Helmet Laws - Yes or No?
Today Interstate Motorcycles enters the blogesphere! Now, not only can you Jam with Slam in Rolla, MO on KKID 92.9 FM every Friday morning from 7:30 - 8:00 AM but you can jam with Slam ANYTIME on our very own Jammin with Slam Blog. Try not to let the excitement overwhelm you !
Let's kick it off with what I'm sure will be a controversial subject. HELMET LAWS! Should we have them in Missouri or not?
To begin with, the question is not are helmets a good idea while riding a motorcycle. Anyone with sense enough to twist a throttle real hard SHOULD be wise enough to realize that helmets WILL save your life if you are involved in an accident. That is (or at least should be) without dispute. BUT, the real question is should the legislature make laws requiring motorcyclists to be wise and do the right thing for their own good?
Personally I have been on both sides of the debate. I USED to believe that everyone should definately be wearing a helmet BUT that there should NOT be a law requiring it. After all, if someone wants to kill themself by a fatal head injury while riding, that should their choice, right ? Wrong! Now I have come to realize the error in that opinion. Unfortunately, many people in the United States do not have health care insurance (please no comments on the pros and cons of nationalized American health care !!). So what happens if some unlucky, uninsured and unwise rider whacks the living crap out of his / her unprotected head while cruising down his / her favorite boulevard and isn't killed but is severly injured ? Well I'll tell you what happens I have to pay the medical bills ! It is impossible, as well as illegal and immoral to allow some wretch with a brain injury to die on the pavement because they aren't insured. Every effort must be made and typically is made to save the individual's life.Not to mention what could be a lifetime of special care and rehab. That costs somebody money and guess who gets the bill ? Everyone !! That's who ! Whether the costs are passed along in ever increasing medical insurance premiums or by ever increasing tax payer entitlement costs, somehow those bills will get paid.That is where personal freedoms cross over into infringing on everyone else.
Well, what if an individual can demonstrate that they are insured ? Should they then be able to operate without a helmet? NO ! First of all who is going to be responsible for checking everyone's insurance card? More government red tape? Sounds like less freedom to me. Furthermore, what happens when an individual loses their insurance but continues operating without helmet and then has a mishap ? We end up with the same problem and everyone is paying again!
The only logical solution is mandatory helmet use. Well that's how I see it anyway. What do you think? [I'm not finished...Read MORE...!]
Let's kick it off with what I'm sure will be a controversial subject. HELMET LAWS! Should we have them in Missouri or not?
To begin with, the question is not are helmets a good idea while riding a motorcycle. Anyone with sense enough to twist a throttle real hard SHOULD be wise enough to realize that helmets WILL save your life if you are involved in an accident. That is (or at least should be) without dispute. BUT, the real question is should the legislature make laws requiring motorcyclists to be wise and do the right thing for their own good?
Personally I have been on both sides of the debate. I USED to believe that everyone should definately be wearing a helmet BUT that there should NOT be a law requiring it. After all, if someone wants to kill themself by a fatal head injury while riding, that should their choice, right ? Wrong! Now I have come to realize the error in that opinion. Unfortunately, many people in the United States do not have health care insurance (please no comments on the pros and cons of nationalized American health care !!). So what happens if some unlucky, uninsured and unwise rider whacks the living crap out of his / her unprotected head while cruising down his / her favorite boulevard and isn't killed but is severly injured ? Well I'll tell you what happens I have to pay the medical bills ! It is impossible, as well as illegal and immoral to allow some wretch with a brain injury to die on the pavement because they aren't insured. Every effort must be made and typically is made to save the individual's life.Not to mention what could be a lifetime of special care and rehab. That costs somebody money and guess who gets the bill ? Everyone !! That's who ! Whether the costs are passed along in ever increasing medical insurance premiums or by ever increasing tax payer entitlement costs, somehow those bills will get paid.That is where personal freedoms cross over into infringing on everyone else.
Well, what if an individual can demonstrate that they are insured ? Should they then be able to operate without a helmet? NO ! First of all who is going to be responsible for checking everyone's insurance card? More government red tape? Sounds like less freedom to me. Furthermore, what happens when an individual loses their insurance but continues operating without helmet and then has a mishap ? We end up with the same problem and everyone is paying again!
The only logical solution is mandatory helmet use. Well that's how I see it anyway. What do you think? [I'm not finished...Read MORE...!]
