From: byron@athena.mit.edu (Jack Miller)
Subject: Re: Boston Globe re. inliners
Organization: SKaters At Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Date: Wed, 19 Aug 1992 20:26:46 GMT

In article <34488@cbmvax.commodore.com> grr@cbmvax.commodore.com (George Robbins) writes:
>
>All I can say is don't blame the yuppies in-liners (stereotyping dude?)

	Yeah, because it's warranted.  I see no problem with
stereotyping when a) it's an easily observable one and b) it's
purposely reinforced by the group itself.  $400 skates and $300 of
neon safety gear to skate for fifteen minutes of exercise on one's
lunch hour?

>for wanting to skate and trying to change/fight anti-skating laws.  Should
>they be helping skateboarders?  Maybe, but as you've pointed out, the
>core constituiencies are different and why compromise the chance of winning
>with the burden of "obnoxious skateboarders".

	Exactly.  Fight for your own rights, we have no reason to
expect any help from you.

>Come down to it, skateboarders have an image problem.  In-liners have no

	It's only a problem in certain lights, such as this one, but I
suppose that's what you mean.

>big image liability, just visions of little kids on steel wheels getting
>run down and ghetto kids breakdancing on skates.  The activity can be
>painted as healthful aeorbic excercise and the skaters not only have green,
>but tend to disperse.
>
>Skateboarding, everybody knows (*!!!), is basically a juvenile activity,
>where kids hang out, offend the masses, cop attitudes, emulate strange
>role models and do drugs/glue/whatever parents wish they wouldn't and
>incidentally screw around with tricks on boards that are noisey and
>treaten to fly up and break windows or ankles of passerbys or at least
>chase away/obstruct paying customers.
>
>(*!!!) means that I'm not claiming this be true, but it's the image that
>gets used in those city/town council/board meetings where the anti-skateboard
>regs get passed.

	Well the only part of that stereotype that is actually quite
inaccurate is the drugs bit.  Most of the skaters I know don't even
drink.  Ever.  In fact many of them (including myself) are
straightedge.  

>I guess all I trying to get at is don't blame the yuppies for the problems

	Heh, when did I ever blame you guys for anything?  If anything
I was defending the intelligence of the decision to push for inlining
rights but not for skating rights.

>or expect that poking fun at their image/rationalle will do you any good.

	Ah, but it does.  It makes us feel a whole lot better and
keeps us away from automatic weapons that would rid the earth of some
of them but would simply cause more trouble in the long run.  ;-)

>There may be some lesson to be learned, but as long as long as a big part
>of the skating boarding scene ties in the element of adolescent rebellion
>older skaters are going to suffer the side effects of the repression aimed
>at the kids.

	Skating has always been an outlaw lifestyle and always will
be.  I wouldn't WANT to change that.  What I DO want to accomplish is
to keep it LEGAL.  That's about it, really.  I don't know about your
own personal opinions but I feel that banning skating is as much a
repression of a lifestyle choice as anti-gay laws.  Skating's not a
sport, it's what we are.  Our clothes, our music, our friends, our
school and career and residence choices, EVERYTHING ABOUT US is
heavily influenced by skating.  If I weren't a skater, my life would
be so different right now it makes my head spin.  I don't argue that
skating may be annoying and dangerous, but I DO argue that it isn't
annoying and dangerous enough to warrant crushing our lifestyle with
laws.  But then again, all the real skaters would skate even when it's
illegal, so I suppose it's kind of moot.  ;-)

	Okay, enough of this self-important soapbox bullshit... I
think you get my drift.  I'll keep my big mouth shut now.

			--Halloween Jack, thankful for the end of the 
					  four-day rain
Newsgroups: alt.skate-board