I was about to apologize to a new member for advocating streetracing, then I realized that as a country(US), we need to grow some balls (for women riders, metaphorically). I love streetracing, and love to trash Gixxers on my VFR and larger bikes on my VTR 250 or SV650, no chicken strips on my FXD either. It's a free country, know and accept risks. Our current administration loves to keep us scared. If you're truly scared, I understand that Hyundai's and automatic scooters are readily available. Ever read The Prince, 1984, or Animal Farm? And I'm an old guy! I refuse to live scared. or to raise my sons as wimps!
Amen. You're preachin to the choir. I work in ICU and I hear from people all the time that they can't believe I ride a bike. My answer is usually something like, "'There's being alive, and then there's living." Although I have several similar phrases. Once when I was younger my friends mom read an email to him about me getting over 140 on my bike and she proceede to chew my ass about it. I then gave her a scalding reply about freedom and riding motorcycles in general. I must have hit some chord with her because within the next year her and her husband went out and got their own bikes. They now ride regularly.