aw0L

Just seems hypocritical, is all. Our compassion extends to some species, and not to others.

For the record, I'm against any slaughterhouses, and so I guess preventing slaughter of any species is better than not ... but it does seem silly that there is such a double standard.

It doesn't seem like the bolt is very humane, in any case ... why not use tranquilizers? Well perhaps they'd contaminate the meat. One more strike against institutionalized killing of animals ... of any species, I'd say.

I wish we could get such a backlash against the horrible conditions in factory farms, slaughterhouses, and meatpacking operations of all animal species ... people wanting to eat meat could kill the animals themselves, be responsible for taking the life instead of removing it so far from our collective consciousness.

could stand to have much better quality ingredients and manufacturing processes. I'm pretty choosy about the stuff I actually buy. Still, as someone who doesn't enjoy dead animal parts in the best of circumstances, I'd accept any reasonable vegetable-rendered facsimile that's at least somewhat tasty and fit for human consumption at a public event over nothing else available. :)

Thanks for the editorial, Gene ... but is there any information on why there is such a high rate of pedestrian-involved accidents?

If I were to venture a guess, it's probably due to lack of knowledge of how to properly use a roundabout, both on the part of drivers and pedestrians.

When the roundabout on 8th and Central was first put in, I confess I was clueless. I was working downtown at the time and had to cross it at least twice a day. At first I was thinking, "wow--this is crazy. What's up with this thing?" But then I got online and did some research on roundabouts, and soon I was sold.

They increase traffic flow by allowing a large amount of traffic to pass through without having to stop. It's much more efficient to only have to slow down to pass through, and not to stop, as during most times of the day, no one is driving through the other way. No need for a light telling one direction or the other to stop half the time when it's not necessary. Even when there is traffic coming from both ways, simply waiting until there's an opening provides an optimum traffic flow where people travelling either way hardly ever have to come to a full stop.

The key is in knowing how to navigate it. If there's no one crossing directly in front of you, there's no need to stop. Simply slow down enough to navigate the curve and drive on through. No need to wait until the roundabout is completely clear; as long as you have enough room to get in without obstructing someone else, you're fine.

Pedestrians--this is the key: don't try to cross to the middle island! Unfortunately this is not obvious to the novice. Only cross at the "spokes" coming out of the roundabout! Technically, cars are supposed to yield to pedestrians, but pedestrians should only be in the crosswalks on the spokes! If the traffic load warrants it, on-demand crossing signals can be installed ("push button for walk signal").

With a little education and practice, you soon see that these intersections work far better than stop signs or traffic lights for many, many intersections, if not all with some slight modification.

So sorry to hear that some child was struck hard and flew to their injury or possible death; but the intersection design is not at fault. Modern roundabouts (as opposed to the older "traffic circles", which are a different beast) were pioneered and proven and are used heavily in England and Europe to the great benefit of traffic flow, gas usage, and emissions.

Perhaps what we need is some better signage on the roundabouts informing drivers of how to proceed -- such as "Pedestrians: Do not cross to middle island!" or "Cross at crosswalks only" or "Cross here!"; and for drivers, "Yield to pedestrians in crosswalk" and "Stop only for traffic that would prevent a safe crossing" (hard to find a good concise way to say that; but letting them know they only need to stop for cars already in the roundabout that are actually close enough to be in their way).

A good starting point for further reading:

[link]

sounds cool, i might come down check it out. will there be vegetarian hot dogs or anything for us herbivores besides candy & ice cream? :)

Unfortunately, some members of the car-buying public are of the mentality that newer, shinier buildings = better. It baffles me, but I know some people like this.

It'd be nice if we could all appreciate and celebrate the diversity of architectural heritage, including overlooked gems like this. Thanks for sharing.