I hope Sarah doesn't mind me using her blog for this. I posted this on the blog I used to use but I want to use a blog that people actually read.
I heard on the radio today an advertisement that law enforcement is cracking down on the Seat Belt Law starting May 19th. So were they letting it slide until now or do they just need funding for some new undercover Mustangs?
I find the seat belt law completely wrong. I completely acknowledge that wearing a seatbelt is a good idea and everyone should do it. I also realize that an adult has liability for a minor not wearing their seatbelt. That being said, how can the government penalize me for endangering myself? What's next penalties for obesity, smoking in your own home, drinking too much on the weekend, participating in extreme sports? It is my right to endanger my own life if I so choose as long as I don't endanger others. I used to think I was the only one to think this way, but it turns out I'm not alone. This is from Wikipedia:
Opposition to Click It or Ticket
Opposition to the effort is primarily based on the belief that requiring one to wear a seatbelt against their will is a violation of civil rights. For example, Dr. Walter E. Williams of George Mason University writes, "The point is whether government has a right to coerce us into taking care of ourselves. If eating what we wish is our business and not that of government, then why should we accept government's coercing us to wear seat belts?" [5] Additional objections settle specifically around the assertion that a seatbelt is a medical device, and because one is entitled to make their own medical decisions they should also be permitted to make their own decisions about wearing a seatbelt. [6]
No less than two internet-based groups have been founded to advocate this line of thinking. Stick It to Click It or Ticket operates a website and discussion forum, as does The Coalition for Seatbelt Choice. Both groups provide various levels of assistance to citation recipients by encouraging them to take their tickets to court. The groups also have sponsored letter-writing campaigns to the editors of newspapers against compulsory seatbelt statutes.
So...would I pay the $45 to maintain my constitutional rights? You betcha. I will however wear my seatbelt because I have a wife and family that I need to stick around for.
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4 comments:
I agree, but glad you realize you have us to be there for. :)
Hmmm... I disagree with you on this one. Children learn by example. We should protect our children by wearing seatbelts ourselves.
Did your friend who passed away have a seatbelt on? Think about if he maybe didn't and it could have spared his life. Ya know... hypothetically.
I just think we hsould wear them to spare the people we love the heartache... and possibly increased expense of NOT wearing one. Know what I mean?
But mainly? Do it for the kids so that they can do it for their kids, and their kids.
K. I'm off my soapbox now. I hope I didn't come off annoying.
Hmmmmm.... this is a tough one. I hate wearing a seat belt. Most cars are not built for 5 foot and 1inch (had to include the 1 inch) fluffy mommies. They do NOT stay in place and I am often choked. I am CONSTANTLY pulling them down. I hate them! The smaller Japanese cars work better for me, as far as the heighth of the dashboard and the seat belts. I don't look like such a dork when I drive them because I'm not looking through the holes of the steering wheel. (My husband will never buy one though)
But then if I don't wear them, that voice is always telling me, "You never know what could happen." It was deffinitely easier to not wear one before I got married and had children.
Soooo.... I choose to wear one, even though I hate it, but I don't want people telling me that I HAVE to. Heck, cooking can be dangerous, but no one tells me how to do it. Safety first.
I would have to agree with you...entirely! While I do think it's a good idea to wear your seat belt, I don't think the government should be able to tell you that you HAVE to wear one. That should be your choice. If you decide you don't want to wear one, and you end up teaching your kids not to wear one, and they teach their kids not to wear one, so be it. That's your right as a parent...to teach your children, by word or by example, whatever you want. If the government gets to control every choice we make...wouldn't that make our government a dictatorship? Let people make their own stupid decisions, and live with the consequences. Personal responsibility is something seriously lacking in this world. People are too quick to let the government "fix" everything. I say, power to the people!
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