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Seatbelts: Mandatory or Not?

Discussion in 'Chit Chat' started by Kaiser, Jan 26, 2015.

  1. Kaiser

    Kaiser Guest

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    What's everybody think about mandatory seat-belt laws? Do they help? Are they worth the hassle? Or is it just an easy excuse for police officers, to pull somebody over?

    Basically, should there be a law to tell people to buckle up?
     
  2. Chiroptera

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    They are important and they help in case of an accident. Yes, there should be a law forcing people to do that.
     
  3. Rainbows~Exist

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    I think there should be but I think it would be quite hard to enforce...
     
  4. Tohru-Chan

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    They are there for a reason. People die in car accidents because they're not wearing their seat belts all the time. It's sad. Everyone should just wear them. It takes two seconds to put it on and it can (and will) save your life.
     
  5. CyberScream

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    Yup. Here is Illinois, we got Click It or Ticket. I always put my seat belt on. I mean, I don't want to go flying out my front window.
     
  6. DeviantAttitude

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    Well this is an easy one. Its much better to have a few broken ribs than getting ejected through the windshield. They are there for a very good reason.

    Quick fact: The 3 Point seat belt, probably the most used in cars, where designed and first used in Volvo cars (hooray for the Sweeds). "Volvo then made the new seat belt design patent open in the interest of safety and made it available to other car manufacturers for free." (ripped from wikipedia)
     
  7. CrazyAwkward

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    Yes, I think they should be mandatory. I've heard way too many said stories about people (usually teens) who've flown through the windshield. Would they still have died even if they were wearing a seatbelt? Possibly in some cases. But seatbelts do help. My car doesn't move unless everyone is buckled up.
     
  8. SomeLeviathan

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    "Daddy, what's a seatbelt?"
    "I don't know son, we live in Montana."
     
  9. timo

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    Are there still developed countries where this even is an issue, where using a seatbelt is not mandatory? And are there people who are stupid enough to not use it?! The world keeps surprising me :/

    You can probably guess how often I wear my seatbelt.
     
  10. greatwhale

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    Here's an excellent analysis of the effect of seat belt laws:

    ...and this is an estimate based on 85% compliance!. In Canada seatbelt use is mandatory everywhere...it's a no-brainer.
     
  11. Chelski

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    I put my seatbelt on before I even start the car!! Its something I do automatic without even thinking of it. I'm shocked people still wont wear one???

    Here you could have a fine of up to £500 if you are caught not wearing one
     
  12. Shaded

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    Of course they should be Mandatory, They save lives.
    I don't know why someone wouldn't want to wear one, It's not like it's a straight-jacket.
     
  13. Quiet Raven

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    I think they should be mandatory.
    But what I don't understand is why busses don't even have them.
     
  14. Kaiser

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    It isn't so much the seat-belts themselves, but the laws, that I'm curious about. I suspect the same people who won't wear them, still won't, whether or not it's considered illegal. Kind of like driving while intoxicated, many people still defy that.

    I agree that seat-belts are wonderful things. They do save lives, but does the law significantly increase the number of people who wear them? Or is it because of all the lectures and warnings?
     
  15. Martin

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    I support it being the law, but it needs to be supplemented by public campaigns so that people are aware of their responsibility for protecting themselves and their passengers.

    It could be argued that such laws encroach on the free will and liberty of individuals, but sometimes laws need to do that to ensure that people are held accountable to their wider responsibilities within society. For example, the 'free will' of a parent is, by UK law, of a lesser concern compared to the welfare of a child. Mandating a parent to wear a seat belt (and to seat belt their child) is a necessity to ensure they're fulfilling their parental responsibility. It's also in the best interests of the child to ensure their parent, loved ones, friends etc are in a sound state of health, so an all-encompassing approach to mandatory seatbelt wearing really helps offer the most pragmatic solution possible. Additionally, if you're in a country which has public health services, it's the responsibility of everybody to minimise unnecessary risk, so that cost-saving can be achieved and thus provided to more vital health interventions. There is a staggering difference in cost between treating whiplash and cuts and bruises, compared to emergency surgery and long-term, intensive physiotherapy.

    At the end of the day, I think the benefits of such laws are rather clear to people. Just because something is difficult to enforce isn't really a rationale for not having a law to begin with, otherwise child protection laws would be one of the first to collapse under that approach. I think the fact that it is difficult to enforce and yet has such logical benefits only emphasises the need to have public awareness campaigns making sure people are aware of the role they're legally and morally obligated to fulfil, whether it be as a parent, or just a decent member of society. It certainly doesn't work to 100% success when replicated with under drink driving campaigns, but every life saved is a step in the right direction.
     
  16. Polemarch

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    I totally support it being the law. Seat belts does save lives. In the past year there have been a lot of car accidents happening in the area I'm living at. As I drive the scene on my way to work or when I'm watching the news, I see bodies hanging from the front window, or I would see bodies flung out of the car cause of no seat belt. Granted, sometimes seat belts can get jammed when you are in a accident and you need to get out asap, but you still have a higher chance of staying alive wearing one then not. You don't get tossed through the windshield.
     
  17. RedDev84

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    I simply can't understand what the motive behind *not* wearing a seatbelt is? It seems impossible to "forget" to use it, especially since it's law to do so here. We have some TV programmes where a TV camera follows the police around on their job, the excuses people come up with are laughable.

    Part of me says if people don't want to wear seatbelts, it's their problem and I will regardless of whether it's law. I trust my driving but I don't trust some of the other maniacs out there. That said, often you will find kids under the age of say 10 without a seatbelt - which is simply not OK and it HAS to be law to have kids wearing one, in my opinion. They are likely much less educated and more oblivious to the dangers, it would be irresponsible to put the decision in their hands or even the driver who for some reasons finds them redundant - it just isn't fair for them to be in danger through a driver's reckless choice.

    I believe in many cases they do. Although buckling up isn't one of them, some of my driving habits are admittedly, likely to be based mainly in fear of having to pay or receive points on my licence for not doing them. As said seatbelts for me isn't one of those - but I expect it is for some.
     
  18. Kaiser

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    Brilliant.

    That's what I was getting at.

    Problem is, that was kind of quick. Not sure what to do now, LOL.
     
  19. Lawrence

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    Reminds me of some TV adverts about buckling up or dying, and that was too much for some people with painful memories.

    It's a damn good idea to use a seatbelt in a car. It only takes a few seconds. Of course, one can do everything right and still end up dying (early), but it makes sense to increase the odds of survival. It boggles my mind why somebody wouldn't buckle up. Suicide is another topic entirely.

    I want to support the right of an individual to make their own choices (even if I think the choices are silly, especially 'cos I do silly things as well), but this particular decision can affect other people, so seatbelt use should be encouraged. Can't really say it better than Martin.

    On a lighter note, I'm reminded of this amusing warning I found on the internet (was thinking about how there are warning labels on machetes and how some people are careless or think they're invincible)
    [​IMG]

    Now this thread just makes me want to play Demolition Racer.

    I've wondered that as well. I've only found this explanation.

    I skimmed a research paper called 'Strapping Yarns: Why People Do and Do Not Wear Seat Belts.'
     
  20. BryanM

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    Of course it should be mandatory and you should be ticketed for not having it on unless you're exempt (trucks that weigh enough and postal workers on routes for example). I also think there should be campaigns to try to enhance traffic safety.