Here in California they're $185! Shouldn't the punishment fit the crime? THat's almost as much as running a red light.

Highway robbery!

I think what is worse is the $110 fine I got for squealing my tires around a corner (took it a little too fast)

Bastard Cops

Posted by tunnelbug Here in California they're $185! Shouldn't the punishment fit the crime? THat's almost as much as running a red light. Highway robbery!

Well maybe they should raise it so that it matches the red-light-running thing.

Posted by tunnelbug Here in California they're $185! Shouldn't the punishment fit the crime? THat's almost as much as running a red light. Highway robbery!

I feel it should be a personal choice....

Posted by White Trash I feel it should be a personal choice....

And I feel if someone is stupid enough not to wear seatbelts, helmets, or other protections then that person ought to forfeit medical rescue efforts paid by taxpayer dollars.

Posted by fedge And I feel if someone is stupid enough not to wear seatbelts, helmets, or other protections then that person ought to forfeit medical rescue efforts paid by taxpayer dollars.

Exactly. Plus, how in the hell do you get a ticket for not having your seatbelt on? Unless it's broken on something....

Actually, I've seen statistics that show seatbelts often cause greater injury/harm than they save lives.

Besides, people have a right to smoke, even though it's a taxpayer burden. Why should deciding not to wear your seatbelt be any different?

The only times I don't wear my seatbelt is when I'm driving on a city street at 15-20 miles per hour. Ironically, that's when I get ticketed the most.

As soon as I get on the Freeway, I put it on, but I hate seatbelts. You can't get things out of your pocket. It locks up every once in while when you're trying to change the radio station or grab a piece of gum. It's a pain in the ass.

Posted by tunnelbug Actually, I've seen statistics that show seatbelts often cause greater injury/harm than they save lives.

You're getting it mixed up with airbags probably. The seatbelt may break your collarbone, but it will keep you from flying through the windshield.

Wikipedia is great:

"Professor John Adams of University College London was sceptical of such claims and set out to analyse the effect of seat belt laws as then in force and assess how well they matched predictions. His findings were published in 1982 and can be found in the Society of Automotive Engineers transactions of that year[2]. His conclusion was that in the eighteen countries surveyed, accounting for approximately 80% of the world's motoring, those countries with seat belt laws had fared no better, and in some cases (e.g. Sweden, Ireland and New Zealand) significantly worse than those without. In order to explain this disparity, Adams advanced the hypothesis that Protecting car occupants from the consequences of bad driving encourages bad driving."

There were a number of other studies that had similar findings.

Fedge I disagree. Are we going to stop healthcare to everything that in so called unsafe?

Shit that would take aways Smoking , drinking, walking down the street, riding a bicycle. Smoking and drinking are different ignore those two. The rest are everyday things people do and they still get hurt in an accident. Accidents are called accidents for a reason, they are not caused on purpose.

Posted by White Trash Fedge I disagree. Are we going to stop healthcare to everything that in so called unsafe? Shit that would take aways Smoking , drinking, walking down the street, riding a bicycle. Smoking and drinking are different ignore those two. The rest are everyday things people do and they still get hurt in an accident. Accidents are called accidents for a reason, they are not caused on purpose.

Actually, yes - stop FREE health care to those that smoke or do anything else stupid. If you get into a legitimate accident of some kind, then that's OK, you'll be treated. If you smoke, ignore seatbelt laws, watch DVDs while driving, eat 5 Big Macs a day, etc, etc, then YOU should pay for any costs if you get fucked up.

Here's an example. Some asshats decided to drive their snowmobile onto the lake in the fall before the ice was fully frozen to any safe thickness. Signs were posted stating the lake was off limits to people going on the ice. They went anyways, one died and the other required a helicopter rescue. Who paid for the rescue? My tax dollars, that's who. Fuck that noise.

Posted by fedge Actually, yes - stop FREE health care to those that smoke or do anything else stupid. If you get into a legitimate accident of some kind, then that's OK, you'll be treated. If you smoke, ignore seatbelt laws, watch DVDs while driving, eat 5 Big Macs a day, etc, etc, then YOU should pay for any costs if you get fucked up. Here's an example. Some asshats decided to drive their snowmobile onto the lake in the fall before the ice was fully frozen to any safe thickness. Signs were posted stating the lake was off limits to people going on the ice. They went anyways, one died and the other required a helicopter rescue. Who paid for the rescue? My tax dollars, that's who. Fuck that noise.

You are right, but those are also my tax dollars... I also dont want to be paying for them either ;)...
I just dont think that the government should be able to say "HERE WEAR THIS".

Besides, most normal people have insurance, and tax doesn't even come into the equation. If I was stupid enough to not be wearing my seatbelt while going 80 mph down the freeway, then I'll waive my right to public services.

However, if I'm driving on a city street at 25 mph, there is a miniscule chance that a seatbelt would save my life.

Which brings me to another thing. Mandatory insurance. Doesn't work. It's just a subsidy to the insurance industry. If I am stupid enough to be the cause of an accident I'll gladly pay for it myself. Why, in the meantime, subsidize the stupidity of others? Not to mention the massive hordes of people who don't even have insurance and make us foot the bill.

Wearing a seatbelt saved my life. Period.

{EDIT: grammar Nazi, moi]

Posted by KublaKhan Wearing a seatbelt saved my life. Period. {EDIT: grammar Nazi, moi]

I'm happy for that, and I'm glad it saved your life.

But to unnecessarily force people to make decisions, even if they may be so-called "smart" decisions is sort of authoritarian, no?

It's a good excuse for officers to pull over someone with no probable cause besides not wearing a seatbelt.

I admit that not wearing my seatbelt may be a stupid decision, but it's not harming anyone else.

Secondhand smoke kills many more people. You see me complaining about that?

Ya know what pisses me off. People that don't wear their seatbelts. Dead on the side of the road or inside another car from being launched at 50 mph.

Posted by atomx Ya know what pisses me off. People that don't wear their seatbelts. Dead on the side of the road or inside another car from being launched at 50 mph.

The driver of the car in which I was traveling the day the seatbelt saved my life wasn't wearing a seatbelt.

fine. you all win. I'll continue not to wear my seatbelts in 25 mph zones and get the same ticket that running a red light would get me. The guy running the red light is endangering everybody, whilst I'm endangering nobody but myself.

Posted by tunnelbug fine. you all win. I'll continue not to wear my seatbelts in 25 mph zones and get the same ticket that running a red light would get me. The guy running the red light is endangering everybody, whilst I'm endangering nobody but myself.

What happens if you fly out your front window and hit a small puppy???

EVER THINK ABOUT THAT?!

Poor puppy.