An example of irony

[dragonfighter60]

read this (http://www.dailynebraskan.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2004/09/17/414a5a030e91d?in_archive=1)
then read this (http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2005/01/04/local/doc41db350078259784029686.txt)

[o2coolchris]

wow... that's messed up..

[mrhoaf]

you have to admire the guy for standing up for his beliefs, but he was proven an idiot for not wearing his seatbelt......

[evan938]

wow...i almost want to laugh at him for being so dumb, but then i feel bad about what happened

funny how everyone who was riding in the car w/ a seatbelt is fine

[jh0n]

In Australia, seat belt wearing became compulsory in I think 1970. You can and will be fined for not wearing a seat belt. However, we all adapted to the law some quicker than others, and today its a reflex action to just reach over and put it on. Its also an offence to have a child unrestrained in a car. Americans apparently didnt take to wearing seat belts at all, I have read that american air bags deploy at lesser frontal impact than other countries, and this was a contributing factor in small children riding in the front seat of cars being killed in relatively minor nose to tail collisions. But I am not going to say hey you should wear the thing. But, be advised that in the event of a collison, an unrestrained passenger could kill YOU in an such a situation. In my miss spent youth I had some wild off road excursions in cars that I was lucky to walk away from, and I would like to think that seat belt wearing was a contributing factor in me being able to type this now as apposed to typing it with a pencil in my mouth or being dead in a box. I wear a seat belt, and my kids ride in correct child seats and also wear seat belts, you please your self.

[evan938]

a couple years ago, a girl i worked with got killed in an accident...she was on her way home, and someone (probably drunk) swerved off the road, hit a light pole, and swerved back on and hit her in the side of her car...it sent her car into the center grassy median, and it dips down in the center, well, she hit the part going back up, wasnt wearing a seatbelt, flew through the windshield, and got hit by 4 oncoming cars...

only 2 stopped...other 2 didnt even stop

i think since that happened 3 years ago this march, i have maybe made 3 trips w/o my seatbelt (and those 3 trips were like, thru the neighborhood)

i have actually gotten in the car and started driving, and get like 200 feet from the place im going, and realize its not on, and put it on, even if ill be there in <15 seconds...just gives me a little peace of mind

[SuperGLS]

John, let's keep in mind that most people in the U.S. do wear their seatbelt every time they drive, there are just enough idiots around to not wear theirs. I wouldn't say that everyone in Australia always wear theirs either.

But, I don't see why people don't wear them always, seatbelts aren't uncomfortable at all.

[rckozma]

I guess his life wasn't worth the $22622.95 that the government spent on him (per his article $138 million spent on seat belt laws divided by the 6100 new lives saved by seat belts). I guess this was one of those 'lesson learned' scenarios.

*edit* And like Super and Jhon said it is well worth it. I have been wearing mine since the late '70s when we were living in Germany and it was already a law there.

[Keyan]

THIS IS A WORKWARNING RANT

I've always worn my seatbelt. My parents burnt it into my brain when I was little.

"Everyone wearing their seatbelts?" They asked, before we even put the car into reverse. Click went our seat restraints
"Who the **** took their seatbelt off?!" My dad would scream if he heard the click on one while we were driving anywhere, a highway, a back road...anywhere. Click went the seatbelt back into position.

My girlfriend's parents parents were the complete opposite. They don't give a **** who wears one. They don't wear one. My girlfriend doesn't wear one. Her brother and sister (ages 17 and 14) don't wear one. HOW THE **** CAN 2 ADULTS LIVE DAY TO DAY KNOWING IF SOMETHING HAPPENS THEIR CHILDREN ARE DEAD?!

It sickens me.

I've "taught" (forced :) ) my girlfriend to wear her seatbelt from now on....but she only does it in the front seat. No amount of yelling, pleading, begging, anything will get her to put it on in the back seat

"Oh it's not illegal to not wear your seatbelt in the back seat. Trust me"

No Tara, I'm sorry. I don't give a **** wether or not it's illegal. I want you safe. So put it the **** on. You too, Jamie. You too, Jonesy. You too, Nikki, Danielle, Torri, Christina, Ben, Ed, Ash. How many of my friends puts their seatbelts on compulsively in the back of my car? ONE. Charlie. It's my opintion that EVERYONE should be made to wear a seatbelt. EVERYONE. I'm not going to be ****ing responsible when my friends die because of the way a driver acted when they hit MY CAR.

1) They're not uncomfortable.
2) If you're doing turns at a good speed, you don't slide from side to side in your seat.
3) If you flip your car over, you don't ****in BREAK YOUR NECK when it hits the roof.

**** you, all non-seatbelt wearers.

[o2coolchris]

:werd:
I'm with him...

[bikerPA]

man... I've got absolutely nothing against folks who don't wear seatbelts; then again, I have absolutely no sympathy at all when they Darwinate themselves. I do feel that life/car insurance should have a rider stipulating no payout if the insured was not wearing a seatbelt, just to keep my premiums from going up as a result of somebody's stupidity.

[hyunelan2]

I'm also in the group that ALWAYS wears a seatbelt. Took a lot of grief for it when I was a laborer and pulled it on everytime we got in a truck, cause no-one else did. I still pull it on everytime I get in.

On a side note... that guys story about laws should only be make to keep people from infringing on other people's rights, and not forcing things for no reason: The reason seatbelt laws were started was not to save lives (trust me, the government doesn't really care if you live of die) the reason seatbelt laws began was to protect people's wallets and insurance companies from paying out huge death benefits to those who die in accidents. Look at your insurace policy - see how much your limit for medical coverage is (I think mine is $300,000). What do you think happens when someone is in intensive care for 3 months... if that could be prevented by that person wearing a seatbelt, it may have kept them from infriging on your rights to have a healthy financial life. That, and insurance lobbiests really want seatbelt legislation because it will save insurance companies money if you do not die/get severly injured in an accident.

Seatbelt laws made to save lives... lol. Seatbelt laws to save money! Saving lives is just a good side effect.

Wear your belts!

[archywills]

I have always worn a seatbelt. It's law in our state (Louisiana). It's also law to restrain your children. Frankly I believe that those who do not restrain their children are acting very stupidly. I constantly ask my children while driving if thier seatbelts are on.

As far as adults and seatbelts, I know there are alot of people who do not wear them. Citing stupid excuses (wrinkles my clothes, unconfortable, etc.) these folks are taking their lives in their own hands.

PLEASE restrain your children in carseats, booster seats and seatbelts.

[tharptroy]

not wearing seatbelts is like smoking, and any other habits. you may be too stupid now to understand the ramifications, but your number is coming.

looks like this guys number came up...if there is an afterlife, I bet he feels like an *** right now

[wildman92]

My suggestion is to tell your passengers to buckle up or you are not going anywhere. If they still refuse, you can ask them to leave your car and find their own way to where ever their destination is.

I am another of those that fastens my seatbelt anytime I get into any car. I really got into this habit in college when I was in ROTC and they had us sign a pledge to always wear it. I also make sure my passengers buckle up when I am driving.

[kylemorg]

I always wear my seatbelt, too. However, I agree that seatbelt use shouldn't be manditory; let the foolish people who don't want to wear them drive without them. Also let them chose to do any drugs and other stuff as they see fit as long as they're not jeopardizing anyone else's lives, liberty or freedom.

It's called Darwinism; weed out the weak and dumb/crazy/unsafe people and keep the smarter/less crazy/safer people alive and allow their offspring to live. That's something that has been virtually eliminated in humans over the last century or so, to the detriment of the human race.

The same thing goes for the idiots who don't belt in their children properly. If the parent is that dumb, then their kids are likely to be just as dumb, either through learning from their parents or genetics. It sounds harsh, I know, but that's natural selection. However, feel free to flame me as you like.

This principle holds true for any activity/sport today -- I see pedestrians stepping out blindly from the curb against the light and in front of moving vehicles all the time in Pittsburgh... luckily few drivers hit them. At least six times in the last two months, I've seen 20+ year old adults teaching their 4+ year old kids to just cross against the light, often without looking at traffic; and I've only seen one parent teaching his kid to wait for the walk light.

The downside to not enforcing safety measures is the emotional and financial costs on the other parties involved in an accident -- most if not all of us would feel badly if we were involved in a head-on collision and the other driver died due to the lack of a seat belt; whether the accident was our fault or not. For the financial end, I think my insurance money (and anyone elses) shouldn't go to treat any injuries that could have reasonably been expected to be prevented by the other party wearing the proper safety gear / seatbelt in the event that I cause an accident.

Sorry to rant...

[hyunelan2]

I always wear my seatbelt, too. However, I agree that seatbelt use shouldn't be manditory; let the foolish people who don't want to wear them drive without them. Also let them chose to do any drugs and other stuff as they see fit as long as they're not jeopardizing anyone else's lives, liberty or freedom.



NO. It should be manditory. If I accidentally blow a stop sign and t-bone you, flipping your car over and ejecting you into a telephone pole - my insurance company (and possibly me) are going to have to pay a lot more medical bills than if you had been wearing your seatbelt (in most instances). Seatbelt laws protect ME in this instance - even though you're the one who would have physically benefitted from wearing one.

[exsailor]

:iamwithst
WELL SAID !

[wildman92]

I always wear my seatbelt, too. However, I agree that seatbelt use shouldn't be manditory; let the foolish people who don't want to wear them drive without them. Also let them chose to do any drugs and other stuff as they see fit as long as they're not jeopardizing anyone else's lives, liberty or freedom.

Only problem with this way of thinking, is that the morons do jeopardize the rest of us. A couple years ago, one of my buddies was killed by a 17y/o kid driving w/ no headlights, 70mph in a 35 zone, running from another accident he had just caused, and he had been drinking. There was no middle of the car after it was hit, this moron didn't realize he had killed someone and to top things off, he just basically got a slap on the wrist cause my buddy was leaving a bar and there was a small amount of alcohol in his blood. The worst part was this happened on Christmas Eve morning and my buddy left 2 young children behind. In this case, the morons survived and the good guy didn't.

[kylemorg]

What part of me saying "as long as they're not jeopardizing anyone else's lives" and "I think my insurance money (and anyone elses) shouldn't go to treat any injuries that could have... (been) prevented by the other party wearing...(a) seatbelt" did you guys miss?

[slvrsleeper]

Which is the single best reason to drive armed (heavily) nothing ensures low insurance rates like no one surviving to sue! LOL On a serious note though, wear your seatbelts people its cheap, easy and the law. I don't really care if you agree with it or not. If you want to make some sort of grand anti-establishment statement go jump of the roof of your state capitol. It will make the highway safer for the rest of us.

[hyunelan2]

What part of me saying "as long as they're not jeopardizing anyone else's lives" and "I think my insurance money (and anyone elses) shouldn't go to treat any injuries that could have... (been) prevented by the other party wearing...(a) seatbelt" did you guys miss?

That just puts you in a court-surrounded pissing match of proving the injuries would or wouldn't have been as severe IF they were wearing the proven life-saving device. You know the way society is... regardless of careless behaviour the injured will still file suit against against the other driver. It's a good law, it should be enforced, and it should be a primary offence (can get pulled over just for that). All the reasons people don't wear belts are B.S. and it just comes down to people trying to be hard-asses and not wanting to be 'told' what to do by the law.

[kylemorg]

I agree that any smart person does wear their seatbelt. I also agree that the US insurance/legal system wouldn't work in a scenario like that; it's just to prove a point.

I think that people should have a right to be stupid under the "pursuit of happiness" part of the Declaration of Independance; but it could be argued that the "Life" part of the "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" comes first.

I think the point the dead guy ended up making is that the law didn't protect him anyway, so what good is it?

[dragonfighter60]

The law, or boundary, was placed for a reason. Going outside the boundary just led to his death. Some laws are stupid, but when they are put in place for safety they serve a good purpose and should be enforced.

[punkrocker3_00]

I always ware my seat belt. I am here today thanks to one. When I was 16, in my first car that was mine, didn't even have the 30 day tags of it, the tie rod broke going around a corner and when the road when straight, my car didn't. I hit a utility pole at about 45 mph. I walked away (2 monts later) with only a broken hip, and some bruseing from the seat belt. There was no way I would have lived if I did not have my seat belt on. I am lucky I have smart friends and family and I don't even have to say anything to them when they get in a car. They also always buckle up.

[kylemorg]

Punkrocker -- good for you and your family! My family and friends are the same way -- we don't need a law to tell us to wear our seatbelts -- we've seen the statistics...

And something I've neglected to say up until now -- Yes, the links in the original posts are very Ironic -- I love it!

[SuperGLS]

I'm glad to see that the ElantraXD community are all for wearing seatbelts no matter what. Thanks for being responsible guys/gals.

[hyunelan2]

Punkrocker -- good for you and your family! My family and friends are the same way -- we don't need a law to tell us to wear our seatbelts -- we've seen the statistics...

And something I've neglected to say up until now -- Yes, the links in the original posts are very Ironic -- I love it!

Well, if we all agree that we should be and are wearing seatbelts, there should be no problem with the law telling you to, if you do it anyway.

[kylemorg]

Hyunelan2 -- My point is that the law didn't stop that guy from getting killed.

[hyunelan2]

Maybe if it were a stricter law that would have required seatbelts in the back seat, it could have.

[kylemorg]

He still woudn't have worn his seat belt, and that would only work if a cop happened to stop the vehicle he was riding in immediately before the accident, 'cause you know that he'd take it off again immediately after the cop left.

You can't protect people from their own stupidity; you can only warn them of the concequences and let them make their own decisions. If laws stopped people from doing dumb things, there'd be no murderers or anyone else in prision; or at least no repeat offenders, right?

[Roydjt]

I have gotten so used to wearing my seat belt that I feel odd in a car without one on. I can't remember the last time I was in a car without my seat belt on, it was probably one of those times in high school when 8 people piled into a econobox. If someone were to get in my car without buckling up, I would probably say something if I noticed, but if they don't want to wear it it's their choice.

I don't understand what personal freedoms and self-expression have to do with wearing a seat belt. It's a matter of safety, not free speech. It's a shame when anyone dies in a car wreck regardless of the circumstances, but when it comes to the decision of wearing a seat belt or not, part of the cause of that guy's death is directly related to his own negligence.

-Roy

[dragonfighter60]

I make everyone in my car buckle up for the reason that I don't want the ensuing ticket. They can be as unsafe as they want but I'm not going to get a ticket and higher insurance to boot just because of their stupidity.

[jh0n]

Super: I was commenting on something I read once, I wasnt attacking americans. Kylmorg`s point is a valid one, and I can only comment on what happens here, I dont know of a single person who wantonly doesnt wear a seat belt, I have a friend who got busted twice inside a month for not wearing a seat belt, he said he forgot or was only going a short distance, still twice in a month is stupid and he copped it bad from everyone. Here also, the driver was responsible for all pasengers to wear seat belts while in their car, that may have changed not sure. But i am pretty sure its 180 dollar fine to fail to wear seat belt. Finally, I have heard of many instances of cops telling ppl to hey, put you seat belt on while sitting in traffic so its not all revenue raising they are the ones scraping you off the road if you mess up while driving here.

[hyunelan2]

Lets draw a hypothetical comparison. Lets say there were no laws regarding the maintenance of aircraft, big commercial planes. Now, you know that it's a gamble to fly on a plane that hasn't been maintained, but you do it anyway because you can. No surprise - people die when wings fall off of planes in midflight... There's public outrage and laws are made to prevent the same thing from happening again. Don't you think there is some good in making a law to prevent deaths... even though the people on this hypothetical plane knew of the risks? If you put on a seatbelt so you don't get pulled over, that's one more seatbelt that's put on.

If the laws were tougher, lets go to the extreme of "an immediate 1yr. loss of license for not wearing your seatbelt" don't you think more people would wear it? People ***** about the freedoms they lose becaue of seatbelt laws... but I say if you don't want to worry about that freedom, don't drive.

[jh0n]

Another extremely valid point.. Once I saw a program called Crash, about car safety and what not, there was an english driving instructor who had some great / wacky ideas: put the fuel tank on the front bumper of the car, are you gunna tailgate then! airbag!?! have it a frickin`javelin comes out of the steering wheel, how many risks you gunna take then, Parnelli?? it was an amusing part of a very sobering series of programs, I defy anyone to have watched it and not thought seriously what could be done about saving needless deaths and injury due to motoring. One part was very surprising, it concerned a labor day weekend during the vietnam conflict and they were mourning the loss of i think 12 soldiers, but like a couple hundred people died on the roads at home that weekend. We take this sort of thing for granted, I think. We dont think it will happen to us.

[SuperGLS]

Jhon, I got it, no problems.

Oh, the reason to make other people in your car to wear a seatbelt is so that when the accident happens they don't fly into the front hitting and killing the driver or front seat passenger. Makes sense to me.

[southpawboston]

i just read this thread for the first time. yes, this is a GREAT example of irony. this guy deserves the darwin award for his beliefs. (actually, according to darwin, he received his award).

[kylemorg]

Here's a Darwin-award-winning Hyundai driver...

http://darwinawards.com/darwin/darwin2001-30.html

[projectx515]

was definatly ironic.....seltbelts are a nessicary(sp)evil as they say . i think we would all like to drive without one if there was some gurantee that we wouldn't need one but there isnt one so we must wear them ... no excuses

[surreelantra]

I'm writing my congressman to pass a bill making the speed limiters of all cars activate at 20mph. Mandatory crash helmets too.