Friday, September 17, 2021

The Fight Against Seatbelts 1984

Putting on a seatbelt is just another one of those automatic movements you make when you get in the car, along with turning on the ignition. It wasn't always so. In 1984, people were almost as resistant to seatbelt laws as they are now to vaccine or mask mandates. But it wasn't really the seatbelts, any more than it is really face masks now. The world has plenty of people who just don't want someone to tell them what to do, even if it will save their lives.

Seatbelt laws and smoking prohibitions have certainly saved lives, but the vaccines and masks are even more important because your choice to go along with the requirements or not affects everyone around you as well. Contrarians and those who spread misinformation have already caused hospitals to be full, variants to mutate, and children and the immunocompromised to be infected. And they certainly have prolonged the pandemic.


12 comments:

WilliamRocket said...

435 people in the town and they have TWO police officers ?
I live in a town in New Zealand that has just under 5000 people, we have 3 police officers, back in 1984 there was only one, but there were only 4000 people then.

Bilbo said...

As Henry Mencken once said, nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people.

DWVR said...

In 1984 there were still places where seatbelts weren't mandatory? Huh.

Anonymous said...

There used to be 635 people in town, but when your turn comes up to be the police officer, you have a pretty high chance of being shot, it being America and all.

Anonymous said...

One must ask how many choices we are allowed to make must be taken away before we realize we have no choices left. Giving up freedoms for security leaves us with neither freedom not security.

WilliamRocket said...

The problem with labelling yourself as Anonymous is that other people can 'literally' put words in your mouth.
The second thing Anonymous says (if there really are two of them ???) begs one to offer up the comment 'You must really miss the guy walking in front of your car holding a red flag'.
I have always found it simple to deduce what is right and what is a theft of my rights (the word 'obvious' should be in that sentence) ... in my foreign country, seatbelt wearing became compulsory sometime back in the 70s, 50 odd years ago, now I have been driving those 50 years, never had an accident, never had a seatbelt save me from anything, but I have been legally required to wear one every time I go for a drive, I have had more luck winning Lotto than I have with the seatbelt, .. still, when the children popped into existence and became transportable, they too got strapped in.
Seems the thing to do, saves getting fined, and those short lived rotating police officers of ... checks video ... Richland Village, sure will be in a hurry to give you a ticket, you know, prove their worth before they get 'retired'.

Miss Cellania said...

Freedom from seatbelts seems like a strange hill to die on.

Bicycle Bill said...

Did you ever have kids, Miss C? If so, when they got to be a certain age, there had to have been at least one time when they rebelled against your rules/restrictions/whatever and responded to it by shouting out something like, "You're not the boss of me!!"  This is just that same adolescent mindset being expressed by a (so-called) grown-up.

Maybe James Barrie was wrong when he wrote, "All children, except one, grow up."

-"BB"-

Miss Cellania said...

Not all children grow up. Some didn't wear their seatbelt.

Jes Walker said...

Spent years on highway rescue. Saw lots of people saved by seatbelts. On the other hand I can tell you that your skull fractures just like an egg when you fly through the windshield and hit the pavement. But sure, go ahead and exercise your "rights". You will not be missed. Hosed off the road, but not missed.

gwdMaine said...

All I can think of right now is what if today's social media existed in 1984?

Oy. . .

WilliamRocket said...

The problem with labelling yourself as "WilliamRocket" is that other people can 'literally' put words in your mouth.