Murray,et al,
My take is that we Americans don't like being told what to do when most
of us know what to do already. The marketplace is a magical thing. Given
the data, a responsible person will choose to wear a belt because there
is a good chance it will save his life. I myself have have been in a
small number of accidents on the road and have done some racing. It's
ingrained in me so much that if I'm moving a car out of the garage to
another part of the driveway, I will automatically go to latch my belt
before I start the car. And I would still vote against any politician
who would try to force me by law to fasten my belt while driving on
public roads.
We are in the midst of a national 'conversation' ( and I use the term
loosely ) about just how far the government can go to 'make people
responsible'. Traditionally, Americans like to be left alone to their
own decisions and are willing to accept responsibility when they screw
up. You will notice I prefaced that with "Traditionally". Over the last
century the sense of responsibility has pretty much gone out the window
to the point that we are no longer expected to have to live up to a
mortgage agreement anymore. Some of us still believe in living up to our
promises and social contracts. And since it is a republic slowly
devolving onto a democracy, things will start to chance sooner rather
than later.
And, since this is the MG's list, I must contribute some MG content. I
drive a '67 MGB to work every day to maintain and restore old cars. I'm
doing a hell of a lot more for the environment than Al Gore is.
End of rant. Thanks for listening. Donning fire suit.
Glenn
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