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Click It or Think It
06/15/06
Click It or Think It
We've all seen the ads on TV and on billboards. "Click-it or Ticket! It's a law you can live with." Well whoever came up with that slogan, you piss me off! Don't tell me what law I can live with, and frankly, I don't think I can live with this law and your arrogance to say that I can only makes me not want to wear my seatbelt more. I wonder if Patrick Henry could have lived with this law.
I need to add this disclaimer. I think wearing your seatbelt is a good thing. People who don't do it (myself included sometimes) are just stupid! But all "good things" are not meant to be laws and that is where I have to claim the seatbelt law is unconstitutional. And here's why...
Law's have two purposes. 1.) To protect us from others, and 2.) to protect us from ourselves when we have been deemed insane. The problem with the seatbelt law is that with a broad stroke of a pen, it has deemed all of us in society unfit to take care of ourselves and think responsibly. It is this insinuation that drives me nuts and honestly "Mr. PR Man" makes for a law I can't live with.
Now you say Andy what is the big deal? It's a good law that encourages us to act safer. Really? Where does this stop? It would be much better for America if everyone stopped smoking. Do we outlaw that? No! It would be much better for America to eat healthier. Do we legislate that? No! (Although on a side note they are considering it). It would be much better if Americans didn't rack up so much debt. Do we legislate spending? No! Frankly, the government needs to back off this issue and if Americans want to kill themselves by not wearing a seatbelt, the government should have nothing to say about it!
So you've got two options, you can just click-it mindlessly because the government and TV tell you to, or you can think about it and the unacceptable precedent this is setting. All in the name of "safety."
9 comments
Its to save money. (or make money).
Saves public service money on medical costs after you smash your face into the steering wheel.
Generates revenue for cities (and states) pretty effectively.
These are about as fun as jay-walking tickets. But don't get me started there. (Granted some people deserve stupidity tickets for endangerment..) But I think you know my opinions here.
BTW - I almost got a seatbelt ticket once, after being pulled over. (I made the mistake of taking off my seatbelt BEFORE the officer came up to the car.)
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06/15/06 @ 12:43 It's also to help parents set a good example for their children by operating a vehicle safely and in the manner it was intended.
AND...for what it's worth...unless you've changed your habit, you don't wear your seatbelt more often than not. :-)
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06/15/06 @ 13:44 
· http://www.2timothy42.org Also, the few incidents where someone has hurt someone else by flying out of the car is so freakin' limited. More people die of second hand smoke than bodies flying so we best make smoking illegal.
Also, your example of "it's a good example for the children," doesn't hold up either. Why not teach our kids to "think" not just "obey." I am sure glad no one ever taught Martin Luther King Jr to just "obey the law." Or Patrick Henry, or Paul Revere, or George Washington. Sometimes mindless laws aren't as good for children then for them to learn to think! We teach our kids not to cross the street with out looking both way, why don't we just make a law that requires all people to look both ways before crossing the street.
Either way, neither have addressed the real issue at hand. What is the definition and purpose of a good, constitutional law? 1.) To protect from others, 2.) to protect from ourselves when deemed insane. Plain and simple!
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06/15/06 @ 15:12 Permalink
06/16/06 @ 14:00 How else would children learn that they have a higher risk of dying in a collision by not wearing their seatbelt? Teaching kids to wear a seatbelt is more than just saying "put your seatbelt on kids" "why dad?" "Because I said so". It's about teaching them to think about the dangers of the road. I don't think your argument holds up well to this point either.
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06/16/06 @ 14:36 · http://www.2timothy42.org Are you sure about this (sarcasm)? The point is not what is "safer," the point is what is the purpose of laws. And frankly, your plea to the fact it is safer is just as ridiculous as a plea to force Americans to eat healthier.
You can teach kids how to be safe with out laws. I will hopefully teach my kid to eat right, I don't need a law for that. I can also teach my kids to wear their seatbelt, I don't need a law for that.
David, you're looking too much into "my personal" habit of forgetting to wear my seatbelt and your not looking at the basis of this argument. You need to forget who I am in this situation and focus on my argument, which despite your claim, holds up very well under both constitutional law (according to my father, an attorney), as well as simple logic. The point is, the seatbelt law is unconstitutional, plain and simple!
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06/17/06 @ 12:55 "An analysis of fatality data from 1991-2001 by NHTSA found that children are more likely to be restrained when their driver is restrained, and children are more likely to be unrestrained as they become older. The analysis also found that when a driver was unrestrained, 68 percent of the fatally injured children age 0-3 years old were unrestrained; 84 percent of fatally injured children 4-7 years old were unrestrained; and 91 percent of fatally injured children age 8-15 years old were also unrestrained." (NHTSA Research Note, The Relationship Between Driver and Child Passenger Restraint Use Among Fatally Injured Child Passengers Age 0-15; March 2003. DOT HS 809 558)
While this applies specifically to children, you can see that according to this national study, wearing your seatbelt does in fact give you a better chance of survival than if you did not.
Keep up the good work Andy. I like your blog. :-)
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06/17/06 @ 21:17 · http://www.2timothy42.org Permalink
06/17/06 @ 22:54 
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