And so begins the destruction of another wonderful summer - UGH

Why did I make the headline sound so gloom and doom?

Because folks, this is my 16th riding season covering the kind of crap that has come up in the newsfeeds again, it's depressing, demoralizing and discouraging that after 15 years of writing, talking, sharing, no one has gotten off their butt to unite and actually fight for the rights of motorcyclists.

Somewhere in this country there has to be someone with the gift, the ability to unite people and get them working together to remove the discrimination and disdain that riders experience constantly.

I am the executive director and founder of the Canadian Motorcycle Tourism Association.

Do you know how many times and how often I am forced to explain why a motorcycle tourism association is spearheading the building of Veterans Memorial Gardens or why I pushed to build the Afghanistan War Monument? It's disgusting that people's minds automatically go to the bad places, the places that sadly, the RCMP and other police services seem to lead them through the bastardization of terminologies that are commonly used in our community and a main stream media that can't seem, or doesn't want to, actually do journalism. It seems that so much of what they do is sensationalized into stuff that it isn't.

In the last 36 hours or so, three articles have hit the news that should be disturbing for all motorcyclists.

Because of the way sound reverberates in the mountains, the retirees of the Kootenay's are getting tired of all of the noise that motorcycles generate, and we now have a zero tolerance on after market pipes in the Kootenay's.

"Police throughout the East and West Kootenay will be stepping up enforcement and adopting a zero tolerance policy with respect to motorcycles that have altered their exhaust pipes or installed after market equipment to make the motorcycle louder."  Read the rest of the article HERE.

If louder was the only reason for the upgraded pipes that many have installed - ok, but truth is many dealerships sell these pipes so that the engine will breath and perform better.

Dr. Jeckill and Hyde Mufflers are what should be stock on every motorcycle sold. PERIOD.  
Quiet mode in town, louder mode when you are on the highway looking for fuel efficiency and performance.

Loud Pipes do not save lives, they piss people off and make all motorcyclists into villains.

The average citizen doesn't look at me and say, she's running stock pipes, she's a good motorcyclist but look at him, he's got illegal exhaust, he's a bad motorcyclist.  

And even if they did say that, they'd still be wrong cause buddy with a louder exhaust can control the sound, it's all in the wrist.

They just look at all of us and tar us all with the same noisy, disrespectful brush. 

And so, the us against them, the Loud Pipes Saves Lives group against Riding like everyone is blind Group, the I want to sit on the deck and have a conversation, not scream above the loud pipes groups VS, the OH LOOK AT ME crowd...

Respect - our community touts it all the time - but seriously there is nothing respectful about a set of pipes that sets off car alarms for three blocks.

A Fire Fighters Club

Then there's the whole Three Piece Patch World and how cops have this idea that three piece patches are all property of people who do bad things.

Not all three piece patches are created equally.

On Whyte Ave in Edmonton a member of the Veterans MC Canada was asked to leave a dining establishment because he was wearing his cut while on a date night with his spouse.

Now we have people concerned about firefighters who have been seen at motorcycle functions with members of the Hells Angels. Read the article: Florian's Knights

The police do not understand the culture of the three piece patch clubs (or they act very obtuse about it) there is a dominant club in every region and if you want to wear a set of patches then you need approval so as not to cause a male dominated piss fight.  



The dominant wants to know that you are not there to start trouble or interfere in the community and that you are not there to try to challenge their dominance.

The Florian Knights out of the Lower Mainland did what every respectful club does, they said - Hey Motorcycle Community - do you have a problem with us flying these colours and riding together to raise money for charity while being brothers who help each other? The dominant - the Hells Angels said no, you aren't going to cause problems in our community, we have no problem with you.  The other clubs said hey, welcome to the community. 

End of. 

BUT....

The cops use/interpret that to mean, oh, you are in bed with the Hells Angels cause you asked their permission to fly your colours.

And because you get seen at motorcycle events and the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club has members present, well, now you really must be in their hip pocket or somehow associated. 

Or god forbid, you were childhood friends with someone who became a Hells Angels Member...

OMG that is horrible and against the law that a Hells Angels member could have a friend.

NOT ALL HELLS ANGELS MEMBERS ARE CRIMINALS.

And then there is the Royal Canadian Legion and their new edict about barring 3 piece patches from their club houses while also stating that it is disrespectful for a motorcyclist to wear his medals on his riding vest....talk to the good folks who attend  and ride in the Ride to Remember at Beechwood Cemetery, then come tell me about disrespect.   Tell that to any member of theVeterans Paratroopers MC, of the Veterans MC Canada. I bet you'll get an ear full.

They want to court riders, they have their own "Club" The Legion Riders, they play a part in the promotion and running of the National Memorial Ride:
http://www.legion.ca/remembrance/promoting-remembrance/national-memorial-ride

Can you say HYPOCRITES?

Read the article: Legions' ban club colours.

It is obvious to me that there is another riding season disinformation campaign going on and yet again, many are falling into the trap.

"All who wear a three piece patch are trouble, you need to use the petty trespass act to get rid of them out of your club house or establishment or you are going to loose your liquor license." says the nice police officer.

There is a problem with that disinformation campaign....not all Three Piece Patches are worn by those who commit crimes.

Now, I have preached this over and over and over until I am sick of having to say it.

Not all who wear the 3 piece patch of the Hells Angels are criminal.
Not all who wear a three piece patch are criminal.
Not all who wear a three piece patch are connected to the Hells Angels.

Just Like:
Not all priests are pedophiles 
Not all cops are drunks who mow motorcyclists down and flee the scene like Monty Robinson.


Generalizations SUCK. 

PROFILING is WRONG, ILLEGAL AND IMMORAL.

Know your Charter Rights and USE THEM PEOPLE.

Please sign my petition. HERE

What say you?

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Just a few of the photos from around the Internet that expose the Hypocrisy, Lies and Lunacy of it all:

                   At Beechwood Cemetery

Divisive and ill conceived laws and agendas and how they ruin well, everything.

I am normally a very outspoken character. When I found my voice after years of verbal, physical and sexual abuse, I vowed I would use my voice for as much good as I could.

I am someone you either love or hate and there are generally very few who are in the middle of the road on that. I know that, and I accept that.

Part of my job is to make people think.  If they get angry and call me all kinds of obscene names and jump all over every little mistake a person makes like it's some sort of conspiracy, so be it.  If they want to point mistakes out politely and help a person grow as a human being - WONDERFUL. As long as they are engaged and thinking, that's all I care about - I achieved my one and only goal.

Lately, I have been quiet on a lot of very contentious and touchy topics. I know, it's not really like me, right!

Some of the reason for the silence has simply been how busy I find myself these days.  After almost two years of being ill, doing only what absolutely had to be done, I find myself playing catch up in a huge way. I am feeling good these days and enjoying working again, but man oh man the work load makes it tough to balance things or find time to write.  And the fact that I find a 12 hour day is about all I can handle at work, well when you are used to producing for 18 hours a day and get reduced by 1/3 it gets interesting!

March is a very bad month for me. I have so many birthdays for people who are no longer a part of this physical realm that I am emotionally raw and so much of what I say becomes misconstrued because in March I can not effectively communicate my own name much less anything of any import.

April has gone by in a whirl with me filling out copious amounts of paperwork for grants, hiring a new CA because the one I had has done me no favours and left me and my books in a hell of a mess - ah the joys of running a small business - but please note that while I expound on the fact that I face challenges, I am thriving on them again, not dreading them.

Some of the reason for my silence however, has been the nastiness - it seems these days that if your viewpoint is not exactly the same as everyone on a certain side of any issue, you are lower than a snakes belly and unfit to be around.  It's hard to want to focus on the good, but be in this business and in this community. We can't even get along with each other or agree on much more than insurance rates.

In our country of Canada, we have huge political divisions that are tearing at the very fabric of our culture.  Our prime minister seems hell bent on bankrupting our country and leaving a legacy of debt and destruction for generations to come not to mention welcoming in ideologies that do not integrate well with western culture.

We have extreme Islamists attempting to destroy anything that represents freedom and so many hell bent on letting them destroy our country and its freedoms.  Female genital mutilation, the rape culture and many other unsavoury scenarios have played out around the world, yet our prime minister has not learned from those happenings.

If you voice your opinion, you'd best be feeling really strong, be wearing teflon, and not engage in rhetoric that will revert to mudslinging, name calling and other debasements.

Simply state your case and never look back, or be prepared to be skewered by such vehement anger and hatred that you are truly terrified for the future of our world much less our country.

As a PTSD survivor, I have found my own unique ways of dealing with the things that trigger me.  I can control myself so much better now than even a yer ago, but it takes constant effort and awareness.

Islam, Sharia Law, Profiling of Motorcyclists - these things trigger deep responses in me.

Today I am feeling strong and I have a few things to get off my chest.

So here goes nothing....

I am very PRO Blue lives matter.
I have uncles who were RCMP, I know how dangerous the job can be and I know how hard and thankless the job can be. I know it's a job I would not want to do.

I am also very PRO Our Charter of Rights & Freedoms and when the people on the Blue Lives matter side of the board start infringing on the Charter, I get really cranky - why?

Because it's hard to walk that line, to support the cops because they are necessary,  because there are bad people who do bad things in our society, communities and world, and YET, to have those very same people we rely on to solve murders, robberies etc., target the motorcycle community over its clothing the way they do year after year is getting sickening - and it puts one in a quandary, which never feels good.

Right now, there are a number of things transpiring that go against the Charter Rights of ALL Canadians who ride motorcycles and wear brand tee shirts, support clothing, regardless of who that clothing is supporting and it's got to stop.

Divisive and ill conceived laws and agendas ruin everything.

In a country where women can wear Burqa's and conceal their identity, even when voting, how in the H E DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS can it be "Immoral or Illegal" to wear ACAB gear (ALL COPS ARE BASTARDS is what some claim that means, but I also know it can mean All Cats Are Brilliant).  Or Support Red & White, Support Green & White - really? What happened to free speech?

In this day and age when you can have piercings and tattoos all over your face and you can wear pants that make you look like you crapped yourself, why is motorcycle apparel so offensive?

I'll tell you why.  Sadly the police and the politicians of this country have an agenda.

The police agenda is to ensure their jobs and careers are safe, their egos are properly primed and their point of view properly pushed.  Public safety is their last priority - budgets and careers folks - that's what it's about these days. Having a bunch of "Bad" boys who ride motorcycles that are visible, makes career security a guarantee.

Politicians have an agenda - to get elected and force you to live by their principles and ideologies, even when they are misinformed.

Our community is under siege in Bathurst, in PEI, in Alberta and really all across this country.

Heavy police presence as bikers meet in Charlottetown: http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/news/local/2017/1/21/heavy-police-presence-as-bikers-meet-in-charlottetown.html

Bathurst Mayor wants Province to ban biker gangs: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/bathurst-biker-darksiders-hells-angels-fongemie-1.4082623

The police are preventing people who wear ACAB and any support gear from entering the Tim Horton's on 82 St. and why? Because they can under the petty trespass act.

Bars in Calgary force riders to turn their Harley shirts inside out or leave - again the petty trespass act protects these kinds of discriminatory practices.

So what is the big confusion? What is the hullabaloo all about?

IGNORANCE - LACK OF KNOWLEDGE and subterfuge - (the unwillingness of the police departments to disseminate the truth).

People who ride with a Motorcycle Club, a Riding Club, a Motorcycle Ministry, a Veterans Motorcycle Club, in other words people who wear patches, are being unfairly targeted for special attention based on the clothing they wear.

Not their conduct, their clothing.

Now, the police and liquor boards would have you believe that all those who wear three piece motorcycle club colours are criminal or an undesirable element of society and that they (the cops & liquor boards) are trying to protect people from gang violence.

YET - they will not explain to business owners what patches are legal and illegal - wanted or unwanted... Why? Because none of these pieces of clothing is illegal. They just use this subterfuge to make life hard for all of us. They abuse the petty trespass act, I have even heard of bar owners who are threatened with their liquor licenses if they let these articles of clothes be worn on their premises. So...what ends up happening? Innocents get caught in the cross hairs.

I have, over the years written extensively about our patches and what they really mean. I have spoken on the topic until I am sick of it. (Here is one of the articles I have written about how challenging the patch issue is...  http://beltdrivebetty.blogspot.ca/2014/07/a-little-education-on-mc-world.html)

The police will not tell politicians or citizens who is or is not "legal", business owners and event hosts get bullied into complying with the cops and it gets media coverage thanks to the politicians who are spreading mistruths  that end up supporting the cops. And our community looks like a bunch of villains.

It's disgusting but unless we find a lawyer willing to take a challenge to the supreme court, and we have the millions of dollars in funds it is going to take to fight this profiling, and someone to take the lead - we are going to continue to be persecuted.

So get used to it Canada.

WE ARE A VISIBLE MINORITY because we ride and that makes all of us an easy target,
and that my friends is why the police can attack our lifestyle and our fellow riders.

No one will stand up for us it seems - not even us...

What say you?

Our Canada's MOST Rider Friendly Community contest is winding down.  Unofficially it looks like Port Alberni BC on Vancouver Island will be the 2016 Season winner!  We'll know once the audit has been done, but that's how it's looking!

For those in the Edmonton Alberta area, the Ride for Mom is kicking off on May 13th at Blackjacks Roadhouse in Nisku AB and Camrose Tourism will be unveiling a HUGE new tourism initiative for motorcyclists that weekend at Blackjacks as well - so come on out and support a great cause and learn all about the new tourism initiative!!!!

Here in Grande Prairie and area - the A.N.A.V.E.T.'s has a few things going on you should know about - read their posters!

Look for me to be writing again, far more consistently!

Belt Drive Betty
Editor & Rider

Fear breeds Hatred and Perpetuates Violence

As I read the comments on my Facebook statement where I ask for courage, strength and love to prevail, comments that are spawned from hatred and fear, I am afraid for this beautiful country that I love with all my heart.  

As a female of Irish, Scottish, Polish, English and French decent I want to remind very Canadian that our forefathers all came from somewhere else.  

As I look back at the history of my family, I realize that some fled the potato famines, some fled persecution and all came here looking for opportunity and a better life, I am sure you can look at your family's past and see similar things. 

Even our First Nations people came from somewhere else before they settled in Canada. Our First Nations peoples have inhabited this country for some 10,000 years. 

I ask you to look at the beginnings of this country we call Canada….. First Nations people were slaughtered, and treated horribly by those who came here seeking a better life, not by all, but by some.  And see the divisions, the misunderstandings, the hurt and yes hatred this has caused for many.

I believe that we need to continue to strive to be better people than our forefathers were.

Did we learn nothing from our past?  Is history always going to repeat itself?

I believe with all my heart that our government needs look after those who already live here much better than they do.  I believe we need stronger immigration policies that help us weed out the bad apples BEFORE they arrive here. I believe that we need to look after our veterans, soldiers and their families better than we do. We need to hold our politicians and bureaucrats accountable far better than we do.  

I believe ALL OF THAT – HOWEVER…I have some questions to ask of those who are overcome by fear and hatred….

If I said that all Irish Protestants are violent because of the actions of the IRA or some members of the Orange party in Toronto between 1867 and 1892, would I be right?  My great grandmother’s family was Irish Protestant ; none of them was party to any of that, as far as our family history allows us to know.

If I said that all Canadian Frenchmen are divisive and ignorant because of the politics of men like Gilles Duceppe would I be right? My uncles and aunts that I just came home from visiting are for the most part, pretty open minded Frenchmen.  They accept this English speaking westerner and between my broken French and their broken English we get along quite well.

If I said that all Polish people were members of organized crime because of the conduct of those who were members of the Pruszków mafia would I be right?  My great grandma’s family on my dad’s side was Polish, but in none of their history can I find any reference to them being party to organized crime.

If I said that all Protestant Scotsmen were gang members and criminals because of the conduct of members of the Billy Boys of Brigton Cross, a  Scottish Protestant gang, would I be right?  Far as I know my great grandfather and grandfather, Scottish Protestants, were farmers, loggers, but no where in their history can I find a connection to the gangs that divided Scotland in the 1920’s and 30’s.

If I said that all Cops are drunks and murderers because of the actions of people like Monte Robinson would I be right?  My uncle Serge was a cop for over 35 years; he was and is a moral man, the same with my adopted uncle, Rick.

If I said that all priests were pedophiles because of the conduct of Father Eric Dejaeger, would I be right?  My great uncle Armand Plourd was a priest.  As far as I know he never molested anyone and was in fact a good man.

If I said that all Grey Friars were child molesters and pedophiles because of the conduct of Brother Stephen Baker would I be right?

My uncle Christopher was a Grey Friar, and as far as I know, he was not a child molester.

If I said all who ride motorcycles are criminal in nature because of the actions of some members of some clubs, would I be right?  I ride a motorcycle; I do not view myself as a criminal. 

You see if I bought into any of the above statements, my entire family, from every nationality, every walk of life would have to be condemned as “BAD”; myself included. 

We can’t say all Italians are mobsters or all Germans are Nazis.

We can’t say that all Muslims are extremists and murderers.

Generalizations, profiling cause a lot of harm to those who do not fit the generalization or profile. We as riders fight it all the time.

What we CAN SAY is that we, the human race, are composed of people who commit acts of kindness and acts of brutality.  We CAN SAY that there are good people and bad people in every walk of society, all around the world.

Organizations like Isis, Boko Haram, Al Qaeda etc. win when we let fear take over. When we profile, the cowards & bullies win. When we generalize, the cowards & bullies win.

When we use generalizations to describe any group of people we do a disservice to all people including ourselves.

You see they, ISIS et al, want the moderate Muslim to turn to them when we “Westerners” start targeting the moderate Muslim as if they were the same as the offenders.  Through our hatred and fear, violence perpetuates and we will add to their numbers until they become powerful.

Again I will state: I believe with all my heart that our government needs look after those who already live here much better than they do.  

I believe we need stronger immigration policies that help us weed out the bad apples BEFORE they arrive here. 

I believe that we need to look after our veterans, soldiers and their families better than we do. 

We need to hold our politicians and bureaucrats accountable far better than we do.  

I am not saying open our doors wide to all, I am saying open our doors after a thorough screening, do everything possible to protect our country and its values but don't close the door on all because some are assholes.  If we closed doors to all because we are afraid of a few, I wonder how many Germans, Poles, Jews, Irish, Scottish, French and English people would live in this melting pot we call Canada.

We need to remember that above all, be you black, red, white or purple, be you Christian, Jew, Muslim, Protestant or Catholic – we are all people first and to generalize, to profile is wrong. 

We riders know that better than most.

WE NEED:

Courage - we need to have courage, to exhibit courage.

One definition of courage is: "strength in the face of pain or grief."  Another is
"the choice and willingness to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty or intimidation."

Tolerance - we need to have tolerance, to exhibit tolerance.

One definition of tolerance is; the ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behaviour that one does not necessarily agree with.

Caution - we need to be cautious, to be protective.

One definition of caution is: care taken to avoid danger or mistakes.

A wise man once said:

When I despair, I remember that all through history the ways of truth and love have always won. There have been tyrants, and murderers, and for a time they can seem invincible, but in the end they always fall. Think of it-always. Mahatma Gandhi

He also said: An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.

That's how I see things, what say you?

Belt Drive Betty

Editor & Rider 


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