Why Don't People Wear Seatbelts?

[maddiemom]

"

But also count me in as someone who doesn't want the government to tell me what to do with my body... seatbelt, abortion, or otherwise... and please try to give me examples of how this affects anyone else??? A few pages back someone mentioned the cost of medical after a serious injury.

I believe it might have a negative emotional effect on family members when a loved one is killed or permanently injured in an accident because they made the choice not to wear their seat belt.

I am not a big proponent of the government mandating what we do but the arguement about wearing or not wearing a seatbelt seems pretty cut and dry to me. I wear mine, because I value my life and think that as a mother I need to make sure I continue to survive for my children. I didn't make that choice because the government thinks I should.

 

[azgal81]

I always wear mine its a habit I have a friend who rarely wears hers and I asked why and she said sometimes its better to get ejected then crunched up in the vehicle.

 

[profdsny]

Actually, I don't feel sorry for anyone who dies because he, or she, doesn't wear a seat belt. As the saying goes, it's your funeral. Do what you want. Just don't expect anyone to feel bad for you. Too bad about your family. Oh, and make sure they don't ask me to kick in for expenses, etc. You want to kill yourself, go ahead.

 

[profdsny]

Lots of name-slinging here:

Count me in as an "organ donor" here, also

Count me in as a "warning to what happens to others"

But also count me in as someone who doesn't want the government to tell me what to do with my body... seatbelt, abortion, or otherwise... and please try to give me examples of how this affects anyone else??? A few pages back someone mentioned the cost of medical after a serious injury.

Let's consider that: Yes, it is a possibility that I may get in a car accident and I may die after considerable medical expense that may or may not be due to my wearing a seatbelt or not. I pay my insurance -- it's just that -- insurance!! I pay huge premiums in the event that I may need medical help. Like many of you who drink and drive, smoke, take other risks maybe 4-wheeling or skydividing or mountain climbing or scuba diving, all RISKS!!! Most of you carry insurance that will cover you as I do... please don't flame unless you can honestly say you NEVER take risks that you expect insurance to pay for....

What I figure most of my insurance premiums are paying for is NOT people getting in accidents without seatbelts but people who are hospitalized because of COPD, heart failure, obesity, etc. -- most of those medical conditions can be lowered considerably if not totally but life changes so... don't talk to me about insurance premiums please... I'm a single parent who pays nearly 25% of her income to make sure that my family and I have health insurance and then you can add homeowners insurance at 10% of my yearly income (yeah, like my house is burning down anytime soon...) and car insurance for another 5% of my income (no accident in 32 years...) and talk to me about insurance premiums!!! Let's add this up: nearly 40% of my TAKE-HOME income is spent on MANDATORY insurance. Trust me, if it wasn't mandatory, its just another risk I'd take... something to be said about being insurance poor, don't you think?

So, you don't want to have the government tell you what to do? If there wasn't a law insisting you wear them would you do it?

 

[Cool-Beans]

Actually, I don't feel sorry for anyone who dies because he, or she, doesn't wear a seat belt. As the saying goes, it's your funeral. Do what you want. Just don't expect anyone to feel bad for you. Too bad about your family. Oh, and make sure they don't ask me to kick in for expenses, etc. You want to kill yourself, go ahead.

Lots of people feel like that. They don't feel sorry for folks injured or killed if they didn't wear their seatbelt. They don't feel sorry for smokers who suffer or die from lung cancer. They don't feel sorry for people who have heart attacks or die (or lose their legs after getting DMII or any of the other gazillions of things being fat does to them) because they ate their way into it.

Many people have trouble working up compassion for others if those others didn't meet their standards.

If I had to pick, I'd rather live in a world full of compassionate people than a world full of seatbelt wearers.

 

[Liberty Belle]

anyone here SMOKE or drink here? I am guessing yes...well, guess what? that brings up the cost of insurance also, and I can bet my bottom dollar most of you have had a beer and got behind the wheel, again I can bet my bottom dollar on it. So who are you all to tell ME what to do? NO ONE! So STOP your smoking, because it affects my insurance rates, and that ONE beer you just had? or that glass of wine? YOU could be the next cause.....

so move on with YOUR lives and leave me and My life out of... YOUR smoking drinking business PLEASE! NOT one of you is any better then me.....
and hey...at least I am being HONEST! your not!

Uh, wait. I do not smoke and do not drink and drive. Ever. I'm not saying I'm better than you, but in safety, at least, I will say I'm smarter.

 

[Liberty Belle]

I do not care! what about that loser in front of me blowing HIS smoke out the window, coming into mine? I have asthma, and you are making ME SICK! are YOU gonna pay????
This is my last post on this useless thread, I have seen way MORE people and friends of mine be in trouble BECAUSE of seatbelts then with them, so you will not win this one with me, I am right...you are wrong! or at least it is not any of your business what I do in MY car!

See, I hve a life and I am going out now, hummm, without my belt! nighty night!

You can go out and hum all you want, but facts are facts. Seat belts save lives.

 

[Rence]

Lots of name-slinging here:

... and please try to give me examples of how this affects anyone else???

Mr. A always wears his seatbelt, Mr. B never does. Mr. A & Mr. B get into an automobile accident. It was an accident but determined to be Mr. A's fault. Mr. B is seriously seriously injured, largely because he was not wearing a seatbelt. Experts all agree that if Mr. B had been wearing a seatbelt, he would have walked away with minor injuries, but because Mr. B was not wearing a seatbelt, he will require months of hospitalization and will be handicapped for life.

In today's word - Mr. A will be responsible for ALL of Mr. B's expenses, pain and suffering etc. Mr. A's insurance will have to pay for it, and if the costs exceed Mr. A's coverage, Mr. A will have to pay for it out of pocket.

However, the bulk of Mr. B's injuries were due to the fact that Mr. B elected not to wear a seat belt - something Mr. A had no control over. So Mr. A will be held responsible for Mr. B's decision not to wear a seat belt.

Mr. B loved to talk about how it was his decision not to wear a seatbelt and it was nobody's business but his own, but now that Mr. B is suffering because of his decision, he has no problem sueing Mr. A.

 

[Acklander]

You can go out and hum all you want, but facts are facts. Seat belts save lives.

Sure, seatbelts save lives. Just like eating healthy saves lives. And not smoking saves lives. And exercise saves lives. And not doing drugs saves lives. And not driving on labor day weekend saves lives. And flossing your teeth saves lives. And always using a condom saves lives. There are millions of things that save lives, yet 5 out of 5 people will die.
Do you want your every breathe mandated by the goverment, so that we can all live to be a hundred? Or do you want personal choices and personal responsibilities? Where adults are allowed to pick the risks they're willing to take in their life.

 

[julie_yet]

Sure, seatbelts save lives. Just like eating healthy saves lives. And not smoking saves lives. And exercise saves lives. And not doing drugs saves lives. And not driving on labor day weekend saves lives. And flossing your teeth saves lives. And always using a condom saves lives. There are millions of things that save lives, yet 5 out of 5 people will die.
Do you want your every breathe mandated by the goverment, so that we can all live to be a hundred? Or do you want personal choices and personal responsibilities? Where adults are allowed to pick the risks they're willing to take in their life.

Stick it to the man. Burn your seat belts.

 

[Liberty Belle]

Sure, seatbelts save lives. Just like eating healthy saves lives. And not smoking saves lives. And exercise saves lives. And not doing drugs saves lives. And not driving on labor day weekend saves lives. And flossing your teeth saves lives. And always using a condom saves lives. There are millions of things that save lives, yet 5 out of 5 people will die.
Do you want your every breathe mandated by the goverment, so that we can all live to be a hundred? Or do you want personal choices and personal responsibilities? Where adults are allowed to pick the risks they're willing to take in their life.

This isn't a thread about whether the government should mandate seatbelt usage. I'm still not sure how I feel about that, but as I learn more about how not wearing a seatbelt can hurt others, I'm more comfortable with it. Whether the government mandates it or not, it's a smart choice and that is what the thread is about.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I am not a big proponent of the government mandating what we do but the arguement about wearing or not wearing a seatbelt seems pretty cut and dry to me. I wear mine, because I value my life and think that as a mother I need to make sure I continue to survive for my children. I didn't make that choice because the government thinks I should.

Bravo!

Some of these arguments for not wearing a seatbelt reminded me of a guy I once knew (he was too stupid to stay friends with) who told me that he was safer on his motorcycle than I was in my car, because if HE was about to get into an accident, he could just jump off! Voile! Who knew it was so easy!

 

[Acklander]

Stick it to the man. Burn your seat belts.

Actually, I do wear a seat belt. But then again, I also sky-dive so I consider it a swap off in the big picture.

 

[allison443]

Mr. A always wears his seatbelt, Mr. B never does. Mr. A & Mr. B get into an automobile accident. It was an accident but determined to be Mr. A's fault. Mr. B is seriously seriously injured, largely because he was not wearing a seatbelt. Experts all agree that if Mr. B had been wearing a seatbelt, he would have walked away with minor injuries, but because Mr. B was not wearing a seatbelt, he will require months of hospitalization and will be handicapped for life.

In today's word - Mr. A will be responsible for ALL of Mr. B's expenses, pain and suffering etc. Mr. A's insurance will have to pay for it, and if the costs exceed Mr. A's coverage, Mr. A will have to pay for it out of pocket.

However, the bulk of Mr. B's injuries were due to the fact that Mr. B elected not to wear a seat belt - something Mr. A had no control over. So Mr. A will be held responsible for Mr. B's decision not to wear a seat belt.

Mr. B loved to talk about how it was his decision not to wear a seatbelt and it was nobody's business but his own, but now that Mr. B is suffering because of his decision, he has no problem sueing Mr. A.

Okay, I have to chime in here. At least in New York, the law is that there is a "seatbelt defense", and the injured Mr. B cannot recover for injuries that would have been prevented if he'd worn the seatbelt. This is an area for expert testimony by engineers who figure out the mechanics of the accident.
So in the example above, Mr. A is responsible for the accident, but if Mr. B would have walked away unharmed if he'd had a seatbelt on, then Mr. B cannot recover for those injuries. Since NY has a seatbelt law, Mr. B's violation of that law is considered evidence of negligence on his part.

Just thought I'd mention that. Other states may differ. Back to the debate!!

 

[meandtheguys2]

Actually, I do wear a seat belt. But then again, I also sky-dive so I consider it a swap off in the big picture.

quantity for quality!

 

[Nancy]

I started to wear seatbelts back in the early 70's before there were laws. I drove a little MG convertible and my biggest fear was "if I get hit I'm going to fly right out of this car" So I started to wear my belt all the time and my passenger had to wear theirs too..or we weren't going anywear. It has become second nature to get in the car and buckle up. Now that I am older and the kids are grown we still don't move until all belts are on. That's the rule.

My BIL in the last year had a rollover accident. The car was totalled except for the area he was in, without his belt on who knows where he would have ended up, maybe out the sunroof like another person I know who 8 years later still has issues from her head injury. Of course if he had had passengers in the car they most likely would have been injured because of the way the car crushed.

Oh yeah, I am an organ donor also, been one for a very long time, I signed up when I was 18, I am now 49.

For those that say they don't want the government interferring in their choices of what to do in your car. If that is the case, fine, BUT if you get into a serious accident and become permanently disabled do not go to the government for assistance...because you don't want them interferring in your life. Don't use the government as an excuse. Just say, "Hey I don't want to wear seatbelts, I think they are stupid" I would respect that more as an opinion than the old "government" garbage. (please notice that said IF you get in an accident because I would think chance are most of us will not get involved in a serious wreck)

 

[Kath2003]

I really don't understand how it would cross anyone's mind NOT to wear a seatbelt, not only for their own safety but for the safety of everyone else in the car.

It's mandatory for everyone in the UK with fines of up to $1000 - it's the driver's responsibility for themselves and anyone under 14 but personally unless everyone in my car is belted up (adult or not), I don't put the car into gear.

UK Ad - Belt Up - not the most pleasant viewing for the sensitive...

 

[ducklite]

In 1980 I was young and stupid. I was involved in a four car car accident where I wasn't wearing a seatbelt. I was fairly seriously injured, and to this day have problems with my right shoulder--the one that went smashing into the dashboard. Had I been wearing a seatbelt, I would have walked away with nothing but a couple of bruises. Because I wasn't in a seatbelt, my body was tossed around the car. I was fortunate that I wasn't ejected and run over. My boyfriend at the time--who was the driver--smashed his face on the steering wheel and had to have over 40 stiches. Had he been belted in, he would also have walked away without a scratch.

 

[bluefairy13]

Stick it to the man. Burn your seat belts.

LOL

Yeah, I am against government interference too but this has to be one of the dumbassiest of the ******* ways to take a stand against the government.

 

[ducklite]

LOL

Yeah, I am against government interference too but this has to be one of the dumbassiest of the ******* ways to take a stand against the government.

Agreed. Don't pay your taxes. Burn your bras. Ask pointed questions of elected officials. But IMHO not wearing a seatbelt is along the lines of setting your bra on fire--while you're still wearing it.