Cliffs Riffs - Stuph n Nonsense

(Erik Buell is a motorcycle designer and manufacturer. He is associated with Harley Davidson, but his motorcycles are very innovative and are very different from Harleys.) Dear Erik, Your designs have always caught my attention. The styling of Buell motorcycles have always appealed to me and your methods for putting the weight of the bike low are genius. Your placement of the exhaust system rocks. You really got my attention with your introduction of the Ulysses. A couple of my riding friends have them and I was able to ride one on two different occasions. Great riding bike. Too bad your bikes are sold at Harley dealerships. Most of the dealers in my area treat Buells like a red headed step-child that needs to be tucked away in the corner of the dealership - not an innovative bike worthy of center stage. Harley dealers are less than excited about taking a BMW in trade. One salesman who was moderately excited about selling a 2006 Uly that was lanquishing on the sales floor last week, sc...

It is too easy to fall into the trap of complaining all the time - especially about the "news" we receive on a national, regional, and local level. Came across a couple of good news items in the last couple of days. First and foremost an elected "official" who is willing to put his money where his mouth is. A Michigan congressman (I cannot find the article to get his name) wants to take a salary cut and wants others to do the same in order to help the State of Michigan out of its budgetary quagmire. Good on you, sir. I am going to keep looking to see if I can locate the story and get this guys name. I want to communicate with him directly. On a more global note- the US and most of Europe are turning the tide on deforestsation according to the Food and Agriculture Organization, which is based in Rome and reports on such things. They stated that "careful forest management has had positive results" in the US and most of Europe. The article went on to state th...

Riding motorcycles is a passion of mine. Got my first bike when I was 18 and rode for many years, took some time off and dove back into it 6 years ago. I do not care what brand someone rides, just that you spend time in the saddle. Practical reasons to ride: Makes your commute fun. Great gas milage - my big bike, BMW Rockster 1150 cc gets 38 mpg and sometimes more. My "winter bike" is a 250cc dual sport antique Honda XL and it gets between 60 to 72 mpg. Small parking space needed. Lessen your impact on the environment. Makes your commute fun. I believe in the gospel of wearing a helmet and as much protective gear as possible. I believe in the gospel of riding a motorcycle all year round, even in Michigan. (See more such tomfoolery at www.yearroundriders.com )

This was one of the first pieces I had published and was PAID for when my writing efforts were resurrected from the ash heap a few years ago. Sold it to the New York Press, an alternative weekly in, oddly enough, NY City. The story about the militant vegan is true. (Thought it was eating meat that made one militant.) The story is here: http://www.nypress.com/15/19/news&columns/first.cfm

It seems almost every time I turn on the radio, TV news, or glance at a newspaper there is some negative mention of the poor environmental policies of the George W. Bush administration. Everyone seems all up in arms about the way the president and his staff seem to have such little regard for trees, our water, the air we breathe and the earth in general. I am not here to defend W or his people, but I would like to paraphrase the saying about the one finger pointing at someone else still leaves three pointing back at you in order to issue this challenge: “Don’t point your environmental finger at the current administration unless all your other fingers are busy doing what ever you can do yourself to save the environment.” It is real easy to poke fun at the lumber companies for their terrible deforestation practices, but using less paper and re-cycling the paper that we have used seems to be beyond our grasp. We can bleat ad nauseum about factories spewing junk into the air, but our cries...

Doors and SUVs - written in December 2005 (he is still holding out to my knowledge). This time around I am going to explore the relationship between a rock drummer and a luxury car company. Sound like fun? Then read on. What are they thinking over at the Cadillac division of General Motors? I am sure all of you are aware of the fact that GM is in a world of financial hurt. So can anybody tell me why on earth Cadillac wants to pay the three living members of the Doors 15 million bucks for the use of one of their songs: Break on Through (To the Other Side)? A small article about this caught my attention because Doors drummer John Densmore said, “No” to that offer and to other offers including 4 million from Apple Computers for the use of another popular Doors song. Densmore could make more money for signing a few agreements to license songs than many small countries gross in a year, but he is holding out against the temptation to rent out what he describes as the “mysterious and magic” m...

Convenient for whom? I heard a commercial for a satellite dish system the other day. If you buy (rent?) their system you get some gizmo that will allow you to put TV shows on pause in order to finish watching them when you are done with dinner or a phone call. Sounds really spiffy, but not for me thanks. I am glad the days of the VCR are gone because I could never figure out how to set the timer so it would record something while I was going to be gone. This got me thinking about all the “convenient” technology we have available to us now and I was wondering if things were really all that convenient. My new cell phone (yup, the one that makes noises every time anything happens in or around it) has the added “convenience” of a camera. First off, I had no desire for a camera in my phone – I just wanted a phone that would work better than my old one. Well, if you want a phone that combines digital and analog technology so it works just about anywhere in Michigan, then it will have a camer...