put on your damn seat belt

“i was working with my dad this morning and saw a nasty accident. we watched a lady die. she passed us up putting on her makeup and started swerving out of the left lane. she overcompensated right and ran into the bridge. the impact busted her door out enough that her head got caught between the bent door and the roof of the car. the car flew at least 15 ft in the air leaving the top half of the lady's head lying on the middle of the highway and the rest hanging off her neck by nothing more than skin. i ran up to see if she was still alive while my dad started throwing every tool he owns my way. we were gonna try to cut her out but we were afraid it would make her head fall off. there was another guy who pulled off to help us but he ended up just puking all over the place. after about 6 hrs.(probly 3 minutes a cop pulled up and looked like he wanted to puke too. the lady kept mouthing it hurts, it hurts. when the ambulance got there they said she was already dead. at this point i had been standing there with a battery powered sawzall in my hand for like 20 minutes feeling completely stupid for not knowing what to do. they said it was just nerves making her try to talk, she was probably saying it hurts before she died. that's too weird, freaky actually. i went to emt school last summer and they never told me anything like that. but then again in a case like that we were taught to call someone more qualified.
so, in conclusion, wear your damn seat belt.”

“I agree. Wear the eat belt. My mother was killed in a collision 22 years ago. If she had been wearing a seat belt she would likely be here today.”

“Dude. That freaks me out completely. Would wearing her seatbelt have mattered?

The lesson is: pay attention to the road. At least she didn't take you guys out with her. Those are the drivers that REALLY suck.”

“Wow that is just nutz!

8o”

“Seat belt might have helped, but if she put down her make-up and others put down their phones, it would be less riskier. Using a phone while driving is about as risky as being drunk while driving.”

“i don't know if her seat belt would have done anything. id have to think it would have given her a better chance. i don't know. it's worth it to just wear it i think. i think most would agree. oh yea don't do your makeup in the car either.
talk about nasty. im pretty ok with it, not too shook up. my dad, on the other hand.....”

“Wow.

Things like that stick with you for a long time. Kudos to you and your dad for trying to help.”

“".. if she put down her make-up and others put down their phones...

a phone while driving is about as risky as being drunk while driving...

AMEN, brother ben.”

“Why ? A person wearing a seat belt, or not, makes absolutely no difference in driving ability. It does not prevent wrecks from occuring in the first place. I feel the whole "buckle up, its the law" is bull#&%!$. Stay out of my life. Not wearing a seatbelt affects only that person not buckling up. If you are responsible for another (such as a child), buckle 'em up as their choice has been put on you. But if an adult does not fasten in & suffers consequences for it that is their business. And their familys. But it is no one elses damn business. Not the "organized" institutions such as law enforcement, insurance, etc. I would be very sad to have to deal w/ a loved ones death because they did not buckle up, but I am no bleeding heart whiner who thinks I (or my loved ones) will live forever. This is a temporary shell I am forced to inhabit, & contrary to popular fear, life does not end, it merely changes form. My personal belief anyway. Either way, dead & gone, just dust in the wind, or on to other things, death is nothing to fear. My fear is not living the fullest, most satisfying life I can while I am here.”

“Josh, what an awful thing to witness. Sorry to hear about that.”

“OKie just make sure you die quickly in the accident when you aren't wearing your seat belt. It's your freedom to live dangerously only if it's our freedom to not be liable for your hopital bills when you run out of money and are a drooling vegetable.”

“JOSH - Seeing that would freak me out. What a tragedy.

Makes me appreciate my family and feel bad for hers.

I alway wear my belt as does the rest of my family.

Backpackin doesn't seem so risky now does it?”

“are you trying to start a fight OKie? get a life”

“Knee jerk emotionalism, response of least thought.

Freedom to live dangerously ? Like going out on the trail ? Or like climbing a mountain ? Or smoking tobacco ? Or unhealthy eating habits ? Damn those fools for uping my premiums !

It's your freedom to live dangerously only if it's our freedom to not be liable for your hopital bills when you run out of money and are a drooling vegetable. Did you smokers and hikers and unhealthy eaters hear that ? Well said Dunadan, well said.”

“I agree with Dunadan, and who is this one post wonder named Okie? It frequently costs upwards of a million dollars to put your face back on you after you have allowed the windshield to slice it off. Wear the seatbelt already!”

“That's a bit like saying killing the ant colony in your backyard gives you the right to open fire with a machine gun in a crowded mall, Okie... Your own ignorance is bliss, I suppose.”

“"It frequently costs upwards of a million dollars to put your face back on you after you have allowed the windshield to slice it off." And what does that have to do w/ anyone other than the faceless and their famly ? If the cost to others by not buckling up is the point, how many of you are smokers, or overweight, or HIKE or CLIMB or CANOE or”

“"It frequently costs upwards of a million dollars to put your face back on you after you have allowed the windshield to slice it off." And what does that have to do w/ anyone other than the faceless and their famly ? If the cost to others by not buckling up is the point, how many of you are smokers, or overweight, or HIKE or CLIMB or CANOE or”

“"It frequently costs upwards of a million dollars to put your face back on you after you have allowed the windshield to slice it off." And what does that have to do w/ anyone other than the faceless and their famly ? If the cost to others by not buckling up is the point, how many of you are smokers, or overweight, or HIKE or CLIMB or CANOE or”

“I firmly believe in wearing seatbelts. 20 plus years in the fire rescue service has shown me that it is foolhardy to not buckle up.”

“any other higher risk activity ? Stay at home already ! Don't you know the possibilty of you having an accident troubles me deeply ? I have always felt individual choice when the choice impacts only the individual making the choice and THEIR family is entirely up to the individual.

If my initail post had the feel of an "attack" on anybody that was not my intent. I do not know Josh personally and applaud him for his concern for the unfortunate individual. But wearing a seatbelt is not going to eliminate the risk of an accident occuring. Not powdering the nose while driving, on the othre hand, can. Sorry my opinions hurt the in crowd's feelings. They were not personally directed as it is obvious they were taken that way.

My life has enough to keep me occupied w/out trying to "protect" everyone else from theirself by projecting my beliefs into their life & way of thinking.”

“Seat belts (especially in combination with air bags) save lives in the long run, although you can point to specific incidents that support anything you choose to believe.

When I was in college I came upon an accident (glancing head on collision) that had just happened on Highway 395. A toddler was sitting in the front seat without a belt and died instantly when he hit the dash. He may have lived with a proper seat system. His father walked away and his mother broke her legs up. It was tragic.”

“I do buckle up, as well as buckle up my son, every time into the car. Other peoples preferred risky behavior of choice is their business, NOT mine.

Now its out for a weeks worth of travelling. If we have a wreck, I will try to die quickly.”

“Just want ya'll to know i'm not Okie...I wear my seatbelt when i move parking spots even. Airbags hurt like a MF..but i like them too!”

“ok i change my original statement. wear your seat belt if you and your family decide it's best for you.but if you hike don't bother cause that's way more dangerous.”

“I saw a guy get killed 21 years ago and I can remember it like was yesterday. I was working on a big construction job. I was on the ground floor getting ready to start pouring concrete pads for machinery. There was this huge BOOM at the top of the building and this guy fell 4 or 5 stories down the elevator shaft. He was dead when he hit the ground. We soon found out the guy was an iron worker setting steel up there and lightning hit the crane lifting the steel. He hit the ground 50 or 60 feet from where I was working. The worst part was that his brother was there when it happened. I'll never forget that as long as I live.”

“One of my drivers had a short lapse of judgement and when he looked back to where he was heading struck a disabled car tearing it into 3 pieces, took out 150 feet of guard rail, and competely destroying a $100,000 70,000 lbs dump truck. He walked away because he was belted in. The driver of the disabled car was in shock when she got back to her car. Had she stayed in her car, and not hike out for for assistance she certainly would have died. And yes the idiot is still on the payroll until the the courts sentence him. If he gets probation before judgement he will stay on the payroll. What a system.”

“Look anything that can make it so you can have a better chance at living is a ok in my book!

I have mine all the time.

8)”

“I wear mine. What I don't like is that if you are seen not wearing it, it becomes an open invitation for a pull over from any dickheaded cop. I know a person who was citied for improper restraint. The lap belt was lock in around the waist but the shoulder strap was not.

I wonder if the goverment will ever require auto makers to govern the engines. I mean they set the speed limited to 65- 70 mph on the highways, why not force the car makers to make cars that don't exceed that.”

“Because some people don't wear seat belts my car insurance goes up, even though I haven't had a citation or accident in nearly 30 years of driving. So I have a self-interest in others wearing their seat belts.”

“"who is this one post wonder named Okie?"

LyndyS: A compliment? *blush* I am flattered!

OKie: That's why we have the best board anywhere around. You are free to post your opinion, and we are free to argue with you.

About a week ago, I totaled my truck. I was coming off an exit ramp and the van in front of me through driving dangerously, and my ignorance -- I managed to rear end him.

My point? Without my seatbelt, TownDawg would be dead right now.”

“Hey Okie, do you tie up your food in a bear bag? Hmmmmmm? See what I'm getting at?”

“Dang TD, it's been rough all around for you lately huh?”

“The belief that man is an island is a false one. Everything you do affects others to some degree.”

“HPM: God is teaching me a lesson.”

“TownDawg = Job?

(think biblical y'all)”

“Josh - thank you for the sobering reminder - and the chance to learn from others.

So eerie and sad.”

“Trust me, Jabez's name has been thrown around a lot too.”

“I'm sure.

Ah well, I gotta get some sleep.”

“Awesome trip report, thanks.”

“Hey Towndawg, see the "Scary Happenings" thread.



OKie, DON'T wear a seatbelt, okay?”

“Josh, that is way upsetting. Hope you and your dad are coping w/ witnessing it okay.”

“I am very glad you had your seat belt on TD!!!!

8)”

“Tilt, CM: ya it was so weird, never even had time to hit my brakes, and yet -- it didn't hurt.

My reaction was more like oh crap, rather than oh I hurt. I got out of my car, and looked at all the damage, and basically said oh well.”

“i drive about 70,000 miles a year for work & am very good at wearing my belt. I know the odds are way higher for me than most people, just because i'm out there more. we recent;y had a tragic accident, near ft smith ar, on the I-40 bridge. I'm sure you all heard about the barge hitting the bridge & around a dozen vehicles goin off before they all gopt stopped. that really freaked me out. i (used to) go over that very bridge several times a week. it could have just as easily been me that was there at the wrong time.


Say your prayers, you never know.”

“Measure your days folks. They are few.

Thanks for posting that, Josh. Hope you're adjusting okay. My hats off to you for trying to help.”

“I think that lady deserves the Darwin Award. Luckily she didn't take out some other people with her reckless driving.

Josh, sorry you and your dad had to witness that.”

“I wear the belt on the highway, but am not good about wearing it around town.

Last weekend, driving to Mammoth, I was feeling tired and "woke up" while driving. I pulled over at the next dirt road and slept for a few hours. When we got back on the highway, we saw flashing lights ahead. A car missed the curve in the road and had gone off into the brush, and it looked like a body was wrapped up on top of the car. I told SnowDude "That could have been us!"

My truck is 3 years old and has 91K miles. SnowDudes is 4 y/o and has 97K. Almost all freeway miles.”

“I'm glad that you and your dad are ok Josh. I know that had to be a terrifying moment. It is a scary and disguisting thing to see body parts separted from the body. Especially someone decapitated. I live in an apartment complex and back behind my complex there are train tracks. One day I came home and heard that someone had been run over by the train. Out of curiousity, some say stupidity, I went back there to see what was going on. I arrived just as the CSI started investigating and putting body parts into the body back. I watched them pick up just a leg with a boot on it and throw it in the bag. I dont think there was one limb attached to the body or the head. It was a very sad and disguisting thing to witness. And by the way for those of you who are wondering why the guy was on the tracks, it was said that he was just laid across them trying to commit suicide. The train conductor, an Amtrack train carrying passengergs, saw him and tried to stop but was not able to stop fast enough. This is one memory from college that I will never forget.”

“wow.. its late.. excuse all the typos in that post.”