Do I have to tell people I'm a civil libertarian if I agree enthusiastically with Montclair Bobby B? Is there a pin I have to wear?
On Mar 16, 3:47 pm, Montclair BobbyB <montclairbob...@gmail.com> wrote: > (Sorry I'm getting sucked into furterh debate, but... ) honestly I > don't believe there's a legitimate argument for or against, regardless > of statistics. This comes down to a person's perception and > sensitivity to risk. Do you have tornado insurance? Flood > insurance? These choices (and they're your choices) would likely be > based on your perception of the risk that these events could occur, > versus sensitivity towards protecting your assets. Same goes for > helmets or anything that can potentially offer protection. > > I "choose" to wear a helmet when I perceive there's a risk of harm to > my noggin. I don't care if helmets are declared by the leading minds > in this world as unnecessary (based on statistics)... I'd still wear > mine when I perceive potential risk of hitting my head on a low > branch, concrete sidewalk or curb. And this is based on the best > evidence I have; past experience; actually hitting my head or having > close calls. > > Conversely, even if wearing helmets were regarded as the most > practical thing a cyclist can possibly do (by the so-called leading > minds, based on statistics), unless required by law I would still > cherish (and exercise) my right to ride without a helmet when I > perceive the risk to be low (and therefore I'd also willingly accept > the consequences of hitting my head). That's MY choice. > > Bottom line, I don't care what statistics show, either in favor or > against, nor will I EVER. I will ignore them over my own gut intuition > between when it's right to wear or not to wear a helmet. My head, my > choice... period. And I recognize the right of every person to make > the same choice one way or the other. > > Peace, > Bobby (semi-but-mostly helmeted) Birmingham > > On Mar 16, 6:11 pm, Anne Paulson <anne.paul...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > On Wed, Mar 16, 2011 at 2:51 PM, Travis <travisbreitenb...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > Ann, to indulge your semantic reply I will change #2: > > > > 2) Does cycling dramatically increase your risk of suffering brain > > > damage, death, or paralysis due to impact to the head versus > > > showering? > > > Here's what I want to know, and what I haven't seen compelling data > > on: Will a helmet materially change my risk of damage, death or > > paralysis while cycling? > > > Sadly, we've had some recent cyclist deaths in my area. The cyclist > > fatalities I hear about are seemingly cyclists like me, cycling on > > roads that I ride on. They were wearing helmets, like I do, and their > > helmets failed to protect them from death. > > > And then I hear about other local cyclists crashing and recovering > > from broken wrists, broken collar bones, broken legs-- these people > > seemingly didn't hit their heads at all. > > > And then, I suppose, there are cyclists who crash and hit their heads, > > but their helmets prevented or mitigated their injuries. > > > But what I want to know is, in what proportion of accidents would a > > helmet make a difference? In some accidents, helmet or no helmet the > > cyclist would die. In some accidents, helmet or no helmet, the cyclist > > wouldn't have a head injury, or wouldn't have a head injury that made > > any difference, or would have struck something with, say, their chin, > > so a helmet wouldn't have helped. In some accidents, the helmet saves > > the victim-- but how many accidents are like that? Don't say, one is > > enough-- the danger has to be significant enough so wearing a helmet > > is worth it; I don't wear a helmet when taking a shower. > > > -- > > -- Anne Paulson > > > My hovercraft is full of eels > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
