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From: rcj@burl.UUCP (Curtis Jackson)
Newsgroups: net.politics,net.legal
Subject: Re: Seat Belts
Message-ID: <783@burl.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 26-Jul-85 14:09:08 EDT
Article-I.D.: burl.783
Posted: Fri Jul 26 14:09:08 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 28-Jul-85 09:27:52 EDT
References: <316@baylor.UUCP>
Reply-To: rcj@burl.UUCP (Curtis Jackson)
Distribution: net
Organization: AT&T Technologies, Burlington NC
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Xref: linus net.politics:9473 net.legal:1533

In article <316@baylor.UUCP> peter@baylor.UUCP (Peter da Silva) writes:
>An alternate solution to heavy seat-belt laws:
>
>Insurance companies stop paying for injuries that would have been prevented
>by wearing a seatbelt......
	.
	.
	.
>Any legal objections? Anybody out there with the pull to support this?

No offense intended, but this is just the kind of thing that makes lawyers
have unassisted orgasms, makes judges commit suicide, makes insurance
company execs give smug little I'll-get-that-extra-Mercedes-this-year-
after-all smiles, and makes your average Joe's wallet look like an
Ethiopian famine victim.

Who is to decide that an accident could have been prevented by wearing a
seatbelt?  If the insurance company doesn't want to pay the injured all
they have to do is start too long, too expensive court battle to wear
the injured, the courts, and the rest of us down.  This area is far too
subjective and nebulous to be put into an arena where it can cause so
much grief.

My solution to seatbelt, helmet, anti-suicide, and other such 'preventative'
laws is simple:  get rid of them.  You're going to tell me that I can't
take a risk that endangers no one but me?  You're going to tell me that
I can't kill myself if I want to?  Rubbish!

By the way, the You in "You're going to tell me...." above is not
directed at Peter, just at legislators in general.

They let people hang-glide and water-ski without helmets, don't they?
-- 

The MAD Programmer -- 919-228-3313 (Cornet 291)
alias: Curtis Jackson	...![ ihnp4 ulysses cbosgd mgnetp ]!burl!rcj
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