Ah yes. Since Florida, in its infinite wisdom, repealed its helmet law the carnage continues to grow. 18 dead at Daytona, 12 weren't wearing helmets. Deaths up 81% since repeal. Is it ironic that a woman who led the push for repeal died less than a year after the repeal, riding a motorcycle with of course, no helmet on.
If motorcyclists want to kill themselves, fine, but don't make me pay for their uninsued losses.
As dumb as helmetless riders are, I'm against helmet laws and any other law that tries to limit people from taking their own risks. It sets a precedent where saving a few bucks for the commonwealth is more important than personal freedom. That could easily slide to a ban on motorcycles altogether. Why stop there? Let's ban skateboarding, skydiving, high cholesteral foods and any other unnecessary activity that increases our costs. No thanks!
I read that insurance is cheaper in states with helmet laws.
I pay for my insurance.
So I have an interest in having helmet laws.
If my choice is move out of state or be for the government forcing you to wear a helmet, I say suck it up and wear a helmet.
Governments also force you to wear a seat belt and make your kid ride in a car seat. So if the AMA wants to fight to repeal the helmet laws, I want the AAA to get rid of those stupid encroachments on my car driving freedoms.
I genuinely could care less about some dumb ass that doesn't wear a helmet and then splits his mellon open. I feel like the insurance companies should simply make those who want to take no precaution towards their own survival pay their own way. When you get motorcycle insurance there should be a box to check that states that you do or don't wear a helmet. If you say you do and you enjoy lower rates but have an accident without a helmet, then you don't have coverage. No different than them denying coverage if you are racing the bike. I have no problem with freedom, but when I have to pay for some squid who doesn't care about himself, that's when I care.
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You bring a Ducati to life, all other bikes you just start.
My old helmet saved my life in a low level orbit highside. To the states that have helmet laws and for the ppl who use them..... and to the states and ppl that dont have them or use them..... . Sorry for the long ass run on sentence.
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1997 916s-Loaner Bike.....Just The Termignoni Ti Full System.
As dumb as helmetless riders are, I'm against helmet laws and any other law that tries to limit people from taking their own risks. It sets a precedent where saving a few bucks for the commonwealth is more important than personal freedom. That could easily slide to a ban on motorcycles altogether. Why stop there? Let's ban skateboarding, skydiving, high cholesteral foods and any other unnecessary activity that increases our costs. No thanks!
I don't believe the government should tell people what to do either, but the uninsured idiot tramples on my rights when he makes me pay for his stupidity. His right to be stupid ends where my rights begin.
As dumb as helmetless riders are, I'm against helmet laws and any other law that tries to limit people from taking their own risks.
But you are being deliberately blind and ignorant about the REAL cost of no-helmet laws. If you don't die and end up a 24 year old vegetable, modern medical science can do a Terry Schiavo on you and keep you "alive" for maybe thirty years at like $1.5 m a year....who pays that? The public, the taxpayer, the very people who WANT a helmet law...that is who. And they have absolutely NO choice in the matter.
I have long and publically advocated a law mandating special license plates in states like Florida for helmetless riders....such a plate EXPRESSLY FORBIDS ANY MEDICAL ATTENTION AT ALL for such riders no matter how minor or trivial. If you have such a plate it would be a felony to render any assistance to a downed rider. This is THE only fair way to balance the needs of the public and the "needs" of those who want the wind in their hair. Fair enough, don't you agree? Everyone gets what they want.
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Only one left not in captivity.
Ah yes. Since Florida, in its infinite wisdom, repealed its helmet law the carnage continues to grow. 18 dead at Daytona, 12 weren't wearing helmets. Deaths up 81% since repeal. Is it ironic that a woman who led the push for repeal died less than a year after the repeal, riding a motorcycle with of course, no helmet on.
If motorcyclists want to kill themselves, fine, but don't make me pay for their uninsued losses.
I say GOOD. Simple fact. She's made motorcycling less safe for the citizens of her state. She's dead because of it. I say it's sweet poetic justice.
Bit harsh yeah, but tough shit.
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"What the hell's an aluminum falcon????"
But you are being deliberately blind and ignorant about the REAL cost of no-helmet laws. If you don't die and end up a 24 year old vegetable, modern medical science can do a Terry Schiavo on you and keep you "alive" for maybe thirty years at like $1.5 m a year....who pays that? The public, the taxpayer, the very people who WANT a helmet law...that is who. And they have absolutely NO choice in the matter.
I have long and publically advocated a law mandating special license plates in states like Florida for helmetless riders....such a plate EXPRESSLY FORBIDS ANY MEDICAL ATTENTION AT ALL for such riders no matter how minor or trivial. If you have such a plate it would be a felony to render any assistance to a downed rider. This is THE only fair way to balance the needs of the public and the "needs" of those who want the wind in their hair. Fair enough, don't you agree? Everyone gets what they want.
As dumb as helmetless riders are, I'm against helmet laws and any other law that tries to limit people from taking their own risks. It sets a precedent where saving a few bucks for the commonwealth is more important than personal freedom. That could easily slide to a ban on motorcycles altogether. Why stop there? Let's ban skateboarding, skydiving, high cholesteral foods and any other unnecessary activity that increases our costs. No thanks!
The problem with your comment is that we are not just talking about 'yourself', but when you drive/ride on the road you automatically involve many others, thus there has to be rules, regulations to protect the others, etc.
Thus if you really want to take risks, do it on private property, etc.
But go out on to our shared roads, property and you have to play the game ... hence M/C has to be safe, you have to obey road rules, etc., and not doing so does affect others, either by insurance costs or actual accidents, etc.
I'm also against people over controlling us and turning us all into Volvo sedan drivers ... that is one of the reasons I've moved in to bikes, but for the general population we have to play the weekest link (unfortunately).
This discussion is a bit like safety belts in cars ... really very minor deal to wear and makes such a huge difference. Same can be said for helmets ...
Don't worry in 60 years time (or unfortunately sooner) we will not be allowed to drive any more and all vehicles will link up to some (hopefully not MicroSoft) computer and take us to work, etc. This is what many think will be best ... but those people just don't understand that others get pleasure from controlling mechanical things, my wife is one of them (and hence she does not drive).
Pete
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'97 Suzuki GS500E - Sold 28000 km's later.
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Grumpy Kiwi.
Why fly when ya can make a lot of noise
Riding with wind in your hair on a public highway is not garunteed under the Constitution. Driving is a privilege, not a right. You have to balance the needs of the people and the individual. That means, me paying millions to keep some moron in diapers while he's being fed through a straw outweighs the feeling of personal freedom one might experince whilst riding without a helmet.
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Sometimes you need to save the stupid/ignorant from themselves!
I don't believe the government should tell people what to do either, but the uninsured idiot tramples on my rights when he makes me pay for his stupidity. His right to be stupid ends where my rights begin.
That means, me paying millions to keep some moron in diapers while he's being fed through a straw outweighs the feeling of personal freedom one might experince whilst riding without a helmet.
Dont forget there are hundreds of thousands of people on the medic-aid (medi-cal, for California) system that are wasting tax payers dollars at billions a year and havent even touched a motorcycle, let alone with or without a helmet. The fact is supporting the poor, indigent and stupid with our tax money is something we have to live with as Americans!
So if an idiot crashes with out a helmet...fine by me...natural selection at it finest!
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98' 748 in pieces thanks to blowing a belt.
The Key to Ducati Happiness....Its only money you cant take it with you and you can make more of it!
Dont forget there are hundreds of thousands of people on the medic-aid (medi-cal, for California) system that are wasting tax payers dollars at billions a year and havent even touched a motorcycle, let alone with or without a helmet. The fact is supporting the poor, indigent and stupid with our tax money is something we have to live with as Americans!
So if an idiot crashes with out a helmet...fine by me...natural selection at it finest!
Are you having trouble with basic mental processing? Perzactly what is the connection between people with brain damage caused by genetics or some accident that had nothing to do with their behavior or actions and.......
irresponsible clowns who DELIBERATELY chose to do something foolish and whose families now DEMAND that the state (read YOU and ME) to pick up the tab?
We do have to live with the poor and unfortunate in our midst....we do NOT have to live with the people who hurt themselves because of their reckless behaviour.
This issue comes up EVERY freakin' year here in Georgia. ANY rider in my state that wants the wind in his hair can move his sorry stupid ass to Florida....Delta is ready when you are.....one-way of course. His actions would have a DIRECT impact on my insurance rates and I would just as soon see him deducted from the insurance pool. His loss is my gain and my ass is waaaay more important than his.....I have something to live for and he doesn't , for starts.
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Only one left not in captivity.
I lived and rode (with a helmet on) in IL for years, paid a bunch for insurance.
I moved to PA where they had a helmet law and my insurance dropped dramatically. I enjoyed that briefly and then PA dropped its helmet law. My insurance jumped right up to IL levels. Seems to me I have been paying for these dumb phucks if they crash or not. It sucks, it pisses me off, and I totally agree with people who have suggested some sort of extra waiver/ sticker or license plate frame or the like to indicate that they should receive no medical help save what is needed to harvest their organs. Oh, and the helmet-less should be mandatory donors.
I know we are always toeing the line of too much gov't intrusion & have wildly stepped over in some matters of gun control and home alcohol preparation . . . but helmets do need to be worn & culture needs to step up and make it happen or the law will be forced to.
But you are being deliberately blind and ignorant about the REAL cost of no-helmet laws. If you don't die and end up a 24 year old vegetable, modern medical science can do a Terry Schiavo on you and keep you "alive" for maybe thirty years at like $1.5 m a year....who pays that? The public, the taxpayer, the very people who WANT a helmet law...that is who. And they have absolutely NO choice in the matter.
Who's being blind/ignorant here? Have you actually looked at the stats? Let me put it this way, helmetless riders drive up auto insurance costs by less than .5%. On top of that, insurance companies like to charge helmetless riders far more than needed to cover costs -- and that's because of the marketing forces at work. The rider is willing to pay that much extra to "be free" and the public accepts the extra premium being charged. The fact is, we pay FAR MORE for head injuries received from auto accidents. Given your (and others') logic, we should have mandatory helmet, 5-point harness and Hans Device laws for cage drivers. Also, given that most head injuries are due to accidents in the home, why not make it mandatory for people to wear helmets at all times? Then you'd REALLY see a serious reduction in medical costs. Good luck trying to get a law like that passed!
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I have long and publically advocated a law mandating special license plates in states like Florida for helmetless riders....such a plate EXPRESSLY FORBIDS ANY MEDICAL ATTENTION AT ALL for such riders no matter how minor or trivial. If you have such a plate it would be a felony to render any assistance to a downed rider. This is THE only fair way to balance the needs of the public and the "needs" of those who want the wind in their hair. Fair enough, don't you agree? Everyone gets what they want.
Why not just advocate that helmetless riders pay higher premiums for riding helmetless? The insurance companies already do that in many states and, in fact, they're making a tidy profit from it. I had an interesting talk with my Allstate agent when he told me they were discontinuing motorcycle insurance. He said their highest costs were more for bodywork replacement than anything else, including medical costs. All the little low-sides, tip-overs, etc, where the rider wasn't injured, combined with the fragility and high cost of fairings, has driven costs up more than anything else. Given that, why not support a law that bans fairing? Naked bikes only! It'd certainly bring your rates down WAY more than helmet laws! This whole "helmetless riders cost me money" argument is simply too weak to hold water.
Who's being blind/ignorant here? Have you actually looked at the stats? Let me put it this way, helmetless riders drive up auto insurance costs by less than .5%. On top of that, insurance companies like to charge helmetless riders far more than needed to cover costs -- and that's because of the marketing forces at work. The rider is willing to pay that much extra to "be free" and the public accepts the extra premium being charged. The fact is, we pay FAR MORE for head injuries received from auto accidents. Given your (and others') logic, we should have mandatory helmet, 5-point harness and Hans Device laws for cage drivers. Also, given that most head injuries are due to accidents in the home, why not make it mandatory for people to wear helmets at all times? Then you'd REALLY see a serious reduction in medical costs. Good luck trying to get a law like that passed!
Why not just advocate that helmetless riders pay higher premiums for riding helmetless? The insurance companies already do that in many states and, in fact, they're making a tidy profit from it. I had an interesting talk with my Allstate agent when he told me they were discontinuing motorcycle insurance. He said their highest costs were more for bodywork replacement than anything else, including medical costs. All the little low-sides, tip-overs, etc, where the rider wasn't injured, combined with the fragility and high cost of fairings, has driven costs up more than anything else. Given that, why not support a law that bans fairing? Naked bikes only! It'd certainly bring your rates down WAY more than helmet laws! This whole "helmetless riders cost me money" argument is simply too weak to hold water.
Thank you, Mashuri! I'm glad someone else out there "gets it".
Another point I'll add is that comparisons between helmet laws and seatbelt laws are irrelevant. If you ride a bike without a helmet for any amount of time in a helmet-law state, you WILL get pulled over and ticketed (and probably need a ride home if you don't have a helmet strapped to your turn signal).
But if you live in a mandatory-seatbelt state, stand on the street corner some time and count how many people you see driving by without seatbelts on. How many of those people are getting away with it on a regular basis? (Not to mention people who don't have their damn KIDS strapped into anything).
Helmet laws unfairly single out motorcyclists as the cause of all our problems, when in fact there are many, MANY activities that people do all the time that cost the general public money.
I'm absolutely in favor of helmet USE, and I even advocate mandatory helmets for riders under 18 (as it is here in AZ), but I'll be damned if I'll let the government dictate any more "protection from ourselves".
And I'm disappointed that so many of my motorcycling peers are willing to let them do it...
Location: Los Angeles, CA, USA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Originally Posted by AZ Scott
But if you live in a mandatory-seatbelt state, stand on the street corner some time and count how many people you see driving by without seatbelts on. How many of those people are getting away with it on a regular basis? (Not to mention people who don't have their damn KIDS strapped into anything).
Move out here. The CHP love to pull you over for seatbelts. I will try standing on a corner to see how many don't wear belts.
As for helmet laws I wish they were not mandatory but it's the 10% who screw it up for everyone( I always wore my helmet when we didn't have a law).
If we had a tiered licensing system there might be a big drop in deaths that a Helmet law would not account for. Although if we do that I want to see stricter driver training and if you are at fault in an accident where you violated a traffic law then you should have your license suspended and have to take a bus for a little bit before you are allowed behind the wheel again.
I always liked what ?Rick Overton? the comedian said in his skit many years ago. Want to cut down on accidents? Put a block of C-4 in the car and have it triggered to go off when it hits something.
Darwin in action.
Stupid Hurts......
and to the states and ppl that dont have them or use them.....
I'm glad someone else out there "gets it".
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