Althouse: The "Take Back the Bike Path" rally in Madison took place at the planned time, despite a heavy thunderstom.

September 18, 2015

The "Take Back the Bike Path" rally in Madison took place at the planned time, despite a heavy thunderstom.

"Nearly 3,000 people RSVPed to the event on Facebook, planned earlier this week in response to a brutal assault and rape that took place on the Capital City Trail in the early morning hours of Saturday, Sept. 12. Though there were no official attendance numbers, it was clear by the initial gathering at Burr Jones Field that protesters weren’t deterred by the strong storms threatening the area. Attendance was clearly in the hundreds...."

37 comments:

Lewis Wetzel said...: This will only convince rapists to start hanging around the jogging path instead.
College towns are great places to watch the spectacle of cheap moral posturing.; 9/18/15, 7:50 AM
Nichevo said...: Why do you note this, for its fallacious nature? 3000 RSVPd, 'hundreds' came, protesters not deterred? Was this intended as an arithmetic exercise?; 9/18/15, 7:51 AM
traditionalguy said...: This bike path is our land, this bike path is your land from Madison to the highlands. Now about those free bikes we demand...; 9/18/15, 7:51 AM
MadisonMan said...: Do not walk on a lit bike path after dark, especially after midnight. Especially if you're walking through a mostly non-residential area.

If you walk on the street, one block over, you are more likely to be seen by passersby in cars.

This is advice I gave to my daughter.; 9/18/15, 7:57 AM
Chuck said...: That's downtown, right? I know that the bike path (a wonderful little thing) runs out west to the Meadehouse neighborhood, but the assault was downtown near the large office buildings and the state capitol, right?

With DNA testing (and, I presume a statement from the victim) they should be able to determine the race of the attacker.

The news reports of the attack described the attacker as 5 foot 8 and slender build; but did not describe the attacker's race, which really seems to be a weird way to describe a potential felon for help from the public.

http://host.madison.com/daily-cardinal/madison-woman-attacked-sexually-assaulted-on-bike-path/article_49550fee-5b44-11e5-b2ca-df12e00e2fd6.html; 9/18/15, 7:58 AM
MadisonMan said...: I should comment on the safety of being outdoors during a thunderstorm too. When it roars, head indoors. Most of the lightning last night was in-cloud, or cloud-to-cloud. It takes but one bolt however, and the region of the rally was very very flat meaning each head would be a great lightning attractor.; 9/18/15, 8:00 AM
MadisonMan said...: @Chuck, the attack was on the near East Side, just beyond MG&E, the bike path that starts where Willy and 151 meet. I think it was the 700 block east of the Capitol.; 9/18/15, 8:01 AM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: Nichevo said...

Why do you note this, for its fallacious nature? 3000 RSVPd, 'hundreds' came, protesters not deterred? Was this intended as an arithmetic exercise?

If you define protesters as the people who show up and protest, then by definition the protesters cannot be deterred.; 9/18/15, 8:01 AM
Chuck said...: Check that previous post from me.

In updated reports, they are now releasing additional information, that the attacker is described as a Latino or light-skinned African American, wearing baggy pants and a hoodie.

http://www.nbc15.com/home/headlines/Madison-Police-investigating-sexual-assault-327021681.html; 9/18/15, 8:03 AM
Lewis Wetzel said...: " . . . each head would be a great lightning attractor."
Perhaps they should have attached firecrackers and sparklers to their bicycles so spectators would get a neat show if one of them was struck by lightning. I guess bicyclers aren't much for thinking of what would be nice for others.; 9/18/15, 8:05 AM
Paul said...: Carry a fucking gun....; 9/18/15, 8:05 AM
Jaq said...: So is a "brutal rape" "rape rape"? Or is it the same thing as having sex with your girlfriend when you are both high?; 9/18/15, 8:09 AM
Nichevo said...: Tim,

You mean, was she good? You'd have to ask him when you catch him. If he exists and isn't a special snowflake who can't be blamed for some reason...; 9/18/15, 8:17 AM
TosaGuy said...: "Do not walk on a lit bike path after dark, especially after midnight. Especially if you're walking through a mostly non-residential area."

That is the correct course of action. My army infantry days taught me a lot about light and night. Basically, all lighted trails do is make it possible for someone hiding to see you and make it impossible for you to see that person.; 9/18/15, 8:21 AM
Chuck said...: I should have typed, in the updated description of the alleged attacker, "jeans and a baggy hoodie." Not "baggy pants and a hoodie." My apologies.; 9/18/15, 8:24 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "A city wide policy dictates that most lights along bike paths and trails should be shut off after midnight. According to Madison police, that's about the time that a woman was sexually assaulted while walking home early Saturday morning along the Capital City Trail in the 300 block of Livingston Street. Police say a woman in her 30's was attacked from behind between midnight and 12:30 a.m. Saturday. Officials say she was brutally beaten, sexually assaulted and ultimately left for dead. Nearly an hour after the attack the woman was able to crawl back on to the path where a passerby noticed her and called police."

This happened on the East Side, further east than what we refer to as "downtown."

It was quite close to a women's sexual resources shop called "A Woman's Touch."

The subject of lights on bike paths has been discussed on this blog before. Lights might give a feeling of safety where there is none, since you are lit up, but someone could hide in the darkness and see you coming while being impossible for you to see.; 9/18/15, 8:25 AM
rehajm said...: Ten promised for every one delivered. Ten harmed for every one helped. Ten times the harm for every one times the benefit.

Leftie golden ratio.; 9/18/15, 8:28 AM
Original Mike said...: "Basically, all lighted trails do is make it possible for someone hiding to see you and make it impossible for you to see that person."

Yeah, people are so stupid when it comes to lights.; 9/18/15, 8:34 AM
Laslo Spatula said...: Preemptive blow-jobs can prevent rape.

Just an observation. From the bushes along the bike path.

I am Laslo.; 9/18/15, 8:50 AM
Eric the Fruit Bat said...: I just learned from a CD lecture series that in an animal herd, there are constant patterns of recirculation as the animals on the outside make their way to the center (after eating their fill, I'm guessing) where it's safest.

Why that came to mind upon consideration of an anti-rape rally is anyone's guess.; 9/18/15, 8:52 AM
Rusty said...: I think Paul is on the right track.; 9/18/15, 8:52 AM
Curious George said...: "In updated reports, they are now releasing additional information, that the attacker is described as a Latino or light-skinned African American..."

So if he had a father, he would look like Obama.; 9/18/15, 8:52 AM
Freeman Hunt said...: A woman was attacked on our trails several days ago too. In broad daylight on a busy section! Luckily, she managed to escape before he could do whatever he was planning to do. Several people saw a man of the same description acting strangely, and the police have detailed descriptions of him and his vehicle, so I think he will be caught in short order.; 9/18/15, 9:12 AM
Jaq said...: women's sexual resources shop !
Ha ah ha! Because other words that mean exactly the same thing have come to have a bad smell?

So a hooker is actually a "service technician"... I see how this game is played.; 9/18/15, 9:32 AM
madAsHell said...: It was quite close to a women's sexual resources shop called "A Woman's Touch."

Apparently, I am out of touch. What in the world do you find in a women's sexual resource shop?; 9/18/15, 10:15 AM
Mr. Colby said...: > “Justice doesn’t get wet,” said Amanda Hall, a Madison alder.

She's... a tree?; 9/18/15, 10:28 AM
Ann Althouse said...: A Woman's Touch is a shop that looks like this and sells lingerie, lubricants, sex toys... stuff like that.; 9/18/15, 10:50 AM
n.n said...: Planning has earned a morbid connotation in liberal societies. Far exceeding the historical significance of "working". Perhaps they could schedule the event in order to clarify their motive and intent.; 9/18/15, 10:51 AM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: A Woman's Touch is a shop that... sells... lubricants...

“Justice doesn’t get wet,” said Amanda Hall...

...and apparently, neither do feminists.; 9/18/15, 10:56 AM
Eric the Fruit Bat said...: [L]ingerie, lubricants, sex toys... stuff like that.

What I want to know is: When they invent the first male sex robots, will they be designed for women or for homosexuals?

Wait.

Don't answer that.

Dumb question.; 9/18/15, 11:05 AM
HoodlumDoodlum said...: That's a miss, Laslo, in very poor taste and not funny enough to make up for it.

Shoulda riffed on the phrase "sexual resources" or let this one pass by without comment.; 9/18/15, 11:41 AM
TosaGuy said...: "“Justice doesn’t get wet,” said Amanda Hall, a Madison alder.

She's... a tree?"

Ah yes, we can't have aldermen or alderwomen now. In discussion of local politics, I prefer the term aldercritter.; 9/18/15, 12:11 PM
mikee said...: I, for one, applaud great efforts to symbolically but not actually improve dire problems without addressing any of the actual causes or the problems, nor apprehending any of the malefactors who caused the problems.

Because when I ask groups like this if concealed handgun license holders can carry on the trail, if I don't get not just a "yes" but a "HELL YES!" then I know I'm about to make some converts to support the RKBA and the 2nd Amendment.

Self defense is a human right, an individual right, and the state should not infringe upon it, especially late at night on a lonely public trail.; 9/18/15, 1:09 PM
paminwi said...: What woman, with any comment sense, walks on an unlit bike trail after midnight?
Is it ok for me to feel bad for what happened to her and still say she is dumb as a box of rocks?

God gave you brains woman, use them!; 9/18/15, 3:07 PM
The Cracker Emcee Refulgent said...: "Carry a fucking gun...."

Yes, it isn't rocket science. In a town the size of Madison it shouldn't take more than, oh, two shot-dead rapists, to make the sexual-assault enthusiasts rethink their inclinations.; 9/18/15, 4:28 PM
Anonymous said...: Take back the bike path.
How?
Another protest?

"In updated reports, they are now releasing additional information, that the attacker is described as a Latino or light-skinned African American..."

Only a racist would arrest a black guy. The Latino may claim sanctuary, or Dear Leader's justice dept. would force local police to release him to do his stuff another day.

How about another protest: police profiling, dis-proportionally arrest non-white people?

Merge the two protests together to save time and blogging space.; 9/18/15, 4:44 PM
Lewis Wetzel said...: From the article about the womens sex shop:
like new "storage shelves" built into a wall that can be loaded with "inventory" from either side.
Okay, I added the quote marks around "storage shelves" and "inventory."
That means the words are used in a unique or special way.; 9/18/15, 8:30 PM