Starting July 1, our wonderful state will make it mandatory for everyone under the age of 18 to wear a helmet for such activities including bicycling, skateboarding, roller blading and yes, even riding a tricycle. Am I the only person in this state to think that this is just another ridiculous law in the long line of dumb policies set up to protect those who are to stupid to take care of themselves? Essentially, the government is stepping in again to raise the youth instead of letting the parents do their job. Before anybody automatically goes off their rocker and thinks I'm a completely insensitive person, let me explain why this law is asinine.
Like many of these laws, all politicians have to say for them to get passed is use the key word "safety". Once that is uttered, usually nothing will stop it. Why do they care about safety? Do they really care about others lives? Maybe, maybe not. I would assume that the more people that are alive, the more potential voters to re-elect them. Although not necessarily a problem, rules like these tend to off-set what I like to call Passive Eugenics. Others might refer to it as Darwinism. The weeding out of the weak and ignorant.
From the time a child is old enough to learn to ride a bicycle, their parents should have explained the dangers of riding and why a helmet is necessary. Not only that, it is the parent's responsibility to ensure that while the child is learning, their kid wears a helmet until he's good enough that he won't fall face first every time he rides. From that point on, the parent should strongly encourage the kid to wear a helmet.
Although I may have skipped a step with the tricycles, I don't believe that a kid will ever be going fast enough on a tricycle to injure himself. There are really only two scenarios in which a kid is injured on a trike: (1) he goes down a very steep hill or (2) he is hit by another vehicle. In either case, that fault lies directly on the parent for not watching out for their very young kid. Now I know that many will disagree with this next thought so I'm just warning you. Although it is sad, if the parent is that irresponsible, honestly, think about how that kid might grow up, probably just as, if not worse than his parents.
Now onto the "rebels." Skateboarders and Roller bladers. These guys are supposed to be the anti-establishment types who never listen to authority. They usually have many scrapes and bruises as a result of never wearing padding. Even with all the injuries, they still continue without protection. Why? It's not that they don't make the connection as to how they get hurt. I believe part of it has to do with the attitude. However, if they believe that no "extreme athletes" wear protective gear, they are sorely mistaken.
Tony Hawk and Mat Hoffman, arguably the best pro skateboarder and BMX rider, respectively, always wear at least a helmet while performing. These are two men who are so good, they get paid for their abilities. Still even with their skills, they know their are certain X-Factors to consider and that it is probably not worth the risk to look cool by not suiting up.
I have ridden bikes for nearly my entire life and have owned roller blades for thirteen years. The first time I rode on roller blades, I had a nasty fall and tore up my knee. After that, I've always worn pads. I never needed a law to tell me I had to wear protective gear. If someone is that ignorant that they need a law, they have no business using that equipment anyway.
