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Also the question is about believing. The law has been both out there and enforced for decades. What difficulty is there to believe the law's existence today then?
Believe = Support, In favor of.
I would like to point out the lexical infatilism of the OP.
Do you "BELIEVE" in seat belt laws for adults. As in, I have to believe in them. And believe doesn't mean support. I believe that the red sox are gonna win the championship at baseball, doesn't mean I support them. (I don't care about baseball or the red sox or anything of the sorts, but it's an example of why believe != support)
The correct way of putting it would be: should legal adults be forced to abide by seat belt laws? And the answer is YES. Being an adult doesn't mean you get to bypass the law according to what you think is best. It means that you abide by common laws as a responsible member of society. So yes, wear the god damn seat belt when you're driving and tell your wife and kids to use them too. It is proven to work and reduce fatalities. This law is not a bad law and it's not encroaching on your liberty. Liberty and freedom isn't freedom FROM responsabilities, is freedom to take on responsabilities because if you don't, others will take them on for you and that's how you lose your freedom.
Responsibility is the price of freedom. ~some guy
I would like to point out the lexical infatilism of the OP.
Do you "BELIEVE" in seat belt laws for adults.
Nope, I think they're a hoax.
Believe = Support, In favor of.
Oh, come on now.
You know exactly what he meant.
This is a chat forum, not a dissertation.
Lexical infantilism none the less. Turn adjectives into adverbs or nouns into adverbs or adjectives if it helps you get your point across. Make typos if you're trying to type fast. But for pete's sake, don't use believe in all things that are "up for debate" or people think (or believe) that they are up for debate.
It's the same problem with people saying "do you believe in evolution"? "do you believe that the universe is geocentric?", do you believe that the government has the right to collect taxes, do you believe that bla bla bla. Things that are tangible, real, proven... ah... in existence and such, don't come in a "believe or not believe" sort of format for the discussion because that way, you end up nowhere. "Oh, I believe this and it's my right to believe whatever I want and that makes my opinion as valid as yours". No it doesn't. So put the format in the correct setting: "Do you think it's right?/Do you think it's logical?/Do you think we can change this?". THINK, not believe. It begs for informed opinions instead of opinions.
I freely admit to my GIGANTIC hypocrisy here, but yes, I fully support seat belt laws for adults while I'm 100% against helmet laws for motorcycle riders over the age of 21.
People in cars are constantly "distracted" by all kinds of crap. Think about all the stuff people do while driving a car.
smoke
talk on phone
text
shave
apply make-up
pop zits
futz with radio/cd player
eat
drink
dance and/or play drums or air guitar
sing
open and close windows
adjust heat or a/c
read maps
futz with gps
and then there's the distractions of passengers - like children or pets.....
So many people are not truly paying attention when they drive a car.
They're multi-tasking.
So I completely support a law that turns a safety device into a simple habit. My kids, when they were younger would FREAK OUT if I even pulled out of the driveway without my seat belt on. They've grown up with that. It's a habit they don't even think about now. They get into a car, they put a seat belt on. Period. The law basically caused that habit.
So on the basic theory that a law has "groomed", or hell, even brainwashed my children into doing something so simple, yet so potentially life-saving, I'm 100% supportive of seat belt laws for ALL.
And really - is it any inconvenience at all?
No, Believe != support.
By now, everyone knows the risks of not wearing a seat belt, so if a person still chooses not to wear one it should be their right to do so. I don't have a problem if the government requires people to sign a form saying they understand the dangers of not using their seat belt prior to being issued their drivers license, but since a person not wearing one isn't endangering anyone but themselves, the government has no valid reason to mandate there use.
The government does however, have a duty to protect the public, including children, from being harmed by the reckless or irresponsible actions of others, but they are not supposed to play mommy and daddy to consenting adults. Freedom means we are supposed to be free to live our lives the way we want, and seat belt laws are a direct contradiction to that.
Considering that after the introduction in my country, fatalities in car accidents went down by 70%, I believe I have the legitemate right to call everyone who opposes it a fanatic knownothing.
I agree totally with the idea that everybody should wear seat belts and that insurance policies should be able to price that in.
But in my opinion you might have the balance between individual freedoms vs state intervention into the affairs of the citizens a little too close to the authoritarian models of the state. This opinion is based more on your choice of words to judge others than on the use of seat belts.
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