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  LiveWire / Teen Forums / The Intellectual Forum / Viewing Topic

Should we have to wear seatbelts?
Yay or nay?
Replies: 16Last Post Aug. 3, 2008 11:33am by Reefer
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Choice Votes Percent  
Yes, we should 23 69%
No 8 24%
I still sit in a car seat because I'm below 80 pounds 2 6%
Vote Now! 33 Votes Cast
( SteelRain )


Technician
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So far our authoritarian government has forced us [the people who pay their paychecks] to do ridiculous, miscellaneous things. They serve no societal purpose other than "the man" having control over the people.

What I would consider a very large issue in that faction of injustice would be state-required seatbelts.

Few, if any, studies have shown an overwhelming correlation between increased accidents and lower seat belt useage. Not wearing one hurts no one but yourself.

When every state should be modeling Vermont you know we are in a poor being.

I'd like someone to try and convince me why my government should be able to force me into doing actions that only effect me and my happiness.

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Carpe Diem


12:44 am on July 18, 2008 | Joined: Mar. 2008 | Days Active: 12
Join to learn more about SteelRain New Jersey, United States | Straight Male | Posts: 171 | Points: 305
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Bacon


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You'd be stupid not to wear a seat belt anyway. The law attempts to eliminate vehicular safety stupidity.

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2:10 am on July 18, 2008 | Joined: Sep. 2004 | Days Active: 686
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Bud2400


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The question isn't so much about whether the government should be allowed to force its citizens to wear seatbelts or not, but rather, who would pay for the hospital visit if the person without the seatbelt crashes and injures themselves much more critically than they would have had they been wearing a seatbelt?

In the US, most people would have health insurance, however, there's a fair chunk of those out there who do not. So if they aren't wearing those seatbelts and crash, causing them to fly through the windshielf at 40 mph, who's paying for that hospital visit? None other than the public obviously.

Generally the people who don't have health insurance are among the lower classes, so it's a little unreasonable to expect them to be able to pay for a $1000 ambulance ride (or $12,000 chopper ride if they crashed in the middle of nowhere), another few thousand dollars for the MRIs, CT scans, etc., perhaps some more money for blood transfusion, the ER visit as a whole, etc. At the cheapest, we're looking at $10,000 here, which is a big load for somebody who doesn't have a lot of money to pay.

Generally, the state will cover the entire amount right there and they'll wind up paying back the state in small amounts each month. But suppose they default on a loan and have to declare bankruptcy, as so many wind up doing? Looks like the taxpayers will wind up having to eat the costs.

Fact is, if there's going to be a chance that paying for peoples' hospital visits like this would be funded by the public, then it's very reasonable to create a law which helps prevent these accidents from becoming as bad and expensive as they do. The less money the state has to spend, the better.

Post edited at 2:58 am on July 18, 2008 by Bud2400


2:56 am on July 18, 2008 | Joined: Dec. 2004 | Days Active: 1,379
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iinsurgent


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Quote: from SteelRain at 12:44 am on July 18, 2008

Not wearing one hurts no one but yourself.
This is very far from the truth. If you're not the only one in the car, your unbuckled body flying around inside it could collide with and harm whoever else was responsible enough to do so.

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1:07 pm on July 18, 2008 | Joined: May 2008 | Days Active: 225
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pocky bot


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There is nothing wrong with having laws regarding seat belts. However, it is the individual's choice whether or not to buckle up when he/she is driving. They cannot force someone to wear a seat belt, but it is their choice if they want to take a trip to the ER if terrible accident occurs.

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"There is no wealth like knowledge, no poverty like ignorance"

6:05 pm on July 18, 2008 | Joined: May 2008 | Days Active: 31
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( SteelRain )


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Bud: There is no evidence that proves that seatbelt being mandatory has lowered healthcare costs at all. If you have data to back your claim, please present it.

Insurgent-You are correct. I was pretty much assuming that this is a situation where there is no one else in the car.



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Carpe Diem


9:16 pm on July 30, 2008 | Joined: Mar. 2008 | Days Active: 12
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sakurag


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I don't think it's to prevent you from hurting other people, but preventing you from further hurting yourself.  In the end, many, many people do not wear seatbelts.  I doubt in all states that not wearing a seatbelt would get you pulled over..



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I've got spurs that jingle jangle jingle.
As I go riding merrily along.
And they sing, "Oh, ain't you glad you're single?"
And that song ain't so very far from wrong.


8:32 am on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Oct. 2002 | Days Active: 851
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smokeybacon

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Yes we should have to for our own good. My mum is overweight and a seat belt doesn't fit her. How does this fit into the law? Could it endanger me when out and about.

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10:08 am on July 31, 2008 | Joined: May 2008 | Days Active: 63
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Silence of Thought

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Well of course studies won't show an increase of accidents when safety belts are worn, how would wearing a safety belt make you avoid an accident? The purpose of a safety belt is to protect you WHEN that accident comes, so I really don't see why you put that piece of information in there...
And this "action" doesn't affect your happiness, it could save your life given certain situations. It's the law because one of the responsibilities of the government is to protect their civilians. By making wearing safety belts the law, thousands of civilians make the safe choice and have a better chance of surviving accidents.

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2:42 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: June 2008 | Days Active: 37
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HighTide


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Before I begin with my actual post, I'd like to applaud insurgent for his point; I don't know how viable it really is, but bringing up the point of a hurtling human projectile being a risk to bystanders during a crash is fantastic.

Now onwards to my point -- the role of any modern government is to protect and support the citizens of its nations. This includes our rights -and- our safety. Sometimes the government is reduced to a role where it is forced to tell you not to do something silly because you might hurt yourself. It's fine and dandy to say, "It's my life, and I'll risk it however I want!" However, it's also fine and dandy for the government to turn around and say, "When we were constructed, we swore to do everything we could to keep you safe; that includes keeping you safe from yourself some of the time."

Whereas I appreciate how Darwinian this idea is in theory -- that being that the people silly enough not to wear seat belts will suffer much higher fatality rates and die before fully realizing their procreative potential. Those who survive will teach their children to wear their seat belts and soon, like the good species we are, we will grow stronger overall for it.

However, I often hate to apply an idea like Neo-Darwinism to the human species because we have sentience -- this thread is proving that because some of us are trying to convince the others to adopt practices that will increase your odds at survival, where we should really be hoping you die to increase our chances to mate.  

Anyway, tangent aside -- buckle up, kids! I've been in a horrendous wreck and my seatbelt saved my bacon -- it's one of those things you only can truly appreciate after it's saved your life, but take my word on it and just wear it anyway in the meantime.

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Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.
Robert Louis Stevenson


2:49 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Jan. 2006 | Days Active: 42
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allsmiles


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For the record: HighTide, you mean we have sapience. Almost all animals have sentience ;)

Quite frankly, I don't give a damn about the issue at hand. When I'm in a car, I wear a seatbelt. When people are in my car, they wear seatbelts. I don't give a fuck whatever else people do that puts them at more of a risk for the sake of going against "the man." It's not a liberty issue for me; I've more important things to worry about and fight for on the liberty front.

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When they leave you, they're in tears.


2:53 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Aug. 2007 | Days Active: 564
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HighTide


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Allsmiles: Yah yah yah, sorry, I no speak pretti all of the time.

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Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.
Robert Louis Stevenson

2:57 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Jan. 2006 | Days Active: 42
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allsmiles


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Hey, this is the intellectual forum. I feel obliged to correct people on such fundamental mistakes.

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When they leave you, they're in tears.

3:44 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Aug. 2007 | Days Active: 564
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HighTide


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I know, I was honestly being appreciative.



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Keep your fears to yourself, but share your courage with others.
Robert Louis Stevenson


3:45 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: Jan. 2006 | Days Active: 42
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Alabamarama


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If the government has illegalized suicide, why on earth would they let people go around risking their lives every day by not wearing a seatbelt?

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Sexual innuendo.

10:12 pm on July 31, 2008 | Joined: July 2008 | Days Active: 106
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