Have we become a nation of kittys

[Alnamvet68]

Caj and all,

I really agree with the horrible "wussification" of American kids! Wind chaffing? You have got to be kidding! However, after practicing Forensic Pathology for 40+ years, I have had to deal with the tragic deaths of too many youths who died of head injuries from bike, ATV, skateboard, you name it injuries. Helmets do save lives and do help prevent serious head injuries!

As others have commented, it is a different world out there today. Back in the 50's, we had little traffic to worry about in our neighborhood and many streets were not even paved. Skateboards, which are probably more dangerous than bikes, were not even invented. I am all for letting kids be kids, but protect their fragile little heads when there is a danger of them coming in contact with hard surfaces. Even if they survive a serious head injury, you don't want them getting coloring books for Christmas for the rest of their lives!

medxam

Not so fast...I "invented" the skateboard in the 50's, along with thousands of NYC kids who made use of the steel wheels that used to come on skates (the kind you locked on to your leather shoes). Invariably, not all 8 wheels would wear at the same rate, and typically 4 wheels still had some life left, so we nailed or screwed 1 pair on the front and rear of a 3' to 4' long 2x4, and voila...a skateboard. This is me around 1953 or thereabouts fixing my skateboard.

​

 

[Rule3]

So lets see the first parent here looking over the hospital bed of one of their children who is brain dead from a head injury because they did not wear a helmet or a seat belt.

You call it Wussification??

Stand on that ladder above the step of death with a pole saw and loose your balance, break your neck, then sue the ladder manufacturer or something. Put your eye out using the weed wacker without safety glasses. Shoot your guns with no hearing or eye protection, you can do it you are tough.

Wussification is passing all these stupid bullying bills because Johnny called some one a bad name on the internet.

 

[timn8er]

I have motorcycles. I ride with a helmet when I ride, it's my choice, I don't believe in helmet laws, I have picked my face up off the pavement. I am thinking of getting a bicycle, just a plain old 26" med. frame, wide seat type. I have a quiet enough neighborhood. I ain't wearing no pansy-*** helmet, period!

I couldn't agree more. I've had incidents on motorcycles where if I hadn't been wearing a good quality(Bell Star, Arai)helmet, I either wouldn't be typing this. I won't ride a cycle without a helmet, but for some reason I won't wear one on a bicycle. I don't even own one. I try not to ride on public streets. I try & ride on bike trails or paths to avoid traffic. In a lot of cases the trails aren't any safer. You overtake a group of walkers, who of course are spread out over the width of the trail, jabbering & listening to Ipods, & you call out "On your Left", telling them you are about to pass them on their left side. They of course scatter like quail being flushed, & you don't know what direction to take ta avoid hitting one of them. That's when I think about getting a bike helmet. Maybe if I could get one that didn't look like a nuclear spaghetti colander I'd do it.

 

[puckforbrains]

Motorcycle helmets(could never stand them)and seat belts(can't stand the shoulder strap) are both good ideas but should be an individuals choice IMO.

 

[buck460XVR]

I grew up ridin' bicycle too. Delivered newspapers for 3 years riding one 2-3 hours a day. Didn't wear a helmet cause they didn't have them yet. 'ell, I was almost done ridin' bikes when the Schwinn Stingray first came out in '63. But then we didn't have lots of things. Like supervision when we went swimmin' at the local pond @ 7 years of age. The pond was 25' deep. No one or their parents thought anything of it. We didn't have life vests/preservers along either when we went fishin' or duck huntin' in the boat. Regardless of how cold it was or how deep the water was. No body asked us what happened when we went to school with a broken nose given to us by a drunken parent. There's a reason dash's aren't steel anymore and why kids are required to be buckled into a car seat. There's a reason a lot of the playground equipment we old farts grew up on are no longer seen....anywhere, but the junkyard. We didn't get get pussified.....we got smart. With the technology and materials we have today, a bike helmet is cheap insurance against injury. Most of the time they are so light that the kids don't even know they have them on. There's nuttin' manly about a 9 year old leavin' half his brain on the asphalt. It's not a sign of bein' a tough guy cause you shrugged off your kid bitin' the windshield at 50 MPH. If you're an adult and don't want to wear a helmet while ridin' a bike, go for it. But don't ridicule a parent for wanting their child to grow up with the brain they were born with.

 

[Lost Lake]

I blame lawsuits and people suing for large settlements from companies who manufacture items. It seems every time a kid (or an adult) gets hurt they immediately blame the product or the manufacturer and sue. If and when I got hurt as a kid my dad would look at me and tell me how stupid I was for pulling such a dumb stunt (as he and mom fixed me up).

So true. Nobody takes responsibility for their actions anymore.

If you're fat it's because McDonald's made you fat.
If you have lung cancer it's because Marlboro made you smoke.
And if Jimmy breaks a leg playing football it's because the athletic department didn't maintain the field well enough.

 

[fdw]

Yep, times were different....

When I was 6 years old my mom would send me off on my Schwinn stingray with banana seat, slick rear tire and 5 speed gear shift... to the West End super market (5 miles away)....

to get her a pack of Winstons.... what is a helmet?

yep times have changed....

 

[357-RevolverGuy]

I'm 34 and still ride a bike sometimes just for exercise and I think helmets, reflective vests, strobes, and tights are all for wusses. I'm with the OP... I wonder why in order to ride a bike you now have to get the most expensive gear/equipment and then have the proper bike suit or clothing, or whatever it's called. I just wear shorts, my beat up t-shirt, and sneakers. My bike is not new. It's about 12 yrs old. I was taught as a child to always be aware of my surroundings and so when I bike a few miles to the park or uptown or whatever, I'm not dumb enough to ride in the middle of traffic. I don't ride next to cars (that's what sidewalks and neighborhoods are for), I'm always looking everywhere because I understand I'm not on a motorcycle and people are stupid out there. I don't rush downhills and I make sure not to do wheelies and say "look no hands!"... all it takes is responsibility. The only thing I do different today is I carry concealed. But all the bike gear people wear sort of takes the fun out of it, don't you think?

 

[arjay]

My neighbor and his offspring own the largest bike shop in the state.They make a very nice living off of the bicycling necessities ;-)

 

[blujax01]

RAWR!

There. Fixed it for you.

 

[Flathead]

Personal safety is just that...personal. But when I see these morons put their mountain bikes on the roofrack of their BMW, while wearing a helmet, strobe, vest elbow and knee pads, then get in the car, put their cellphone to their ear and speed away I get miffed! Now it is my safety they are endangering.

 

[billwill]

I've got several thousand miles on a bike (yes..true, rode daily for years) bottom line......ride a bike.....WEAR a HELMET .

 

[marvin the martian]

MEOW!

I commute by bike to work, and yes I wear a helmet and day glow lime green or orange shirts (no spandex though!). A 150 lumen strobe light on the front, a 2 watt red strobe going during the day too. I'm biking on the road and need all the visibility I can get. Oh and I firmly believe that unless you have small kids and are taking it slow, sidewalks are the most dangerous place for bikes. Cars don't look for bikes before pulling out.

 

[TACC1]

The OPs question didn't mean just bikes. It's every
single activity. If it can be CONTROLLED, somebody will
come up with a new rule. Brainwash the kids into accepting
controls over their lives.
I'd guess that Jarts, shooting arrows straight up, BB-gun
and stone fights, and playing with firecrackers/rockets,
and all of it unsupervised, is out of bounds nowadays.
I was quite proud when I learned how to ride a bike while
sitting backward on it. Let's face it, you have to fail, sooner
or later, to learn how to LIVE.
JMHO, TACC1.

 

[Mcwsky09]

There are folks around here walking on the street at not with dark clothing and dark skin despite the prevalence of sidewalks. I have come close to hitting a couple of them simply because I could not see the until I was nearly on top of them.

My brother was killed on his motorcycle a couple weeks after he turned 18, he was wearing a helment on a 25 mph road. The official report is that he crossed the center line and was struck head on by a pickup truck.

I do have a bicycle helmet but don't always wear it depending on how far I am going not that I ride often anymore.

To the original point. I do think it should be a matter of personal responsibly and choice and if you choose not to take repsonbilit ,for your own safety then don't expect me to come running to your rescue. When you are only taking safety precautions because it is mandated then are you really being safe or even fully aware of the risks etc? A buddy of mine had the idea that he could drive as fast as he liked because he had anti lock brakes. I think he fundamentally misunderstood the purpose or vlalue of that particular safety feature.

 

[mstuhr]

Not me!

Howdy,
O.K., call me stupid. I'd rather be run over and killed than wear a helmet on my bicycle.
Live a little!
Thanks
Mike

 

[mjr]

I grew up riding a bike. Rode one to and from shcool all the way through law school. Rode them to and from summer jobs. Rode them to friends houses. Never wore a helmet. Never got killed-not even once.

Well, good for you for not getting killed. Plenty of kids did get killed, though, back in the old days. Jim S., a kid in my fifth grade class back in 1960 when we were both 11, died of a fractured skull when a panel truck hit the bike Jim was delivering newspapers on. A helmet might have saved him, but bike helmets weren't around back then. Jim's was the first funeral I ever went to.

Adults can do what they like, as far as I'm concerned, about seatbelts and bike helmets and such, but if they don't wear them and suffer injuries that likely would have been prevented if they had worn them, they should lose their right to sue anyone else. And adults who let their kids forgo safety equipment should be criminally prosecuted if their children come to grief because of it.

 

[blujax01]

I used to ride a bicycle.

Then I turned 16 and got a driver's license.

 

[mtelkhntr]

How many boys cracked their barnacles on the top bar of a bicycle and went on to father children?

Personally I did that more times than cracked my head. Maybe their helmets on the wrong end.

 

[Stevens]

I rode bikes all over town from 8 ys old till maybe 16, I never dreamed of a helmet. but, I did know two people in their mid 20s who were killed, separate accidents, while riding bicicles on our roads, which have a shoulder about 6" wide.
Today I wouldn't dream of riding a bike out on the street, I hope my grandkids never do either.
Steve W