A YouTube user named Leveret Day, has posted a video of an encounter with a pedestrian. He describes the incident below.

This encounter happened as I walked along pushing my bicycle in South Kensington on the morning of Friday 20th Feb 2015.
This stranger walked up behind me and started talking to me. Note that this was not the result of any encounter between us as I was actually cycling along. I was just wheeling my bike along, to cross the road at the traffic lights.
To begin with I thought he was perhaps a cyclist commiserating about recent tragic cyclist deaths with some rather uncomfortable ‘gallows humour’ … but then he used the words ‘road tax’ and was alas shown to be just a really vile man.
I’m not at my most articulate but really I was quite thrown by how to respond to him. He didn’t seem to mind that I had my helmet camera recording so, well, here we go …
——-
Him: Here, do you wanna hear a good joke?
Me: Go on …
Him: What’s the connection between cyclists and Freddie Mercury from Queen?
Me: Go on …
Him: Another one bites the dust
Me: I’m not going to laugh at that
Him: Don’t you think that’s good?
Me: I’m not going to laugh at that
Him: Yeah I did a blog on cyclists, and. It’s called ‘in the 100s’ and I have to pay £125 a year for a ‘road tax disc’ …
Me: You don’t pay Road Tax. Road Tax doesn’t exist. It hasn’t existed since the late 80s*, so if you’re paying ‘road tax’ someone is fleecing you.
[*oops, I mess up here – meant to say ‘about 80 years’ – it was abolished in 1937!] Him: But don’t you think, um, cyclists should pass their cycling proficiency?
Me: But you know what, I see drivers who have apparently passed their test and they’re still reckless. And also, don’t you think that a lot of cyclists are also car users? Not that *anyone* pays ‘road tax’ tho
Him: Well cyclists are their own worst enemy. They deserve to die! they are incompetent!
Me: No! Can I take your name please?
Him: No!
Me: Why not? Do you just like throwing out abuse at people?
Him: Yeah
Me: Oh you do? That’s interesting
Him: Cyclists are their own worst enemy
Me: So it’s not that cars are speeding?
Him: No
Me: Turning into them without signalling?
Him: No
Me: Driving on their phones?
Him: No, I think cyclists jump the lights
Me: Funny, I’ve seen cars, in fact I’ve just got on my camera about 5 cars jumping red lights today
Him: Ah
Me: So that’s interesting
Him: Well I got run down by a cyclist …
Me: I’ve been hit by a car …
Him: Oh well
Me: See, it goes both ways, you can’t just use broad brush strokes
Him: Boris Johnson
Me: Is an idiot
Him: Needs to be put up against a wall and shot in the head
Me: Yeah for many other reasons but not for ‘encouraging’ cycling.
I think you’re a very hateful person that really needs to take a wide look around you …

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