Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site oliven.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!hao!hplabs!oliveb!olivea!oliven!chrisp From: chrisp@oliven.UUCP (Chris Prael) Newsgroups: net.auto Subject: Re: manditory seatbelt laws ??? Message-ID: <148@oliven.UUCP> Date: Thu, 7-Jun-84 14:07:03 EDT Article-I.D.: oliven.148 Posted: Thu Jun 7 14:07:03 1984 Date-Received: Sat, 9-Jun-84 08:26:52 EDT Organization: Olivetti ATC, Cupertino, Ca Lines: 33 >A manditory seatbelt law probably would not work. How could it be enforced? >Nobody is enforcing the use of unleaded gas or catalytic converters, are >they? Not that I have seen. >Mark Hamilton What you seem to be saying is that the enforcement of a traffic law is at the whim of the police. Quite true. I doubt very strongly that the police anywhere see the fuel/converter questions as falling in their area of responsibility. Note however that Brittain, Sweden, Australia, etc. all have manditory seat belt laws, that these laws are enforced fairly strictly and that they all have a high level of compliance. This is not to be taken to mean that I favor a mandatory seat belt law. I think that it is a stupid idea. If there is anything wrong with the highway safety situation today, it is the unfortunately low number of fatalities that this country experiences. (A philosophical point which should be argued on some other net.) Nor do I think that "saving lives" is a legitimate ground for this kind of statist intrusion in any individual's life. There has been too much of this kind of "big brotherism" in the US in the last two decades! On the other hand one can (barely) justify a mandatory seat belt law FOR THE DRIVER ONLY, on the grounds of accident prevention. There is a statistically significant class of accidents in which the main collision would not have happened if the driver had not been displaced from behind the wheel by the first impact. Personally, I would prefer that natural selection be allowed to work. And note that I wear a belt always. Chris Prael