Do you wear your seatbelt?

[Spazzmodicus]

After having the pleasure of hanging upside down in the car by the seat belt, in two separate roll-overs. Yes, by habit. I don't even think about it.

 

[AD Marc]

If you carry a gun for personal protection and don't wear your seatbelt, your priorities are screwed up. End of story.

I wont even let people ride in a car with me if they don't strap in.

 

[calcot7]

I started buckling up everytime, when our daughter was born almost 25 years ago.

 

[Fletch]

Needs an option for "yes, because I'm not an idiot" vs. "yes, because the law says I have to".

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Those of you who do not wear it:

Do you have spouses? Children?

Just curious.

-J-

 

[Mike H]

Buckeling up is as automatic for me as wearing a safety harness while I'm in a tree stand.

 

[indytechnerd]

Everyday, all day.

I wear it because it's safe and because my truck dings constantly, there is no timeout on the seatbelt warning thingy. Annoys the hell out of me.

Now, I have absolutely no use for the State of Indiana mandating that I wear it. They can GTFO as far as I'm concerned.

 

[mcolford]

Those of you who do not wear it:

Do you have spouses? Children?

Just curious.

-J-

Whether I do or not, I dont truly view that as anyone's business. My choices are my choices, its that simple. I oppose the seatbelt law for adults. We are adults, we should have the simple right to make the choice on whether to wear the belt or not. Its that simple. Our government doing more micro-management.

 

[gvonpaul]

Good thread.
It took a long time for me to get in the habit, but now I do it religiously.
I've been a paramedic for nearly thirty years, and have seen many people who were not restrained ejected from vehicles, and it usually isn't pretty.
As a side note, I have seen a marked decrease in the amount of serious injuries from accidents over the last couple decades, and I've no doubt that it's partially due to increased seatbelt usage. It used to be that when you rolled up on an accident with significant body damage to the vehicle, you could count on broken bones, internal injuries, and what have you, but these days cars take the most of the damage rather than passing it on to the occupants. Fully 90% of the accidents I see involve only neck pain of a decidedly litigious nature.
Granted, my experience is only anecdotal, but statistics do show a decrease in traffic deaths over the last couple decades.
I will say that I don't care for the legal requirement except for children. Adults can choose to protect themselves or not, but I find many parents lack the mental capacity to make that choice for a child. Yes, I know we all stood in the back seat growing up, but we were lucky.

 

[mcolford]

I dont if Im running up to the post office (2 blocks) or the school (block and a half).. If Im on the highway, yes.

There should be a "It Depends" choice.

 

[GBuck]

Funny story about this. I am a firm believer that it is none of the state's business and am not convinced of the validity of the safety argument. Further, I am satisfied that any accident big enough to get to me in the semi I drive most of the time is going to be sufficiently severe that the seatbelt will be irrelevant to my personal outcome and big enough for those concerned about me staying in my seat that there won't be a chance in the universe of recovering control of the vehicle.

November 2010, MrsGBuck and I had just started dating and I was on my way back from visiting her at Purdue. I witnessed a semi vs. car accident. The car had been riding in the lane scheduled to end due to construction for far too long (one of my pet peeves) and cut the semi off at the last second. The semi rear ended the car. The driver of the semi was thrown about 50 feet out the front of his cab, past the car that he hit. The car then ran him over. DOA. The driver of the car was able to get out and walk around just fine, with no apparent injury. The Semi ended up jack-knifed with the tractor facing northbound with the median guard rail splitting the cab. The trailer was still facing south.

Guess what would have prevented the semi driver's unnecessary loss of life? Answer: A seatbelt. (or the other guy not being a dipsh**, or a lot of other small things probably)

I understand it's easy to think your 80,000lb truck renders you invincible, but I've seen otherwise with my own eyes.

 

[spec4]

In 1965 I had a Jaguar 3.8 Mk II. One night after a very long workday I fell asleep at the wheel and hit a light pole. Bounced through the windshield and broke the seat back. Luckily a State Trooper (IL) was nearby and got me to the hospital. Even after plastic surgery I still have visible scars. Had I used the perfectly good seat belt in the car, I would in not have gone through the windshield. Ever since then I have worn my seat belt every time I drive. Flash forward to 1975, I'm in a '73 Torino at a stop light. A woman in a Cadillac plowed into me (she didn't see the stop light and line of traffic with me at the end). The Torino turned into an accordian and damaged the two cars in front of me. I was shaken up[ but zero injured because I was belted up. Needless to say, I am a big believer.

 

[Dybber]

I wear it to avoid the ticket and the constant dinging if I don't. My brother was in an accident and would've been killed if his seat belt was on. I know that's an exception. I still think its a stupid law. I wouldn't be hurting anyone but myself if I didn't wear it.

 

[Rocket]

I am a firm believer that if the Good Lord calls me home than NO safety measure will be big enough to stop it. However being seriously injured is not dead. But I have worn my seat belt All my life. As does everyone that is in my car does as well. When I was rear ended a couple of years ago. Girl speeding in residential failed to see big green Van sitting at stop sign waiting for traffic to clear. It kept me from eating the steering wheel.

 

[HoughMade]

but, but, but.....I knew this guy whose college roomate's, uncle's, cousin's, grandfather was in an accident with a fire and would have burned to death if he had had a seatbelt on that trapped him in the car.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Whether I do or not, I dont truly view that as anyone's business. My choices are my choices, its that simple. I oppose the seatbelt law for adults. We are adults, we should have the simple right to make the choice on whether to wear the belt or not. Its that simple. Our government doing more micro-management.

Wasn't a personal attack, friend.

Merely food for thought.


*I* DO have family I care about. *I* have a wife I love. *I* have a daughter at home whom I love. *I* have another child on the way. *I* want to make the decision to be around as long as I can for THEM. That's just one of myriad reasons I choose to wear my seat belt. Not every decision I make is made wholly for me.

ETA: Along the same lines: I didn't take first aid classes necessarily for ME, I took it so i could help others. I didn't take CPR certification for ME, I took it so I could help others. I didn't get AED certified for ME, I took it so could help others. I don't take firearms training classes just for ME, I took them so I can better help protect my family should the need arise.

 

[eldirector]

I ALWAYS wear my seatbelt. ALWAYS.

It has saved my life, and the life of friends and family, and more than one occasion. You don't ride with me without a belt. As some of you know, I'm big in the off-road scene. Safety is at the top of the list. I'm not letting someone get hurt/killed on my watch, when it could be prevented.

Besides, the "gun is like a seatbelt" analogy only holds up if I also wear the belt.

 

[Ted]

Whether I do or not, I dont truly view that as anyone's business. My choices are my choices, its that simple. I oppose the seatbelt law for adults. We are adults, we should have the simple right to make the choice on whether to wear the belt or not. Its that simple. Our government doing more micro-management.

Be as it as it is................

There are intrinsic incentives to requiring such, that by not mandating the same, constructively infringes upon the rights of others.

• Belted drivers remain in a superior control of their automobile, compared to unbelted drivers.
• Belted occupant suffer less morbidity and morality than unbelted occupants.
• Insurance premiums would be incrementally higher if not for seatbelt use.
• There is less reliance upon social entitlement and welfare programs, due to less severe automobile related collision injury.
• There is an increased overall productivity, due to less, or less severe injury with seatbelt use.

 

[N_K_1984]

When I was a kid, (being a dumb little kid) riding in the back seat of the family minivan, I lost a couple front teeth because I wasn't wearing a seat belt. I was in the back row, and when my mother had to come to a sudden stop to avoid an accident, I went flying and hit the back of the front passenger seat, face first. I've worn my seatbelt ever since.

 

[mcolford]

but, but, but.....I knew this guy whose college roomate's, uncle's, cousin's, grandfather was in an accident with a fire and would have burned to death if he had had a seatbelt on that trapped him in the car.

Actually, in high school I had a friend that her neck was snapped as she WAS BELTED in the back seat of the car, and when they were hit, she got partially thrown out of the back window, only retained in by the seatbelt. Dead on scene.


So yes first hand I have seen both sides of the coin.