by Patrick Sills

Created on: August 28, 2009   Last Updated: January 31, 2012

Laws that force drivers and/or passengers to wear seatbelts invade an individual's right to privacy. While there is no question that seat belt use has saved lives, it should nevertheless be up to each person whether or not to buckle up.

In most states, failure to comply with seat belt laws results in a written citation when a police officer pulls somebody over for a different violation, such as having a headlight out, speeding, or even a noisy muffler. However, in Wisconsin, legislation has been passed that allows law enforcement to stop drivers who are merely seen unbuckled!  People can also be checked for compliance at random! The driver will be ticketed for each person not wearing a seatbelt. This is frighteningly similar to some World War II B movie in which a carload of people are stopped at a border checkpoint by gun-wielding Nazis: "Papers, please?"

What's next? Forcing everybody in smog-filled metropolitan areas to wear gas masks every time they venture outdoors?

It's one thing to secure yourself before venturing out on icy or snowy roads; for this would be a situation where the likelihood of an accident is greatly increased. On the other hand, it's quite silly and pointless to buckle up if you plan on going around the corner on the next block to pick up a carton of milk at your local convenient store. You'll probably spend more time inside the store than you will in your car!

The argument for buckling up each and every time, of course, is that the majority of accidents allegedly occur within five miles of someone's home. Has this ever been proved?

Barring single-car mishaps, one can assume that most accidents will involve at least two people. What are the chances that both of the parties involved are actually five miles or less from their home? Even if this were the case and it could be substantiated, being such a short distance from one's dwelling would suggest that in most settings, they would be operating a vehicle on city or residential streets and therefore driving at about 30 mph at most.

Certainly some damage can be done by striking a solid object at that velocity, but driving at 60 or 70 mph down the highway would greatly increase one's odds of being seriously injured or killed. Thus, it makes sense to wear seatbelts while traveling down the highway or Interstate. Even then, it should still remain both a driver's and passenger's choice.

Police who patrol our nation's highways and streets need to focus their attention on drivers who pose a real threat to other motorists and themselves as well, such as those who are intoxicated, strung out on drugs, and /or operate their vehicles unsafely or in a reckless manner.

Here is a fact that most people are unaware of:

It takes approximately 50 years of driving before your odds of being killed in a traffic accident become 1 in 100. If you feel that this is still too high a risk factor, then by all means go ahead and buckle up. That is your choice.

As for the rest willing to take their chances on being one of the 99 people who won't die, leave them alone.

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