Even More Government Interference

Content Warning: There's sarcasm in this post. Be warned.

Speaking of the government and seatbelts, here’s a disturbing story. . . .

From the Associated Press on August 16: “New motorcoaches would for the first time be required to have lap-shoulder seat belts under a proposal announced Monday by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.”

What’s the driving force behind that initiative? “‘Seat belts save lives, and putting them in motorcoaches just makes sense,’ LaHood said in a statement.” So it’s safety: “An average of 19 people a year are killed in motorcoach accidents in the U.S.”

19? That’s a lot! We definitely need to do something. . . .

But if you look at the statistics, an important point should be made clear. The writer notes that the motorcoach industry “transports 750 million passengers a year.” So let’s do the math. 19 fatalities out of 750 million. That’s a fatality rate of 0000025% per year (that number seems low to me—is my math right?).

Do you want to know how many people are killed in swimming pool-related incidents per year? Well, from the CDC website, it seems 1.4% of swimmers (in pools only? Does that include lakes? In oceans, too?) drown each year. At least, that’s the best I can figure from the stats I see).

So, 0000025% versus 1.4%.

It’s clear we need to ban swimming, too. or at least make all swimmers weat safety vests. or seatbelts.

And another thing: if it’s so terrible that we need to mandate seatbelts, why are we waiting three years before we start enforcing anything? If we act now we can save, on average, 57 lives between now and then. Don’t we care about those 57 people and their families? Are we so callous?

And yet another thing: why is it the government’s job to fix this?

And another thing: isn't taking a bus (like swimming) ultimately a voluntary act? No one's forcing people onto buses at gunpoint.

I hope you see the skepticism in this post. Of course every death is terrible, and there are 19 families per year who mourn the loss of a loved one. And I can't imagine what it must feel like to face that situation. But does that mean we need to strap every single person into a bus seat? If so, wouldn't it be a good idea to set a “fatality percentage limit,” and regulate every activity that results in fatality rates of 1% or 2% or 3% or 14% or 20%? And I ask that question seriously. Naturally, to do so would be ridiculously difficult, and no one’s going to suggest or implement that sort of regulation.

Liberty versus security. It’s a pretty fair trade. The government needs to get off the bus.