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Yahoo: NY motorcyclist dies on ride protesting helmet law


Gracelander

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ONONDAGA, N.Y. (AP) — Police say a motorcyclist participating in a protest ride against helmet laws in upstate New York died after he flipped over the bike's handlebars and hit his head on the pavement.

The accident happened Saturday afternoon in the town of Onondaga, in central New York near Syracuse.

State troopers tell The Post-Standard of Syracuse that 55-year-old Philip A. Contos of Parish, N.Y., was driving a 1983 Harley Davidson with a group of bikers who were protesting helmet laws by not wearing helmets.

Troopers say Contos hit his brakes and the motorcycle fishtailed. The bike spun out of control, and Contos toppled over the handlebars. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Troopers say Contos would have likely survived if he had been wearing a helmet.

http://news.yahoo.com/ny-motorcyclist-dies-ride-protesting-helmet-law-143217859.html;_ylt=AikFHK_jDhEHrwWkFWMai00DW7oF;_ylu=X3oDMTNwdDlxcXRrBGNjb2RlA3dlaWdodGVkY3QEcGtnAzYwOWJlYTA1LTU4MDQtM2UzOC05NDhhLWY5YTE2ZWZmMjIzNARwb3MDMQRzZWMDTW9zdCBQb3B1bGFyBHZlcgNjNTIxYjIxMC1hNTg4LTExZTAtYmVlZC00NWEzNGQ2NmY5NDY-;_ylg=X3oDMTFsNnAxMGFjBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANwb3B1bGFyBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3

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So Bang, do you believe it is our job to protect the stupid from themselves ? Or the job of law enforcement ? Should it be a law ?

When Captain Dumbass is laid up in the hospital without insurance, because somewhere along the way white trash decided that riding Harleys without helmets shows you're cool (along with the shaved head, goatee, and 400 lbs girlfriend/wife on the back) costing us, the taxpayers, tens of thousands in medical bills, then yes. It should be a law.

Now if we're not going to pass a helmet law... I'd also be fine with a law saying that anyone involved in a motorcycle crash without a helmet be put down by the arriving officer. Though the cost of the bullet should come out of their estate.

..

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So Bang, do you believe it is our job to protect the stupid from themselves ? Or the job of law enforcement ? Should it be a law ?

I'll admit that I'm not a big fan of society telling people that they can't do something because they might hurt themselves.

OTOH, we went down this road (so to speak) a long time ago. Do we stop requiring seat belts? Do we stop requiring cars to even have seat belts?

Frankly, my (completely uninformed) belief is that the reason cars have air bags is because the insurance industry got tired of paying huge medical bills for people who were too dumb to wear seat belts.

Yes, it's a gradual slope. When does protecting people become government infringement on freedom? I think that most are cool with requiring cars to have air bags. I suspect that most would object to society banning hobbies like hang gliding, cave diving, rock climbing, and so forth.

Are motorcycle helmets too much government power? I don't think so.

But I'll admit, it's just an opinion. I don't think there is a clear, binary, line.

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And I have had an expression, for some time, that I'd be cool with a law that allows bikers to skip the helmet, if the bike has a special sticker on the license plate. And the sticker certifies that "Owner carries $1M medical insurance. (And the insurance company knows that he has this sticker.)"

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As someone that rides...

If you don't wear a helmet while riding you are a damn fool. There are WAY to many idiots on the road to not look out for yourself.

As far as should it be a law? Yes, without a doubt. There are also way to many idiots that ride and think that no helmet is some kind of statement.

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I think seatbelt laws for adults are worst than helmet laws Larry.

I get what you are saying zoony. Although I am perhaps a little less compassionate...no helmet, about to die, no insurance...so sad, bye bye.

Fair enough, but the taxpayer still gets stuck with the bill. Also, how about those people who don't die? You pay the bill for their medical expenses and rehab.

"Disabled/stuck in a coma? No health insurance? Don't worry, Kosher Ham is footing the bill!" :mad:

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Now if we're not going to pass a helmet law... I'd also be fine with a law saying that anyone involved in a motorcycle crash without a helmet be put down by the arriving officer. Though the cost of the bullet should come out of their estate.

..

I would be 100% okay with this. And I think it should go for seatbelts also. We need to start finding ways to thin the herd.:beavisnbutthead:

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So Bang, do you believe it is our job to protect the stupid from themselves ? Or the job of law enforcement ? Should it be a law ?

I'm for not being held liable because a minor traffic accident results in a zillion dollar lawsuit because Harvey Hog wasn't wearing a helmet, and instead of a slight road rash he's a vegetable.

These kinds of laws (seatbelts too) save lives but also protect other drivers from those idiots who would exponentially increase their risks in an accident.

~Bang

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So Bang, do you believe it is our job to protect the stupid from themselves ? Or the job of law enforcement ? Should it be a law ?

I'll tell you what. I've got a nice compromise. Do away the helmet and seatbelt laws. But if you die in a crash, and you're not wearing the appropriate safety device, your family members have to come clean you up.

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I'll tell you what. I've got a nice compromise. Do away the helmet and seatbelt laws. But if you die in a crash, and you're not wearing the appropriate safety device, your family members have to come clean you up.

That sounds reasonable to me.

Bang, why would you be held liable if not at fault ?

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That sounds reasonable to me.

Bang, why would you be held liable if not at fault ?

Because our legal system is not set u to care who's at fault. You have t spend money regardless. Dropping a ton of cash on a lawyer to defend myself from the family of an idiot who refused to protect his head isn't my idea of fair, whether I win or not.

What if there's a rock in the road and my tire hits it and it brains Billy Freebird?

If people don't want to wear helmets, then fine, sing a waiver on the license that leaves no fault for anything that may happen to their head while riding.

~Bang

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