paid to keep track of them should never work in the business again!
http://www.valleydeals.com/cgi-bin/board2/YaBB.pl Kevin

They tried the same scheme at the University of Minnesota a couple of years ago with the same result.
What’s the definition of insanity?
http://www.undsccc.com/ GregP

And to think, no one here at UND speaks out against this project as a waste of school funding because, despite its complete and utter failure, it was yet another “feel good” project that is supposed to have a nice face while sweeping its self-destructing tendencies under the rug.

Compare that to the ranting and raving when $4 a student in student fees went towards the funding of a second newspaper on this campus to combat the insanely-liberal newspaper that many people despise. People went crazy.
http://SayAnythingBlog.com The_Whistler_ofnd

Why can’t people buy their own bikes?

But yeah, this shows the reality that when everyone owns something, no one does.

People take care of their own stuff, but let someone else take care of community property.

By the way, why do you think they put those alarms in the libraries?
robert108

Jay W: The full name of that law is: “The Law of Supply, Demand and Price.” If there is a demand for something, and there is a supply of it, the price determines the actual value. A price of zero means a value of zero.
Mickey

They tried his in Green Bay WI. last summer and it flopped for the same reasons. But the green machine of politics are willing to try again this year. The cost is minimul considering the bikes are all from the police auction but I have little faith in the types of people in general public who use these bikes to assume responsibility.
rightwing conspiracy

How would you know if a bike you use and then leave for others to use was stolen?
Hungry Bear

I think I bought one of those “green bikes” at a swap meet in Idaho last year. How can I check?
docdave

A student at the University of North Dakota wants more bikes for his “green bike” program.

Yeah bikes work really good in the cold and snow. Imagine skidding along on a cold winter morning when the temp is minus 40. Invigorating. [This is a really stupid idea which is typical for liberals.]
alysnyder

but other than making this Wanner guy look foolish, it isn’t really hurting anything

It is hurting. Student fees were used to pay for this project, and more than 20 decent bikes were destroyed for no good reason. Those bikes could have been sold to help pay for a fruitful project or donated to a good cause; those funds should have been used for things UND could actually benefit from, rather than pet-projects that are destined to fail.

I was on the student senate at the time this bill came up, those few senators who are economically-literate immediately saw the failure and never ending liability that this project would become. Sadly, like all other forms of government, common sense rarely prevails.
alysnyder

But I was wondering, what were the student fees used for?Â I was under the impression the bikes were donated.Â Fliers?Â Ads in the campus newspaper?

The bikes were donated by the University Police Department – they were said to have been abandoned on campus. If I remember correctly, most of them needed to be repaired and only part of the paint costs were offset by donation. The Wellness Center (funded by student fees) also put money into this project. Some costs indeed included various forms of advertisement, such as ads in the campus newspaper and other operating type expenses. I would link you to the bill (SB 0708-24) for the precise amounts spent on what and from where, but the Student Senate webpage hasn’t been updated since at least last April.

As far as I am concerned, the donation of the bikes is irrelevant. This program still wasted money and resources, all while the protests of “tragedy of the commons” went totally ignored. Just another couple thousand down the toliet,… so far.
http://sayanythingblog.com robport

Maintenance on the bikes? Painting them green? Promoting the program? Paying someone to at least try to keep track of them?

SayAnythingBlog.com

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