London Mayor Boris Johnson was outsmarted today when a mentally disabled child placed a stick in front of his bicycle, causing him to trip and fall to the ground.
According to multiple witnesses, Johnson had just left his posh Islington flat when his bike encountered the unexpected obstacle and launched him face-first onto the sidewalk. He suffered only superficial injuries and after a brief round of cursing, continued on his way to work at City Hall.
14-year-old Jason Taylor, who has an IQ of 64 and is considered moderately intellectually impaired, later took responsibility for the incident, saying he tripped the mayor out of anger at his recent comments disparaging the intellectually disabled.
"I think the mayor is a bad man," he explained to the London Evening Standard. "He said bad things about people with low IQ. It's wrong to make fun of people just because they are different.
"I am not smart like other people. But I am human being and should get respect. He is the mayor. He should know that."
Big Meanie
Johnson took office in 2008 as only the second elected mayor in London's history, replacing Labour's Ken Livingstone. His colorful, blunt personality has earned him the title of one of Britain's most popular politicians, but has also made him a magnet for controversy.
He has most recently been under fire for arguing at last week's annual Margaret Thatcher lecture that income inequality is the natural result of "16 percent of our species having an IQ below 85."
His remarks were roundly condemned by mental health professionals, major media outlets and several high-profile members of the Conservative Party.
Jason Taylor, however, decided to go further. Knowing that he lived just blocks from the mayor, he concocted a cunning plan for revenge.
"I painted the stick the same color as the sidewalk, so the mayor wouldn't see it," he explains. "Then I put it on the ground near his house, on the path he always takes. It worked brilliantly. He didn't see it coming."
The Metropolitan Police Service is investigating Taylor's actions, but says he is unlikely to be charged with a crime due to his disability and the fact that no one was seriously harmed. A spokesman for the mayor says he has no comment on the incident.
