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Any helmet laws successfully overturned?



 
 
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  #1  
Old June 27th 03, 03:09 AM
one of the six billion
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?


"Michael Malak" wrote in message
om...

If every U.S. jurisdiction had a juvenile helmet law, only 137
lives would be saved. 687 * 0.29 * (2/3) = 137
http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm


There would probably be many more lives saved by introducing greater
physical activity to our population of overweight under-exercised children.

How many childrens lives would be saved if there were mandatory helmet laws
for riding in cars?

How many childrens lives would be saved if all speed limits were lowered by
10 mph?
At the same time how much longer would the average motor vehicle trip then
take?

How many childrens lives would be saved here and now and also in
generations to come all over the world if we exchanged our system of
personal combustion engine transportation with mass transportation?

How many children under 21 will be killed directly and indirectly in oil
inspired wars over the next 50 years if our consumption levels aren't
radically reduced?





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  #2  
Old June 27th 03, 03:45 AM
DedCat
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

"Michael Malak" wrote in message
om...
If every U.S. jurisdiction had a juvenile helmet law, only 137
lives would be saved. 687 * 0.29 * (2/3) = 137
http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm


*Only* 137 lives... pffft... why even bother then?


  #3  
Old June 27th 03, 04:02 AM
Peter Gardner
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

How many childrens lives would be saved if there were mandatory helmet laws
for riding in cars?


Trying to redirect the flame war here....


The risk from being in a car is of a similar magnitude to the risk from
being on a bike. How about a push for manditory helmet laws in cars?
Perhaps that would discourage car use, as similar laws discourage bike
use.

Peter
  #4  
Old June 27th 03, 02:16 PM
Jasper Janssen
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

On Thu, 26 Jun 2003 19:09:20 -0700, "one of the six billion"
wrote:

How many childrens lives would be saved if all speed limits were lowered by
10 mph?


Accident rates would go up, not down.

Jasper

  #5  
Old June 27th 03, 03:21 PM
Rich Clark
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?


"Peter Gardner" wrote in message
...
How many childrens lives would be saved if there were mandatory helmet

laws
for riding in cars?


Trying to redirect the flame war here....


The risk from being in a car is of a similar magnitude to the risk from
being on a bike. How about a push for manditory helmet laws in cars?
Perhaps that would discourage car use, as similar laws discourage bike
use.


The helmet laws don't discourage cycling because people don't want to wear
helmets. They discourage cycling because they increase the perception of
cycling as being inherently dangerous.

There are already mandatory seat-belt and air-bag laws for cars, and their
existence doesn't seem to discourage driving. People's capacity for
self-delusion should never be underestimated; they will choose their desired
result (I want to drive, I don't want to cycle) and then choose whatever
evidence supports it and ignore the rest.

RichC


  #6  
Old June 27th 03, 06:11 PM
Dave Rabinowitz
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

If every U.S. jurisdiction had a juvenile helmet law, only 137
lives would be saved. 687 * 0.29 * (2/3) = 137
http://www.bhsi.org/stats.htm


This is a phony argument. For every bicycle head injury that results in
death there are about a thousand head injuries which result in various other
problems including permanent disabilities. Do a google search on bicycle
head injury statistics and look at any of the more than 14,000 hits to get a
better idea of the real potential impact of helmet usage.
  #7  
Old June 27th 03, 09:31 PM
Just zis Guy, you know?
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

On Fri, 27 Jun 2003 17:11:17 +0000 (UTC), (Dave
Rabinowitz) wrote:

Do a google search on bicycle
head injury statistics and look at any of the more than 14,000 hits to get a
better idea of the real potential impact of helmet usage.


Treat the results with caution, though, for many reasons including:

- some studies which claim to prove helmet effectiveness also prove
that helmets reduce leg injuries
- helmet laws do not generally apply on private land which is where
over 90% of child head injury cycle accidents happen
- cyclist injury rates in Virginia, Australia, rose following
compulsory helmet legislation
- claims of up to 85% head injury reductions from helmet use fail tyo
account for the proportion of head injuries which are to parts of the
head & face not covered by helmets
- helmets are designed for loss-of-control accidents up to about 12mph
so most adult cyclists will be riding outside their design parameters
much of the time, and all accidents involving motor vehicles will
exceed the design capabilites of the helmet.

I am of the view that children are the one group for helmets
definitely work, but since the majority of these accidents happen
offroad legislation is not an effective way to promote helmet use for
these children. Nor are helmets the first, best way to improve their
safety on or off road (better bike skills are the starting point
there). It is not a coincidence that the most ardent helmet advocates
are paediatricians.

There is a danger that helmets are seen as some kind of panacea, the
polystyrene foam deflector beanie as magic talisman. They distract
attention from primary safety and increase the perception of danger,
which is a self-fulfilling prophecy in that it deters cycling, and the
best way of making cycling safer is undoubtedly for more people to do
it.

For adult cyclists riding a bike even without a helmet, and with only
the average level of skill, the health benefits outweight the
increased dangers by up to 20:1, depending on the particular study and
methodology used. Cycling is *not* dangerous in terms of whole-life
risk, so helmets are one possible way of making a safe activity even
safer. Your chances of suffering serious head injury in a car crash,
particularly the worst type of torsional brain injury, are greater
than in a bike crash.

As an aside there is only one study I know of which incontrovertibly
links helmets with fatality, and that relates to children strangled by
their helmet straps while on play equipment.

Guy
===
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  #9  
Old June 28th 03, 01:15 PM
Just zis Guy, you know?
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?

On Fri, 27 Jun 2003 13:16:39 GMT, Jasper Janssen
wrote:

How many childrens lives would be saved if all speed limits were lowered by
10 mph?


Accident rates would go up, not down.


Unless you believe the research evidence, of course. Injury and
fatality rates would still fall even if accident rates rose, though.

Guy
===
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony.
http://www.chapmancentral.com
Advance notice: ADSL service in process of transfer to a new ISP.
Obviously there will be a week of downtime between the engineer
removing the BT service and the same engineer connecting the same
equipment on the same line in the same exchange and billing it to
the new ISP.
  #10  
Old June 28th 03, 01:16 PM
Gary Mishler
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Default Any helmet laws successfully overturned?


"Rich Clark" wrote in message
...


... they will choose their desired

result (I want to drive, I don't want to cycle) and then choose whatever
evidence supports it and ignore the rest.

Bingo!

That simply and distinctly describes the entire helmet-law issue (as well as
many other life issues).


 




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