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[tags]public transit, sacramento, sacramento rt, rt rider[/tags]
Transitarian.
Credit goes to the Sacramento equivalent of this site, RT Rider. The definition, as coined by the blogger:
A transitarian is so enamored with transit, so invested in the good that comes from leaving the car at home, that he takes light rail … and then walks nine blocks in the rain to get to an important appointment … . [Edited to remove local references.]
A transitarian, therefore, often resembles a drowned rat, his jacket soaked through, his slacks wet from midthigh down to his squishy-wet shoes. But inside, beneath that wet exterior, is a proud transitarian … .
So far, the meme has stayed local within Sacramento, spread by the efforts of a kindred spirit to the RT Rider site, RT Driver. Although, Blogger users who dig reading profiles can find the original article via a link on John’s (RT Rider blogger) short bio.
There’s more than a fair share of transitarians in L.A., too. Many of them are probably reading this site as we speak.
Discussion
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Please keep discussions civil: exercise Troll Controll.
Transitarian has been around for more than a decade in my personal experience. IIRC Tom Rubin once used the term quite often. Eventually it was culturalized and radicalized to the more recent term; transitista.
You cannot cheat an honest man and you cannot educate an avowed modalist be they bicyclist or transitista [or autoholic for that matter]. - Rob Dawg Feb 2004
When I first used the term “transitarian” I did some Googling and Asking and whatever you call that Microsoft search service.
There were lots of Spanish-language hits (third-person plural of transitar in the conditional) but no English usage.
Personally, I prefer transitarian to transitista. It goes better with the tie.
I prefer to think of us an elite group… the transirati.
Transitarian? Transirati? Both are okay. I just hope it doesn’t become one of those “Trekkies” vs. “Trekkers” bones of contention.
I just hope it doesn’t become one of those “Trekkies” vs. “Trekkers” bones of contention.
I imagine in terms of sheer nerdiness it’s a very similar argument.
[Wearing my grouch hat]
I think it’s a way to discourage people from taking transit by making it sound like it’s only for a small dedicated group of elites….
It’s another example of the mainstream media passing off fluff as news and fabricating social trends….
[Taking off my grouch-hat now]
Mainstream media? Did Murdoch buy out rtrider.blogspot.com?!?! What next man!???????? Is nothing sacred?
cartarded
Oh, I think I was confusing it with an article I’d read in the LA Times…. I’ll see if I can dig it up….
Oh, and from a purely linguistic point of view, I love “cartarded” and “autoholic”, even if they make light of seriously debilitating mental illnesses.
Re; autoholic. Next thing you know air breathers will be reclassified as oxygen dependency addicts.
It’s sad that “cars” and “oxygen” are equivalents to Rob Dawg (and most others). I think Maslow needs to update his hierarchy of needs, he neglected “automotive needs” which I believe sneaks in just before “biological needs”.
Awww Fred, get a your smile on. I’m the one that first mentioned autoholic in this thread and I did so in a negative context.
Did you make it up, Rob? It is pretty clever.
Oh yaaaaaaa… I gotta read these things before I comment
Yes, first noted Feb 2004. Feel free to use/steal it.