I'm assuming this sign is in Milwaukee. I have been to that city a few times, the last on a fruitless attempt to interview Eric Buell. Honestly, the place depresses me. It's a Rust Belt city with special emphasis on rust and poverty, with a few pockets of the filthy rich who are more depressing than poor people. I can't remember any part of the city looking as clean as this picture depicts. My wife's big complaint with the rich and corporations is that they are people who don't "pick up after themselves." I don't think anyone picks up after themselves in Milwaukee. It's like LA, New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Miami, or any number of places where people work and sleep, but almost no one lives.
It wouldn't be hard for me to be a Harley hater, but I'm agnostic on the concept (among other things). When Harley partnered with Eric Buell, I really wanted to like the company. When they shut Buell down and played Millard Romney with the future of his company, I very nearly hated HD. I'm sure some Italians feel the same way about how HD mishandled MV Agusta. Italian laws made it impossible for HD to trash the remains of MV, though. We don't have much in the way of law that protects workers from predatory corporations, so HD was free to toss Buell's products and workers into the trash can. I still believe that will come back to haunt HD as the braindead Boomers head into the sunset on their Hoverounds. But, I've been wrong a lot in predicting the future. I don't get Young Republicans and I don't get young people and primitive, historic, slow machines.
I can not thank you adequately for the posts on your web site. I know you'd put a lot of time and effort into them and hope you know how much I appreciate it. I hope I'll do exactly the same for someone else at some point.
ReplyDeleteI didn't put much work into this one. I honestly want to know if there is more story to the picture? The boy is, obviously, not taking a piss. There is a line or crack in the sign on the left side that looks like his "stream." I suspect there is no time when anyone would have a safe interval to do something that silly.
ReplyDeleteAs it stands I can't be bothered to hate Harley. Why, if they built a bike I liked I'd even consider buying one.
ReplyDeleteMakes sense. Hate an inanimate object is as dumb as loving one. Contrary to 1% believe, corporations are not people and most of the people who are at the top are not even sane people.
ReplyDeleteYou've obviously never been to Rockerbox: http://www.rockerbox.us
ReplyDeleteI have not and a show featuring "16 competitive classes including Best Café Racer, Best Chopper, Best Street Tracker" probably isn't going to get me there, either. So many gangbangers and so little space sounds like a formula for creating more biking-haters in a neighborhood. Milwaulkee is a weird place. What would drag me to Milwaulkee would be Mr. Buell's rock and roll band, though.
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