It’s mildly entertaining to watch the right wing in the United States lose the rest of what little was ever there in terms of its mind. Certainly, their ability to say the most ridiculous things and still obtain some news coverage goes far toward showing the continuing usefulness of Herman and Chomsky’s classic, Manufacturing Consent.

Dan Maes, the Republican-Wing-of-the-Business-Party’s candidate for Governor of Colorado, is apparently going around saying that pro-bicycle activism is not only an effort to — horror of horrors! — influence “the attitude” of our fellow citizens, but also “part of a greater strategy to rein in American cities under a United Nations treaty.”

Yes, please!

Meanwhile, the perpetuation of cars-first transportation is, of course, held by Maes to be the very embodiment of personal freedom and, one supposes, a timeless and undiscussable requirement of democracy.