News Bytes
THE AIM / NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought to you by Aid to Injured Motorcyclists ( A . I . M .) and the National Coalition of Motorcyclists ( NCOM ), and is sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M . Lester . If you ’ ve been involved in any kind of accident , call us at 1- ( 800 ) ON-A-BIKE or visit www . ON-A-BIKE . com .
NCOM BIKER NEWSBYTES Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish , National Coalition of Motorcyclists ( NCOM )
DUMP TRUMP EFFORT IN THE DUMPS In a last-ditch effort by Democratic strategists and the Hollywood elite to derail President-Elect Donald J . Trump ’ s ascension to the presidency , U . S . Electoral College delegates have been swamped with requests to ignore their pledge and “ vote your conscience ,” but longtime bikers ’ rights advocate Jim Rhoades of ABATE of Michigan , one of that state ’ s 16 electors , says they ’ re cries are falling on deaf ears because he ’ s obligated to speak for the voters of his state . Appearing on FOX News network ’ s “ Your World ” wearing his ABATE shirt , Rhoades revealed that he ’ s gotten over sixty thousand emails , phone calls and basketfuls of form letters calling on him to vote against Trump , as well as some threats , but believes fellow electors also feel steadfast about their duty and will support the will of their states ’ voters when they cast their ballots on Monday , December 19th . Calling the pressure tactics a “ waste of time ,” Rhoades told FOX News host Neil Cavuto in the nationally televised interview on December 15 that “ I ’ m not intimidated by any of this stuff ,” and added “ I ’ ve been riding Harleys since the sixties , so I ’ ve been around a long time , I ’ m a grass roots political animal … and I love what Trump says , and he ’ s got me fired up looking for great things and looking to make America great again .” In the aftermath of a norm-busting 2016 Presidential campaign , Trump won 306 Electoral College votes to Hillary Clinton ’ s 232 , but if 36 “ faithless electors ” changed their ballots it would send the election to the U . S . House of Representatives to be determined , where Republicans hold a majority . In the past , some electors turned “ faithless ” in nine out of the last 17 elections , and a total of 179 times throughout American history , but no electors have ever changed the outcome of an election by voting against their party ’ s designated candidate .
ANALYSTS ADVISE INVESTORS TO BET ON MOTORCYCLES AND PIZZA Every U . S . presidential transition brings a change in priorities , forcing market gurus to bet on which sectors of the economy might benefit from the new administration , but with corporate analysts admittedly baffled by Donald Trump , prognosticators are doing some intellectual gymnastics . Joseph Spak , a Royal Bank of Canada analyst , thinks Donald Trump ’ s $ 1 trillion plan to rebuild American infrastructure will ultimately provide construction workers with extra cash . And what do construction workers like to spend money on ? Motorcycles , of course . “ If the economy is stimulated and construction jobs increase ,” Spak recently predicted that Harley-Davidson Inc . “ could see some better demand .” According to the Wall Street Journal , another firm advises investors that pizza-delivery companies that benefited from a high-drama campaign that kept many diners glued to their televisions might continue to profit from the drama of a Trump transition .
FEDS SEEK TO REQUIRE NEW VEHICLES TO TALK TO EACH OTHER U . S . auto-safety regulators have proposed new rules requiring automakers to adopt crash-avoidance technology that allows all new vehicles to communicate with each other , a move that could help accelerate the development of self-driving cars . The requirement of so-called vehicle-to-vehicle connectivity (“ V2V ”) on all consumer vehicles within the next five years is viewed as central to the development of a new age of cars that can avoid accidents by wirelessly monitoring each other . V2V technology uses short-range radio communication to allow vehicles to identify each other ’ s speed , location , direction and acceleration or braking , within a radius of about 300 meters . The move marks a concrete step by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration toward its goal of eliminating roadway deaths within 30 years , and agency officials told USA Today that vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure technology could eliminate or greatly reduce the seriousness of up to 80 % of crashes that don ’ t involve driver impairment . NHTSA pledges that the new technology would not divulge any personal information regarding drivers .
EUROPEANS TO TEST AUTONOMOUS CARS WITH MOTORCYCLES Vehicle authorities will cooperate with European motorcyclists ’ organizations to conduct their own test program with different brands of semi-autonomous cars . “ The Dutch are authorizing further testing to see if these ‘ semi-autonomous ’ cars can operate safely with motorcycles on the road ,” says Oregon A . I . M . ( Aid to Injured Motorcyclists ) and COC ( Confederation of Clubs ) Attorney Sam Hochberg , who alerted the National Coalition of Motorcyclists ( NCOM ) about this important issue here and abroad . “ This is going to be a real issue here in the USA in the not-too-distant future .” In response to a letter motorcyclists ’ organizations FEMA ( Federation of European Motorcycle Associations ), MAG NL ( Motorcycle Action Group – Netherlands ) and KNMV ( Dutch Motorcycle Association ) sent to RDW , with regard to the European type approval of the Tesla by RDW , a meeting took place recently where the motorcyclists ’ worries were addressed . RDW is the Netherlands Vehicle Authority that issued the European type approval for Tesla . A driver of a Tesla - and other advanced cars - can leave key actions to the vehicle itself , while in the opinion of the motorcyclists ’ organizations this equipment is not , or not sufficiently , tested with motorcycles . In the discussion about the concerns that motorcyclists have with admitting ( semi- ) autonomous vehicles on the roads , it soon became clear that many of the concerns of the motorcyclists ’ community are shared by RDW .
RDW proposes - in cooperation with the motorcyclists ’ organizations - to conduct their own test program with different brands of cars with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems . RDW also believes - as do the riders - that testing with motorcycles should be part of the test protocol for European type approval . Dolf Willigers , General Secretary of FEMA : “ We are very pleased with the outcome of this first meeting with the experts of RDW . We are going to act together and we will see in the field tests to which extent the technique takes motorcyclists into account .”
NEW YEAR , RENEWED EFFORTS IN D . C . With the 114th Congress set to adjourn , and a new congressional session beginning in January , some federal bills that motorcyclists have been advocating will expire and need to be reintroduced . House Resolution 831 was introduced in the U . S . House of Representatives on July 13 , 2016 to “ Promote awareness of motorcycle profiling and encourage collaboration and communication with the motorcycle community and law enforcement officials to prevent instances of profiling .”
18 January 2017 THUNDER ROADS MAGAZINE LOUISIANA WWW . THUNDERROADSLOUISIANA . ORG