It’s another July 4, the worst holiday of the year, but at least it is a holiday! Went off to see Italy beat Germany and they did, beautifully, but not until the very end of overtime… quite a gripping match. Then I peeked in on this year’s installment of the SF Mime Troupe, but saw only a bit in the middle of the show, so can’t really review it. It’s always an excercise in masochism for me… so I skipped out not long after getting there.
Recently I put an email interview I did with Alex Foti on this blog. Now I’m putting up a reciprocal interview he did with me, also by email. I figure it’s probably somewhat interesting for people interested in these histories and these topics…
Alex Foti: Your name in Italy is linked to “CRITICAL MASS. L’uso sovversivo della bicicletta” which hit the bookstores three years ago, as Critical Mass was becoming a huge factor in Milano’s city polity. Please tell us how you became the initator of the largest 2-wheel no-oil movement of the world.
Chris Carlsson: I don’t think any individual can claim to be the “initiator” of anything like Critical Mass. Sure, I was there at the beginning, and had the good luck to be one of the first people to suggest that we all “ride home together” once a month. But like most good ideas, it merely said out-loud what was already in everyone’s head. The fact that it spread so far and wide “on its own” proves the point. How many dozens or hundreds of people have made Critical Mass happen in other cities across the planet? Most of them were inspired by something they heard about happening somewhere else, but only because the basic idea of bicyclists gathering in numbers and displacing cars while having a great time rolling through the urban environment makes obvious sense…
AF: How is Critical Mass in San Francisco these days? Please let us know some of its recent developments.
Continue reading Alex Foti interviews me!
