Mayoral candidate caught on tape shouting antigay slurs at cyclist says he was exercising free speec

[Behind the Aegis]

Ryan Thompsen was riding his bike home from work last Thursday in San Jose, California when the driver of a grey Nissan illegally blocked the bike lane.

When Thompsen stopped his bike to confront the man about it, the driver went off on a homophobic tirade. And the whole thing was caught on tape.

“That’s the bike lane,” Thompsen can be heard saying in the video, which appears to have been recorded from his helmet cam.

---snip---

“You’re a f*g,” the driver snarls. “You’re a f*g.”

---snip---

According to court documents, Lopes was also involved in an incident involving a bicyclist in 2004, when he allegedly extended his arm, striking a moving cyclist in the chest during a road race, and responded to a bystander who warned him not to go into the roadway during the race, “F— you, Jew.”

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[AJT]

1. He is free to say those things, time will tell if he pays a price.

During these times, as he is a Republican, I doubt anything will happen. Sad and scary times.