Motorcycle helmets and seat belt laws
...I've been thinking a lot about the young man who I saw, dead on the road, yesterday. I've stopped at quite a few wrecks to offer assistance and let me tell you, the things that you see stay with you forever. When I pass a wreck that already has medical assistance, I can't look because I don't want to take a chance of putting another horrible site in my mind. I remember each one and can picture them all as clearly as though I'd seen them this morning.
I've seen people saved from car accidents because they were NOT wearing a seat belt and my own life was saved because I WAS wearing one. So when it comes to seat belt laws, I sort of waver. When it comes to the government criminalizing certain personal decisions, I waver even more. I know WHY they pass those laws, it's just that sometimes I think they're worth the invasion into our private lives and other times I think that the government has no business telling people what to do...especially with seat belts because as I said, I've seen people thrown clear of accidents when all of the seat belted people in the car had either died or were badly injured. I have to admit, I've never seen anybody's life saved because he or she wasn't wearing a helmet although I have heard people say that they CAN cause broken necks in some circumstances.
Anyway, I wanted to see what you guys think so I've created a couple of poll questions. Notice that you can scroll below the poll results and add a comment if you'd like.
Here are the questions:
As I said, I waver on those laws but I do think that there's a bit of a difference between forcing the seat belts and forcing the helmets. As I said, I've seen seat belts kill people so until the government can guarantee us that seat belts will save lives 100% of the time, I don't think they should force us to "Click It". But, I'm pretty sure that anytime a person is thrown from a bike and lands on his head, wearing a helmet would be the bright thing to do.
And, after living in states that require helmets, when I see someone riding a bike without a helmet, I freak a bit...just like I would if I saw a baby crawling on a roof. I'd feel pretty sure that a total moron was behind each of those situations.
OK folks...I have to stop thinking about this for now. I would be interested to see your opinions so go ahead and vote. I promise, there are no ads or anything like that. I wouldn't have it there if it was a potential pain in the ass.
I'll be back soon!
posted by Meg Kelso | 10:47 AM
5 Comments:
I can't believe you were at the accident scene! I was reading about that right after it happened. I remember thinking 1. that it sucked that the guy lost his life chasing a thief and 2. nothing that person stole could be worth racing after them on a motorcycle (or even a car for that matter). Getting the plate number would have been more effective and a lot safer.
And yes, drivers in this area REALLY SUCK! They have to be the worst ever. 30 minutes ago, we went down to the bank, 2 miles away...on the way back a white pickup truck ran a red light and missed us by 10 feet and wiped the front end off of a van coming out of my neighborhood. He looked like he was considering taking off but then he pulled over. I guess the 15 cars behind the one he hit might have been too many witnesses for him to drive away from.
Have I mentioned that these drivers SUCK?? LOL
OMG!
You should try driving in Atlanta! ANYONE from here will tell you that these folks are NUTS! They'll cut you off, ignore the speed limit and ride your ass. I've driven all over this country and on two other continents and with the possible exception of Paris...Atlanta has the worst drivers that I've ever seen. Of course, I haven't really driven in Tampa all that much so going by what my father said, you must be right about those drivers! But, as my dad said, if the nuts KNOW that the cops aren't around, why would they even bother obeying the laws? Most of us probably would, I've sat at red lights in the middle of the night without a soul in sight yet I wait for the dumb thing to turn green because I don't have the luck to get away with ANYTHING!
My boyfriend is planning to buy a motorcycle this summer. Hearing you recount the aftermath of that accident just reconfirmed my fears. It's mandatory in Ontario for anyone in an automobile to wear a seatbelt, and all cyclists (motor, and otherwise) to wear a helmet. But like you said, it still doesn't guarantee absolute protection. Scary.
OMG! Stop him if you can! I stopped Rick so I never had to worry about that but...and this is funny, he recently told me that he got a motorcycle a LONG time ago! He said he didn't want to tell me because he knew that I would bitch at him. I told him, "No I wouldn't." He laughed a nervous little giggle. He said that he wanted to ride the bike to Virginia if he had the time. I couldn't imagine riding one of those for thousands of miles.
Anyway, do what you can to talk him out of it! When he's on his death bed in 60 or 70 years he'll thank you for it. How old is he?
Meg, he's turning 26 this July. As much as it scares me, he's a grown "man" (in the broadest of terms) and I don't feel like there's much I can do to stop him. I love him, but I'm not his mother. Like Rick, I know if I nag him about it enough he'll just get the bike behind my back anyway. I have no idea what I can say/do to stop him...HELP!
I've been on a motorcyle twice. Both times were for short distances (around a parking lot) and at "low" speeds - believe me, 30km/hr on a bike seems ALOT faster than it is in a car! It was scary to say the least.
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