No helmet

[Smokin Joe]

What has traffic got to do with it? A crash is a crash, FFS.

You have every right to your opinion, but none to try and force others to do the same as you. And how ever you try to twist the meaning of your original statement, compulsion is what you want.

 

[piedwagtail91]

I concluded that I am not a special case and if I believe a helmet is a good idea for my head, then I must believe it is a good idea for everyone else's.

my medication keeps me well but i don't for one minute expect everyone else to take it, or to support any future government plans for everyone to do so.

your helmet , in theory, keeps you safe so why kick up such a fuss to have the government make everyone wear them.

thankfully we are still allowed to make some decisions for ourselves in this nanny state country .lets keep it that way.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I think I have decided to continue wearing one here in the land of chavs, oiks & white van man. However in Germany i won't bother because it will be hot, a hassle to carry when off my head and the traffic off the autobahns is more civilised (20kph speed limit in most villages).
I dont think they should be compulsory, except perhaps for young tots learning, however clearly it is safer to be with rather than without.

 

[davidwalton]

Bizarre. I have no wish to 'defeat' you.

I don't want to change your mind about the effectiveness of cycle helmets either.

I just want others to be able to make their own mind up and be legally forced into wearing helmets.

With all the rubbish around with both camps (reports, counter reports), it is going to require government action if they believe as I do. At that time, they have my support.

I HAVE THAT RIGHT!!! What I hear here is that I don't. I am wrong because I am new to cycling, am wrong because I haven't got facts and figures in my back pocket, and I am wrong because you want me to be.

 

[Jaded]

Extraordinary.

If you speak a bit louder and a bit slower david, we might be able to understand you.

 

[davidwalton]

my medication keeps me well but i don't for one minute expect everyone else to take it, or to support any future government plans for everyone to do so.

your helmet , in theory, keeps you safe so why kick up such a fuss to have the government make everyone wear them.

thankfully we are still allowed to make some decisions for ourselves in this nanny state country .lets keep it that way.

I would agree if there wasn't hardliners making reports to confuse and dilute the issues.

All I did to start this was to state that I would support compulsion. Some here believe I don't have that right.

 

[davidwalton]

Extraordinary.

If you speak a bit louder and a bit slower david, we might be able to understand you.

I was always clear.

 

[Jaded]

I was always clear.

You are like an Englishman in a foreign country. You make no attempt to understand what these foreigners are saying. Hence my suggestion that you SHOUT and talk V E R Y S L O W L Y.

That's the way to deal with people who WON'T understand you!

 

[davidwalton]

You are like an Englishman in a foreign country. You make no attempt to understand what these foreigners are saying. Hence my suggestion that you SHOUT and talk V E R Y S L O W L Y.

That's the way to deal with people who WON'T understand you!

thanks for the insult

 

[Jaded]

That's OK. At least you understood that bit.

 

[davidwalton]

That's OK. At least you understood that bit.

Yes, fully = you are nasty and I have no right to view an opinion you don't like.

 

[Smokin Joe]

Yes, fully = you are nasty and I have no right to view an opinion you don't like.

It is not your opinion people object to. It is when you want to impose your views on other people that stirs the emotions. Nobody has ever suggested helmets should not be allowed, as long as we remain free to decide for ourselves whether to wear one or not. Freedom of choice works in your favour as much as in everyone elses, so live and let live.

 

[vbc]

Last May, I had a cycle accident which resulted in severe head injury. Fractured skull, double haemoatoma in my head which needed urgent surgery, over 2 weeks in a coma, 8 weeks in hospital, over six months off work (still on reduced hours) and I was classed a fast rack recoverer for the severity of my injury.

I wasn't wearing a helmet although i usually do, especially when commuting to work here in Bristol, as I have for about 16 years. However, as I was out for a leisure ride in the countryside north of here, I decided not to wear a helmet. No great recollection of the accident but there was no vehicle involved and I believe that I lost control on a dodgy country lane, became airborne and flew along for about 10 - 15 feet before landing on my left side.

Since my accident I have been reading about cycle injuries and fatalities and it is obvious that a fatal accident is sometimes just a minor/low speed collision or fall and in circumstances like these, wearing a helmet would probably be a life saver.

Would a helmet have mitigated the severity of my injuries? Well it would have made no difference with the broken shoulder, ribs and collapsed lung. Would it have prevented the head injury or made it less severe? I don't know although the consultant thought that the skull fracture may not have been so severe or may have been avoided completely. The impact would still have resulted in some degree of brain damage.

So, should helmets be compulsory? Maybe for kids but not for adults, how would any form of compulsion be enforced anyway, the police can't even stop motorists speeding or using mobile 'phones while driving and there are other more pressing safety issues to address. But let's not pretend that helmets are nothing more than fashion accesorries.

Do I always wear a helmet now while cycling? Yes. My choice.

 

[piedwagtail91]

thats the bit about helmets i don't understand,this may be a silly question but whilst they may lessen the visible external injuries what about the possible damage from the brain getting thrown around inside the skull?surely when your head hits the ground the brain keeps moving as in shaken baby syndrome?
what do helmets do to lessen that?

 

[davidwalton]

It is not your opinion people object to. It is when you want to impose your views on other people that stirs the emotions. Nobody has ever suggested helmets should not be allowed, as long as we remain free to decide for ourselves whether to wear one or not. Freedom of choice works in your favour as much as in everyone elses, so live and let live.

People ARE objecting to me holding the opinion of supporting government action to bring about compulsory cycle helmets. That is exactly what this has been about, the fact that I would support helmet law. In their view, I have no right to such a view.

At no time have I stated I would ever impose anything. I am just told I am by you and others here. You and others have read things I have not written.

I have repeatedly stated that I am not imposing anything. It falls on deaf ears because that isn't relevant. What is is that I dare to believe something others don't agree with. I must therefore be imposing

I repeat myself when it is obvious I am going to be misquoted, or when I don't make something clear every other post it is twisted to be something different. Just like the sentence:-

'I would support government action to bring about compulsory cycle helmets'

becomes that I am imposing my view. HOW????? You have a right to your opinion, but here I am told I don't because you and others happily change what I write.

Difficult to argue over things I don't write, or even support them. I do not hold the view that I should impose anything, just that given what I have read on cycle helmets leads me to the belief that I would support government action to bring about compulsory cycle helmets. A Government action that is likely given the way both camps are confusing the issues with reports and counter reports, and all supported by experts. In the end, it WILL require Government direction to end it all, just like it was ended with MotorCyclists.