daveb@reed.UUCP (David Billstrom) (04/09/85)
I personally side with the folks who want less government intervention in the form of legally required seatbelts, except in the case of legal minors. At the STATE level there are statutes defining a legal "minor" for the instances of medical treatment, jail, etc. For the same general reason, I'm in favor of state laws requiring seatbelts and/or childseats for minors. Adults can make their own decisions. Why? I work part-time on an ambulance here in Portland, Oregon and we respond to many motor vechile accidents. We don't transport many people who wear seatbelts. The difference is astounding, between the injuries sustained by folks without seatbelts and the folks with them. Most roll- overs WHEN WEARING SEATBELTS aren't injured enough to warrant a trip to the hospital! I have worn seatbelts religously for more than a decade, but during the past couple of years I have been converted into a true zealot by these many instances. And you may imagine the helplessness we on the rescue crews feel when we find the small child or baby in the accident without a seatbelt and/or child seat. (hint: the child usually isn't in the car). A recent law in Oregon requiring carseats and belts for children under the age of 6 will warrant you an expensive citation from a cop, if you're ever in an accident with unbelted children. And you'll deserve it. Paramedicine and Trauma technology isn't much good on such small bodies. They simply can't tolerate the damage an adult can, and keep on living. David Billstrom (consultant) ...tektronix!reed!daveb