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I believe that laws are important and necessary to maintain quality of life and keep us safe. But those laws should be limited to keeping individuals safe from harm by the actions of others. Seatbelt and helmet laws intrude on our individual rights to decide for ourselves what is good and bad. Wearing a seatbelt or helmet in no way guarantees the safety of anyone but the wearer.

One of the big arguments for helmet laws is the financial burden placed on taxpayers as a result of accidents involving non-helmet riders. Number one: we are not a socialist or communist state, and our freedoms should not be hampered by monetary concerns. Secondly, if the state was so concerned with our safety and financial burdens, what about paralysis resulting from crash survivors who did wear a helmet? (On a side note, shouldn't we get to decide for ourselves which injuries we'd rather sustain?). And how come we are required only to wear a helmet? How often do we see fast bikers racing down the road, doing stupid tricks, wearing a helmet, t-shirt, shorts and sandals? Too often. If we are going to regulate our own ability to judge what is safe, why stop at helmets? If we really care, we ought to ban reckless riding practices altogether and find a way to enforce it.

If it's just an issue of money, maybe it would be beneficial if statistics would show the type of injuries sustained as the result of wearing a helmet. I personally feel that wearing a helmet is the smartest thing to do, but I do not like it forced on me. Yes, riders and their families suffer when death occurs as a result of riding helmetless, but people make so many choices that cause suffering, things we do not regulate. How is this any different?

There are really two issues involved here - our personal freedom, and safety. I have already argued that our personal rights should not be infringed because no one else is physically harmed if a rider smashes his brains against the pavement. Safety issues should then be left up to the rider because they are debatable. As safe as a helmet is, it also cuts you off from the world, muting sound and reducing visibility greatly. I had an old Yamaha and I couldn't hear a thing besides the hum of the motor reverberating up through the frame, my body and the helmet. I could not hear sirens unless I was at a stand still when the RPM's were very low. I do feel that the benefits of wearing a helmet outweigh the negative impact to awareness of one's surroundings. But because

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