Chris’s “This I Believe” podcast
I believe in freedom of choice. Bikers should have the freedom and decision to wear a helmet or not. Every biker should be able to feel the wind blowing through their hair going 45 mph. down the back roads or going 70 mph. on the freeway. A lot of bikers think that it should be their choice to wear a helmet or not. But the government thinks otherwise.
Bikers think that if you don’t want to wear a helmet you shouldn’t have to. All bikers know that if you choose to ride a motorcycle there is a fifty-fifty chance you’re going to live or going to die. Also all bikers know that during the course of a biker’s life you will be in at least accident on a motorcycle. And if you’re old enough to smoke, drink, and die for your country in war, you should be able to have a little freedom. Besides, that is what riding a motorcycle is all about, the feeling of being free. A lot of bikers don’t want the restriction of wearing helmets, but some do. The way I see it is that if you want to wear a helmet, fine go ahead, but let others that don’t want to wear a helmet, not wear helmets. And I feel that the government is interfering with bikers freedoms.
The government thinks that they have the right to take away that freedom because they are protecting peoples lives. But the bikers say it is unconstitutional because we the people have the freedom of choice. And the government of the state gets more tax money if there is a helmet law. But do helmets save lives?
The statistics in the Motorcycle Rider Education and Safety poll showed when a state removes its helmet law fatalities increase. But in that same poll it listed the categories of the accidents in accordance of the speed that the motorcycle was moving, The categories were “0-35,36-50,51-70 and 70+ mph.” And in that poll the number of accidents in the “36-50 and 51-70 mph.” categories went up. Therefore increasing the chance of more fatalities. In another poll that was done on speed of motorcycle crashes and the percentage of fatalities. In the “0-35 mph.” category, the operator could live through it. But in the “36-50, 51-70, and 70+ mph.” categories, the operator could not live through the accident, even when the operator was wearing a helmet. After hearing this information take it into consideration if you still feel the same way about the helmet law, Even though this shows that helmets don’t save lives. I believe that bikers should have the freedom of choice to wear a helmet or not.
All polls came from the website http://www.michigan.gov/documents/FinalMotorcycleActionPlan
Michigan State Government. “Final Motorcycle Action Plan.” Michigan Motorcycle Helmet Law April 2006: 1-15. Michigan Government. 3-21-07 .
-Chris-
March 29th, 2007 at 9:48 am
Hi Chris,
I appreciated your essay! This would have been very interesting to post “post-Big Ben’s accident.” This topic was hot in Pittsburgh at the time.
By the way, I just wrote a poem with the line “I am from bikes without helmets.” It did feel great, very freeing as you describe so well in this essay.
March 29th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
I just read your blog and it was intresting that you said that all poeple are opposite from each other. Also I agree that relationships should be opposite because thats what god made us for to be together and support each other no matter what.
March 29th, 2007 at 12:49 pm
Dear Chris,
I really like your essay alot it was very interesting to read. but i think when peoples are riding on a bike they should wear a helmet because its for there own safety. so they could keep themself from hurting themself badly.
March 29th, 2007 at 6:47 pm
Very good belief, My dad (not me) is a biker and although he lives in a state without the helmet law, he choses not to wear a helmet, its not that he doesn’t see a need for his helmet he just knows the statistics. Overall very good essay and statistics and facts were put together very well.
March 30th, 2007 at 7:26 pm
hey chris. i agree with you, that the government should not enforce this. I think in many situations, not just the helmet law, the government is attempting to control the lives of the citizens too much, and this is wrong. i enjoyed ur speech
April 1st, 2007 at 10:39 am
booo big brother, live free or die, but wear a helmet, so chances are you ride again tomorrow
-anonymous-
May 3rd, 2007 at 9:18 am
I agree that the government should not control the bikers with wearing helments. Wearing a helmet could throw off your balance. Other people like to wear helmets because it keeps their head warm.