I walk to work, but I consider myself a heavy cycling nonetheless. I'll say a few things about breaking the law on a bike:
1) Some laws are really hard to respect when you are sitting on a bike. For instance, four way stops in residential neighbourhoods, where frequently you can see enough in several directions to ensure your safety and that you are not cutting someone off simply by slowing down. I can't recall ever having seen a cyclist in such a situation actually stop.
2) I ride on sidewalks. In suburban areas on major arterials, I balance my desire for enhanced safety with the pedestrian traffic on the sidewalk and make a choice. If I see someone ahead on the sidewalk, I slow to a crawl beside them, or join the road momentarily.
3) One way streets. I've gone up one way streets many times, in fact I've cycled right beside bike cops while they were going up one way streets (and not in a hurry) and we all went merrily on our ways. I think it depends on the circumstance and the level of traffic, going up Richmond or Adelaide the wrong way is unsafe for cars and pedestrians, but to the half block to my apartment on Alexander I will always cycle, because it's more direct and I think safer than going around Wood, then Yonge, then Alexander to go the right way.
I think these are things that all cyclists would do. I don't care if I get a ticket, though it seems highly unlikely, because I've frankly done so much worse and right in front of police cars and they don't seem to care much. It's not that I'm advocating breaking the law, but I do believe that not once cyclist (not one!) adheres to the letter of the law while cycling, and that there are some reasons for doing so that arise from the very different beasts that bicycles and motorized vehicles are.
I should say that I think politeness to pedestrians and drivers is actually more important than the letter of the law. I'm not at all ashamed to admit that I break a good many rules while cycling, but I am ashamed of those times when I've done things that annoy or frustrate other people, and when I do them I apologise if at all possible.
