Should seat belts be required?

[general counsel]

Should drivers be required to wear seat belts?

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general counsel

[jkramsfan]

at first i was against it,but now that i have done it for so long it has become habit and since my daughter drives now i am glad it is a law.it really can save your life,and to answer your question yes they should be required.

[SFCRamFan]

Yes. If you have ever seen someone with head trauma from not wearing a seat belt or a helmut, then you would know the dangers. I have an uncle with severe head trauma from not wearing a helmut. I also know someone with a teen that has head trauma from going through the windshield in a crash. It is a sad and avoidable incident that destroys lives.

[general counsel]

Personal choice. If i dont wear my seatbelt, i may be more likely to get killed or hurt in a car accident, but am i more likely to injure someone else? no evidence suggests that. Keep the government out of our lives! by the way i agree that it makes good sense to wear a seatbelt, i just dont think anyone should be required to do something that doesnt infringe on the rights of others.

ramming speed to all

general counsel

[SFCRamFan]

by the way i agree that it makes good sense to wear a seatbelt, i just dont think anyone should be required to do something that doesnt infringe on the rights of others.

However, if you become disabled as a result of not doing so, and society has to pay out tax payer dollars to take care of you for the rest of your life, then it is other people's and the government's business.

[general counsel]

That is a true statement for sure and a legit point. Its an entirely different question as to whether society should be required to pay for health care of those that cant afford it. Back to the prior thread on socialism in our society. If we were a pure capitalist country, if you couldnt afford the care, you would be completely on your own if you had not purchased insurance.

Isnt the same argument true of the use of any product that can be harmful. cigarettes cause massive damage and health care costs which raises premiums to everyone and causes a drain on the system, but alas, they are legal.

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general counsel

[AvengerRam]

Let's get rid of the easy issue first - it should be mandatory for minors, without question.

Now, for adults. Should the government prevent adult drivers from taking the needless risk of driving without a seatbelt?

My answer: yes.

While GC is right that there are plenty of things that people do (i.e. smoking) that are contrary to self-interests, there is one big difference when it comes to driving - driving is a privilege which is granted by license from the government (in exchange for the government's agreement to build, maintain and police safe roadways). The government can set reasonable criteria to obtain and maintain licenses. Mandatory seatbelt usage is a very reasonable requirement.

[general counsel]

There are of course a certain number of people killed every year because they are wearing seat belts. An interesting complication regarding the law of unintended consequences.

i agree 100% on minors, that is an easy one.

On adults, i agree that the government has the right to do it based exactly on the rationale that AV set out, however, i still am not convinced that they should play big brother and govern my behavior for my own good.

Back to my prior post, cell phone usage is incredibly dangerous in my view. Anything that diverts attention from 100% concentration on the road increases the liklihood of accidents and that is something that the government should be very involved in since that affects innocent people.

A very very controversial topic which even i hesitate to put up on a thread is penalties for drunk drivers. We had plenty of that debate last year over leonard little, but briefly, that is an area where the government can and should increase its enforcement and penalties due to the threat to the innocents, ie the drivers of the other cars on the road.

Excellent off season discussion.

One last thought, should the guy that drives the cart onto the field after a player is hurt have to wear a seatbelt or helmet. What about the guy that drives the zamboni?

Ramming speed to all

general counsel