Backseat drivers. We all know them; we all hate them. "Pick it up a little, 'Grandma'!", "Watch those corners!", "The road is pretty slick here, so slow down", "Egad! Watch out for that car!". If you get lucky and get stuck with a real good one, you can hit hardcore Road Rage in less than 30 seconds.

However, as hard as it may be to believe, there are WORSE types of passengers to have. And they can still be found in the backseat. I am talking about those people who sit in the backseat and are thoroughly convinced that they are the exception to any laws of science and refuse to put on their seatbelts.

You can sit down and explain to them why it is not smart to sit in the backseat and not buckle up. You can draw the diagrams, sing the song and wave the pretty pamphlet, but time after time they will look you in the eye and say "Relax.". Yes, people-"Relax". Don't worry about it. Try not to think about the consequences of their actions when it comes to the "if" and "could be". Just put it out of your mind when the driver slams on the brakes because they almost ran a red light and your good buddy in the back slams into your seat with a hard "thump". Relax. They didn't kill you then, what makes you think that if that same situation played out at higher speeds that your dear friend wouldn't be able to keep themselves from sailing through the air and crashing into the back of your head?

According to the Department for Transport Local Government Regions (DTLR) and the RAC Foundation 40 front seat passengers die each year due to unbuckled backseat passengers hitting the front seat passengers. That makes up for 80% of front seat fatalities each year. Also reported as a consquence of not buckling up in the backseat are the thousands backseat passengers who suffer serious head injuries (brain, facial, fractured skull) including chest injuries, (broken ribs, pelvis, thighs) and various abdominal injuries.

Included in the the DTLR report was a statement discussing the conditions such fatalities are seen under:

"Recent government campaigns have highlighted the risks that unbelted rear seat passengers pose to those in the front of the car e.g. in a 30-mph impact crash, an unbelted rear seat passenger would be thrown forward with the force of three and a half tonnes - equivalent to the weight of an elephant - seriously injuring or killing the driver or passenger in front of them."

Suddenly that thump in the back of your seat doesn't seem so harmless and your laughing friend who is now rubbing their head or shoulder doesn't seem so funny.

40 people a year die. That may sound like a small number, but that's 40 people who did not have to die. Who would have lived. 80 people, technically. A person may have the right to decide how to live and conduct their lives, but they should be forever aware of how their decisions affect the lives of others around them. Putting on a seatbelt is not so hard to do. Be considerate, if a person up front asks you to buckle up, then do so. Respect their wishes, respect their lives.

__________________
Links:
DTLR references: http://www.mori.com/polls/2001/dl-010703.shtml
RAC Foundation references: http://www.racfoundation.org/releases/310103rac.htm

You're funny....

geez...the least you could have done was to post the many complaints and "shushing" things you said last night.

it would give me the excuse to use your RL name again :P

That was a little scary.

I should say it again just for the heck of it

:mischief:

I would tell you not to, but it would sound too bossy...

yeah, and that's my department :P

Wow. And people accuse me of having extended chat sessions in threds with Mat!!

For the record, the rule of my car is you want a ride, you wear a seatbelt. Period.

my friends want me to die :(

it always seems that the idiot who doesn't want to wear a seatbelt ALWAYS sits right behind me...

Whatever this thread is about, I'd like to point out that a national Mag Lev system would be individually much cheaper, more convenient, faster, FAR safer, better for package shipments, and generally better in every way than the wasteful individual car model. And if, as everyone says, it's too expensive to build even though we clearly have the resources to do so, even in the face of thousands upon thousands of lives to be saved, I say the economic system that makes this clear necessity too expensive is flawed.

:kundor:

so...you're in favor of people sitting unbuckled behind you in a car???

...

I said to GET RID OF CARS! Unsafe at any speed and all that. :P

Individual pod mag lev systems between all towns and cities, supplemented by bus, subway, and community bike systems, all free. Obviously individual car/truck type vehicles would be necessary to go to uninhabited areas, but for the vast majority of urban americans cars should be completely unecessary.

I, for one, am of the opinion that whatever it is that gets you out from behind the wheel is a well worth it endeavor...

recline your seat and crush the bastards :mischief:

:rollin:

I did that to my brother once...the only downside to such an incident is that they are pinned with their arms free and quite close to your head...and you are pinned with your arms down by your sides...or at least scrambling to find the seat lever again... :s