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Old 01-11-2005, 03:20 PM   #2
Mr 5 0
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Post Re: Seatbelt Laws...

Derek Kieper raised valid points in his essay against seat belt laws. However, once the seatbelt law had been passed in my state, I obeyed it. Now, years later, wearing a seatbelt is as natural as breathing when I get behind the wheel of any car or I am a passenger in someone else's car. It's clear that seatbelts can save lives and Derek even montioned this in his essay. That the wearing of a seatbelt has become mandatory and enforced by law with fines for disobeying that law is what rankles some people. It's a two-edged sword: I wouldn't even wear a seatbelt if it wasn't a law - yet I am statistically safer in a car now because wearing a seatbelt is a law.

So, the law works as intended, just as speed liimit laws, auto safety laws, etc work to hold down speeding, unsafe vehicles and what have you. In that regard, it's a success and the nanny-state 'wins'. However, I still - even at this late date - resent being compelled by law to do something (that I know is a good idea) because I feel as if the seatbelt law infringes on my personal freedom to be reckless, which, truth be told, makes that position a bit hard to defend. Libertarians will condemn the seatbelt laws as unconstitutional but in reality, as they are state laws, the only thing 'unconstitutional' is the federal government using highway funds as a whip to get the states to comply with the seatbelt laws. That is unconstitutional. However, so is the income tax and thousands of other laws on the federal books. All were passed with the consent of the people through their elected representatives in congress. It's democracy and we allow ourselves to be constrained for the greater good. It doesn't always work out that way, but that's the theory. The seatbelt laws are here to stay, even though traffic fatalities keep dropping despite more and more cars on the roads every year. Maybe the fact that a majority of drivers now do wear seatbelts regularly is a factor in that drop in fatalities.

Derek Kieper became a traffic fatality statistic on Tuesday, January 11, 2005 when he died in a car crash where he was a passenger and was not wearing a seatbelt. Young Derek Kieper died practicing what he preached and his manifestation of that anti-seatbelt point of view may have contributed to his death at age 21. A high price to pay for alleged 'freedom' and one that I do not find worth the cost. Like Derek, I resent the seatbelt laws, too, but I continue to wear my seatbelt in the car. I can find a better and safer way to show my independence than risking my life and safety by refusing to wear a seatbelt. Too bad Derek Kieper, the debater and rugged individualist, couldn't have done the same. Too late now.
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