Help Me Understand the Appeal of Motorcycles

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Motorcycling has risks, which can be managed but not eliminated entirely. That's true of all forms of transportation, though.

Some motorcyclists fail to manage risk at all - they are not licensed to operate a motorcycle

A "license" has nothing at all to do with safety. It's merely another tax or extortion scam.

Licensing incorporates a skills test. The bar is quite low, just as it is for other types of motor vehicles, but it is there. There are unlicensed motorcycle riders out there who don't actually know how to safely brake, turn, or accelerate, and who ride nonetheless because they don't care. Still, those who take the licensing test and abide by the results would be weeded out and would not be on the road.

Licenses are neither a tax nor a scam. They are a barrier to entry to certain kinds of activities where a minimal level of competence is required by the government and public. Income and property taxes are purely sources of revenue; those who pay them are doing nothing more than working or own property, neither of which calls for any specialized skill and neither of which can potentially injure the public.

TLDR. Licenses are just another extortion scheme created by the mafia.
Government started using them after noticing the income generated by it.

The M designation on your license in Virginia is $2 per year. Pretty sure nobody is making money on that, even if you ignore the cost of emergency response to accidents.

[Anonymous]

vroom vroom go fast

They're fun, OP. That said, I don't ride anymore. I have kids, and I've seen how some of y'all drive. Once my kids are grown, I might get another one...

And yeah, loud pipes save lives. You might not see them (see previous re: how some of y'all drive), but you'll hear them, hopefully before you hit them. It's not (always) a style choice. It's most often a safety choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Motorcycling has risks, which can be managed but not eliminated entirely. That's true of all forms of transportation, though.

Some motorcyclists fail to manage risk at all - they are not licensed to operate a motorcycle

A "license" has nothing at all to do with safety. It's merely another tax or extortion scam.

Licensing incorporates a skills test. The bar is quite low, just as it is for other types of motor vehicles, but it is there. There are unlicensed motorcycle riders out there who don't actually know how to safely brake, turn, or accelerate, and who ride nonetheless because they don't care. Still, those who take the licensing test and abide by the results would be weeded out and would not be on the road.

Licenses are neither a tax nor a scam. They are a barrier to entry to certain kinds of activities where a minimal level of competence is required by the government and public. Income and property taxes are purely sources of revenue; those who pay them are doing nothing more than working or own property, neither of which calls for any specialized skill and neither of which can potentially injure the public.

So why charge anything at all? Why even have them? Licenses are ridiculous. We don't have walking licenses. Talking licenses. Bicycle licenses. Skating licenses. etc. But with your attitude, we will soon enough.



TLDR. Licenses are just another extortion scheme created by the mafia.
Government started using them after noticing the income generated by it.

The M designation on your license in Virginia is $2 per year. Pretty sure nobody is making money on that, even if you ignore the cost of emergency response to accidents.

[Anonymous]

"Crotch rocket" says it all.

[Anonymous]

They supply a steady stream of donor organs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Organ donations

When I got a new doctor about a decade ago, we did my physical and he goes through the standard battery of questions to man.

Dr: "Do you drive a motorcycle?"
Me: "I drive a Vespa for commuting around DC, but only keep it on the streets."
Dr: "That's good, but it's still a higher-than-average risk of severe injury or death. When I was doing my rotations everyone who works in trauma called them 'Donorcycles.' ER doctors have a dark sense of humor. Don't get a motorcycle."

[Anonymous]

Motorcycles are the closest thing you can do to flying a jet.
I raced (amateur) and did hundreds of track days when I was younger. A lot of people there with their sport bikes were actually young pilots. They were not military (usually) but flying the regional and cargo jets.

On a track, the thrill is exhilarating and as I never flew an f16 or anything can’t compare it - but the trained pilots said it was as close as you could get to flying without a plane.

On the street I ride (a lot less now) to get out to the middle of nowhere and enjoy the landscape.