Ummm...interesting non sequitur/institutional racism scold there at the end, Josh.

I'm going to agree with "Huh?" How was this relevant?

Or maybe Mr. Treisman is a PhD candidate working on his dissertation who has neither the time nor the resources to invest in a costly and probably fruitless legal battle. But nice job turning him into the bad guy!

this is SO seattle of you to bring up white privelege! did you go to evergreen? or were you a former riot grrrl?

My thinking is that Treisman is a pussy who was "taken a stand" on a non-issue by being an asshole who wanted to block traffic with other Critical Mass assholes. Now that he has a real social issue to confront... he will take the pass. White priviledge to be a pussy, more like it. And, as a message to Critical Mass... Triesman (in)action speaks more against your organization then it does against Triesman, you traffic-blocking assholes.

White priveledge? Seriously?

I thought it was just an unpopular sherrif trying to keep from getting recalled by an angry citizenry that doesn't want to be roughed up for minor traffic violations by thugs pretending to be police officers.

Bullshit - lots of African-Americans - if not most - don't press charges/pursue legal action after being subjected to police abuse far worse than this case.

However, where white privilege comes in is that they decline to do so because they know such legal efforts almost always come to naught - particularly for people of color.

Any word on discipline for detectives that make a false report to a county procecutor? You know, perjure themselves. That is a felony, right?

Really good for the credibility of the KC sherrif dept...

You may be right, Mr. X, but the reason African Americans often don't pursue legal action is due to socio-economic factors beyond their control. Treisman is a lawyer-having, PhD-getting member of society who has a moral responsibility to take action where others cannot. Call it what you want...white priviledge or just being a pussy.

Wow, way to fan the flames of racism Josh. Nice of you to address the real issues.

I'll let Zack speak for himself, but the fact that he's not pressing charges says less about "white privilage" than it does about him having bigger and better things to do with his life.

Things like riding his bike. Getting a PHD. And not chasing some fruitless lawsuit that will do nothing to better his life.

I wish he would press charges. It may not "better his life" by doing so, but it might shed some much-needed light on the scourge that is the Secret Police of Seattle (and King County).

Um, most cyclists are not interested in big-dollar lawsuits. We just want to ride bikes.

Look, people. When someone decides to be a part of something like Critical Mass, they assume the risk of being arrested. If they are wrongly arrested, they should also assume the responsibility of righting said wrong, no? Is Critical Mass' mission not based on civil disobedience?

Thanks, Josh. We never would have considered the glaring and fiendish racial angle of this story without your razor-sharp insight.

Josh Feit I can't believe what an ignorant, judgemental prick you are. I feel utterly betrayed by you when you were the only reporter telling the truth about this story from the beginning. Now you're spreading more lies just like the King County Sheriff's office did. Zack isn't pressing charges for his own personal reasons that you know nothing about, and it's not because he's "comfortable" and "it's no big deal." It IS a big deal to him and his family, but he's not able to go further with this situation due to other circumstances at this time. Congratulations Josh, you now have the class and integrity rivaling that of Sue Rahr.

So pursuing legal action is the new white man's burden?

Seriously, the real problem here is that the KC Sheriff's Office really needs to pursue an internal investigation and fix their serious problems. If they don't it's just another complete and utter failure on their part, and we should remind them that we pay their salaries.

Also, Phenics, stop trolling. What is this, AOL circa 1996? Nobody cares who you - anoymous internet poster - think is a pussy, an asshole, or anything else.

Nice little game of blame the victim Josh!

And people, CRITICAL MASS is not an organization you join. It is an event. There are no leaders. There is no group sponsor. It's people who ride bikes in the city. If you show up, you're in. It's like saying the people who randomly go to Golden Gardens to enjoy the bonfires and sunsets are an organized group.

more discussion at point83.com

Choosing not to press charges against law enforcement is frequntly the only move a person can make unless they want to relocate. The cops who assaulted me, took my license and made it clear that they knew where to find me. I tried to make a complaint anyway and was summarily dismissed by the police hierarchy. Personally, I still fear for my personal safety around cops - it has nothing to do with "white privilege".

Good job mucking up your story by playing the race card.

There was nothing about race about it. It was about what happen and who was telling the truth and thanks to over 20 witnesses and people coming forward, the prosecutor did not see a case.

So what you are saying is that if he were black this would not be the outcome of this case? I would think if you have 20 eyewitnesses to what really happen I would bet that it would have the same outcome.

Get a clue josh, not everything is about race. Maybe you should go out and report a story and not make one.

Cut Josh some slack. I'd be bummed too if I had spent as much time as he has reporting on allegations of misconduct only to find the the "alleger" isn't going to file a complaint.

Meanwhile there are allegations that do result in complaints that never receive this level of scrutiny from the Stranger. See here and scroll to to take a look:

http://www.seattle.gov/mayor/issues/OPA.htm

Oh, also one critical remark to pile it on as I'm suggesting the granting of slack...

It probably makes more sense for Josh to think about HIS race/class bias (and that of his paper) in deciding to cover this complaint to the extent he has. It's underscored by the fact that the complaints found in the link I sent above, if reviewed by Stranger newswriters at all, are rarely looked into and used as reporting material.

His speculation about the race and class-based reasons why the biker didn't file a complaint are a bit misplaced.

oooOOOOOH, someone talked about race! Bad, bad Josh. Don't talk about race :( In any context. Don't think about it. It's always a non-issue within most if not all frameworks. You know, even if one situation makes you compare it to others that have been important to society at large. And so also, please don't ever discuss it. Race. Thanks, man.

Notwithstanding, I'm quite sure that your numerous aghast detractors are at this very moment doing everything they can to -- regardless of Treisman's decision -- make every effort to persue this very questionable matter to its just conclusion. Right on.

OK ... well ...

On the other hand, there's a cop in Hartford who's been having a bad day for the past few months ... take heart?

I'm sure one white man loves being chided by another white man about "white privilege".

Seattle is a very racist city. Josh has guts and balls to call out racism when he sees it. Anyone white male in Seattle who claims not to be a racist is an even worse racist.

Or perhaps he is not pressing changes because he would have difficulty claiming that he's an injured party and because he initiated the contact. Jace would have a better case by far. Charges dropped is the correct outcome. I seriously doubt that he would be pressing changes if he were black either.

Mr. Feit, only you could somehow bring the issue of race into Zack's (personal) decision not to press charges. Your attempt to stir up more controversy is self-serving and opportunistic.

Yes, Seattle has race issues, but your attempts to connect this story to that larger issue is pure asshattery.

Look kids - yes, Seattle is a racist city, and god knows if any town needs a lesson in white privilege, it's this one.

That being said, Josh has *no idea* about Zach's personal reasons for not pursuing the case. Of course, since I'm not in a position to tell all of Seattle about his personal life, I'm sure you will all (rightfully) call bullshit on me. But rest assured they are decent reasons.

But as a feminist, this brings up one of my favorite debates: feminists who bitch out rape victims who refuse to press charges. The simple fact is that long court cases like this are stressful, EXPENSIVE, time consuming, and often fruitless. It often puts your life on hold, and in some cases there are emotional consequences as well.

And privilege isn't just limited to race and gender and class. Experience and situation are encompassed by that as well, and Josh can make this claim with no thought to what Zach may have to go through because Josh (and you, fellow board members) isn't the one who has to go to trial, Zach is. Cut the kid a break, jesus.

Maybe hiring a lawyer costs a lot of fucking money that Treisman doesn't have, nor is anyone willing to give him.

Ambulance Chasers have no problem doing pro per work on a high profile civil trial. Maybe this is more a case of "You lucked out white boy, Blacks have better common sense than to go stopping traffic enmasse for something as inconsequential as bicyclists' rights without expecting to see a riot squad and a hell of alot of public outrage".

You goptta pick your battles as carefully as you pick your causes.

Bicycle awareness?

Whitey, get a real cause. "The Struggle" is way over rated.

Shit like this is why cavalier motherfuckers like the SDD and Weather Underground were ultimately held at a distance from Black Civil Rights Groups. and why blacks are leary of the white left.

4 white cops tried in the bedroom community they all reside in get acquitted of the most obvious act of police abuse captured on video and you think a jury or judge is going to find sympathy for this dork on a bike?

Put down the race card and step away from the typewriter. Everyone wants to be a revolutionary or an outlaw, but when you wake up in jail with a sore neck over bicyclist's rights, you are definitely gonna do some soul searching and hopefully some backing away from your actions. Any double talk about money, school or staying focussed is pure coping mechanism and face saving after coming to terms with the idea that there are causes worth going all the way for and there are causes worth a good time.

Hope you had a good time, Cowboy.

Regardless, those cops are assholes. But you know that from birth right? Cops are assholes. So bearing that in mind, why would you even dream up something as begging of a cops baton as Critical Mass? If you're gonna upset the cops, it had better be for something really fucking important. The clearest case of white privelege here is the act of defiance that Critical Mass is. Only white people would be so sure that the cops wouldn't fuck with them over their civil disobedience in the interest of raising "Bicyclist Awareness" or whatever the party line is.

Welcome to the struggle, Dip Shit.

Something I found interesting in this whole suite of stories were the comments suggesting that Critical Mass was pointless in Seattle since bicyclists have it pretty good here.
The rides aren't pointless, but their size attests to the relative goodness of bicycling Seattle. 200 bikes? ha.
Chicago CM rides attract up to and well above 800 cyclists at a time. Every month in the summer.
Imagine 2000 wheels revolving down Seattle streets! The traffic would come to a standstill on the 405 ...

Count your blessings.

Making race-based assumptions about someone's (in)actions, then judging them based on your assuptions?

Who's the racist?

It's people like Josh Feit who propogate racism in society.

Pathetic.