Posted on 07/19/2011 6:42:54 PM PDT by skeptoid
North Dakota's Senate majority leader, Bob Stenehjem, was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the sport utility vehicle he was driving when he was killed in an Alaskan highway crash, authorities said Tuesday.
(Excerpt) Read more at grandforksherald.com ...
Violators of North Dakota's seat-belt law may be ticketed only if police first pull over the motorist for a separate offense. As a state senator, Bob Stenehjem opposed proposals to make North Dakota's seat-belt law into a primary enforcement law, and friends said he personally disliked wearing a seat belt.
... . . . . .
So sorry to hear this. God hold his family.
Prayers up for the family, and for the healing of all injured.
Sad, but no one is above the law of physics, not even politicians.
He made his choice, and he chose poorly. Even though I’m opposed to seat belt laws, I never drive without a belt.
I don't understand people that don't wear seatbelts. Back in the bad old days they really did suck, and didn't work well. Today's units are well designed and I would no more get in a car without strapping in, than I would getting in a light aerobatic aircraft without a 4 or 5 point harness.
/johnny
Well, ya makes yer choices and ya take yer chances. I too hate seatbelt laws, but I wear one religiously, especially on the highway.
There’s a pretty good argument that in the city, seatbelts are actually harmful. Seatbelts are there to prevent ~ejection~ from the vehicle in high speed crashes. At lower city-speeds the more likely thing is an intersection T-bone crash, and the seatbelt will likely be what kills you.
Prayers for the family.
But I ususlly unbuckle in town (under @ 30 mph).
I am reconsidering that policy as I type.
Heh. See my post above... I guess we’ve both had the same thought.
Today we had a head on accident in our neighborhood. It is a busy two lane street in a residential area..35mph. Don’t know the outcome, but judging by the police response..it may have been fatal. No seatbelt would have made it worse..I buckle up.
Hard to say, but possibly. In full disclosure... I buckle up instinctively too, and always. But it does remain that in a t-bone sort of crash a seatbelt is a killer. It's a crapshoot. You rolls yer dice and takes yer chances. I wear a seatbelt and I look both ways in intersections. :-)
Bull.
Years ago, my mother was t-boned by a mounted crane truck that ran a traffic light. Her mid-sized car was absolutely demolished.
She had a cracked sternum from the three-point seat belt but was otherwise right as rain. If she hadn't had a radical mastectomy, she may not even had the broken sternum.
Back in the day I worked as a forensic photographer. Here is what I learned: Human beings are fragile, and going through a windshield at 30 will kill you just as dead as it will at 70. Let me give you a piece of advice: Wear your seat-belt. You may spare your mother, father, sons, daughters, wife, husband, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, and coworkers a lifetime of grief...
OK. I said “likely” not “always”. I’m glad she survived it. I would also submit that it probably wasn’t the seatbelt that saved her. But we don’t need to argue about that.
Was your mom hit on the driver’s side or the passenger side? I should have been a little more specific: the seatbelt is more of a liability to the driver, in a driver-side t-bone. Or likewise to the passenger on that side. Without the seatbelt, a driver in a driver-side t-bone can be pushed into the passenger seat (with or without a passenger already there). They’ll be hurt, but will likely survive. They’ll be hurt, for sure, but in many cases a seatbelt would have killed them.
I’m not arguing against seatbelts, per se. I’ve already said that I wear one all the time. But it’s important to understand that they aren’t always the right answer for every situation.
Please buckle up. In a low speed crash your lower torso will move into the steering wheel at the same speed you are traveling. Your lower intestines may be ruptured. Not good!
The fastest you ever ran in high school was about 15 miles an hour. Energy goes as the square of velocity which means that at 30 MPH you have 4X more energy available for damage. Now imagine running as fast as you ever ran straight at a brick wall face first. Now multiply that by four. That’s what a 30 MPH crash feels like. A 60 MPH crash is 16x worse.
state senator, Bob Stenehjem opposed proposals to make North Dakota's seat-belt law into a primary enforcement law, and friends said he personally disliked wearing a seat belt.
___________________________________________________________
That pretty much puts this guys argument to bed...
What a fool. Even rides moving at 20mph at Disneyland have seat restraints.
I too am fully in favor of North Dakotas current seat belt law. Making it a primary offense just gives police another reason to hassle innocent people.
All 3 occupants were ejected...Great job...
It's got to suck getting blasted right out the window or door...
When this happens, many times your arms or legs are ripped off going out the doors or windows, sometimes it rips the head off the occupants when they get ejected...After that, often, other vehicles not being able to stop, run the ejected bodies over multiple times.
There have been many cases where the unrestrained get ejected straight out the sun roof...
Ejected guy was not driving in North Dakota when he died.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.