These days it can be hard to know what a liberal really believes. Thankfully a simple test throws light on their soul. It is similar to the one Hermann Rorschach designed in the 1920s. Though instead of putting the subject in front of an ambiguous inkblot(墨迹图) and waiting for them to say something profound(深刻的，深奥的) about their mother, wheel in(推入（车、设备等）) a white and green Lime Gen4 electric bike, found stacked by the dozen(大量地，成打地) on city streets around the world, let their eyes settle on(停落在；选定) it and gently ask: “What do you see?”
如今，我们很难知道一个自由派人士真正信仰什么。幸运的是，一个简单的测试可以照亮他们的灵魂。这个测试类似于赫尔曼·罗夏在1920年代设计的测试，只不过，不是让受试者面对一张模糊的墨迹图，等待他们说出关于母亲的深刻见解，而是推来一辆白色和绿色相间的Lime Gen4电动自行车——这种车在全球城市街头成打地堆放着——让他们的目光停留在上面，然后温和地问：“你看到了什么？”
“That is the paragon(典范，楷模) of liberal capitalism!” exclaims the first subject. What’s not to love? The Lime rider accelerates quickly and without effort. He feels good about his carbon footprint and better about being spare(免除，使免于)d the collectivism of public transport. Each bike is an advert for creative destruction(创造性破坏): if even the humble(简陋的，谦卑的) bicycle can be improved by innovation, anything can. Since Lime bikes are “dockless”, which allows the rider to leave them pretty much anywhere, the bikes bestow(授予，给予) on riders of only modest means(中等收入，不富裕) the highest of modern luxuries: nonchalance(若无其事，满不在乎) in travel.
“那是自由资本主义的典范！”第一个受试者惊呼道。有什么不爱呢？Lime骑手可以毫不费力地快速加速。他对自己的碳足迹感到满意，更对免于公共交通的集体主义感到满意。每辆车都是创造性破坏的广告：如果连不起眼的自行车都能通过创新得到改进，那么什么不能呢？由于Lime自行车是“无桩的”，允许骑手几乎可以停在任何地方，这些自行车赋予了只有中等收入水平的骑手最高的现代奢侈品：旅行的随意性。
One liberal’s casual dismount is another’s brazen(厚颜无耻的) incivility. “That is the devil!” the second subject shouts. Electric bikes have made pavement indistinguishable from road. Accidents are common enough that “Lime leg” has entered the vernacular. In London even the most genteel(文雅的，有教养的) public spaces are dominated by neon-green handle-bars. So many descended on Wimbledon this week that the council threatened to seize them. On a recent morning Old Burlington Street in Mayfair was blocked with a great number of Limes parked on the pavement and road. In the mêlée(混战，混乱的人群) stood a few Voi bikes, a pinkish-coloured Swedish competitor, and the odd Forest, a less offensively(冒犯地；令人生厌地) green British one, which appeared to have lost their way(迷路；偏离方向). If the subject has even a mild reactionary(保守的，反动的) inclination, such a sight will cause it to erupt immediately.
一个自由派随意的下车，在另一个人看来却是厚颜无耻的无礼。第二个受试者喊道：“那是魔鬼！”电动自行车已经让人行道和道路难以区分。事故频繁到“Lime腿”已经进入了日常用语。在伦敦，即使是最文雅的公共空间也被霓虹绿色的车把所主导。本周如此多的Lime车涌向温布尔登，以至于议会威胁要没收它们。最近一个早晨，梅菲尔的旧伯灵顿街被人行道上和道路上停放的众多Lime车堵塞。在混战中还停着几辆Voi——一种淡粉色的瑞典竞争对手——以及一辆孤零零的Forest，一辆绿色不那么刺眼的英国车，似乎迷路了。如果受试者哪怕有一丁点保守倾向，这样的景象会立刻让其爆发。
Ridin’ dirty
脏骑