animal@ihlpa.UUCP (D. Starr) (07/22/86)
If you're one of the many bikers who wears a helmet pretty religiously but opposes helmet laws, you might want to take the following news into account when deciding which helmet to buy when your current brain-bucket wears out. In a letter published in the August issue of American Motorcyclist (the monthly magazine of the American Motorcyclist Association), a marketing VP for the Bell Helmet Co. announced that it is reversing its previous position opposing mandatory helmet laws and will now actively support them. The letter went on to dust off the old "cost to society" argument in favor of helmet laws (this is the argument that says, in effect, that personal freedom should be restricted for the economic good of the state, a position more in keeping with Karl Marx than Thomas Jefferson). It then attempted to assure us that Bell does not expect windfall profits in the wake of a national helmet law (the argument left me unconvinced), and chastised the AMA for continuing to oppose helmet laws after Bell had clearly proven they were a Good Thing :-). As I said, you might want to take this into account the next time you go shopping for a helmet. You might also want to remember that (as of mid winter) Bell also owned Vetter (helmets, fairings, hard & soft saddlebags, riding apparel, etc.) and Marsee (leathers and related accessories). Dan Starr AMA, ABATE, UMI, HOG V.P. & Acting Legislative Officer, Roadrunners M/C, Oak Park Illinois Obviously, the above opinions are my own. My employer does not even know about, let alone approve of them.