JT> There is no reliable and inexpensive protection availible to
 JT> protect bicyclists against traumatic amputation.  There *IS*
 JT> reliable and inexpensive protection for serious head injuries:
Incorrect. Most serious head injuries are either facial, or related to the 
neck. Helmets do not protect those areas, only those areas which are already 
quite protected with stuff called "bone."
In addition, helmets can (certainly for me) increase chance of accidents, 
increase fatigue, decrease hearing and vision. No, I am not telling lies 
here. My ability to check traffic behind me is hampered by the helmet, 
especially in rain, where I find that I have to wear raingear *under* the 
helmet, forming a tight mass of fabric around my ears. Can't hear a freaking 
thing anymore.
 JT> You like to present helmet use as an "individual choice" issue. 
 JT> I think only a selfish person can ignore the social cost of treating
 JT> and rehabilitating head injuries and the financial and emotional
 JT> cost families and friends bear when they have to accommodate their
 JT> loved one's new "individual choice."
Fine. So if I get a migraine headache, and am unable to function properly - 
all due to the fact that my head is too (#&*# &*&$( hot, whose going to 
compensate me for lost hours of work, lost hours of leisure, not to mention 
agony, pain, suffering?  My chance of getting a debilitating migraine is very 
good if I am cycling anything more than an hour in heat, unless I drink 
wadloads of water, and drench my head regularly.... even then....  Part of 
this is due to the fact that I have to wear sunglasses in bright light, and 
the stupid straps force the sides into my head. Of course, I wear the straps 
loose, but then the (*&#*#& helmet wobbles around causing even more problems. 
So its either wobble, and be a safety hazard while baking - or not wobble, 
get a migraine, and be a safety hazard while baking.
Its hard to concentrate when you're sweating like hell at 30 Celcius, you 
have sweat running in your face and eyes.... and one is thus more likely to 
have an accident because of a mental goofup.
Next, I expect our government to outlaw walking, because pedestrians are 
getting hit by vehicles breaking the law and failing to yield. Sorry, cars 
should be banned before helmets mandated. Without cars, the incidence of 
cycling injuries would plummet.
Oh, and by the way, I do wear a seatbelt when I drive, and demand all 
passengers do the same. I'm not one to ignore statistics. I just don't get 
fooled by them, and lobby groups from helmet companies looking to push laws 
through that will make them rich.
--- Maximus/2 3.01
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