New WA state law: kids stay in booster seats till over 5'0 or 16 yrs old

[seiferguy]

http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/...a1seats001.cfm

Thousands of Washington children will be forced back into car and booster seats next month when a change to state law takes effect.

On June 1, children will have to stay in the safety seats until they are at least 8 years old and 4 feet, 9 inches tall.

Violators face a $112 ticket.

Another change requires children younger than 13 to ride in the back seat whenever possible. They're allowed to ride in the front only if the vehicle has no lap-and-shoulder belts in the back seat.

Girl on the left is 8, and girl on the right is 10. They're in booster seats now.

I saw this and thought "What the hell?" Is this really needed? How is putting them in a booster seat really going to help?

Maybe I'm not understanding this because I'm a parent, but god damn, that has to be embarrassing for kids.

Motor vehicle crashes are the single largest killer for children between the ages of 4 and 8, according to the Washington State Booster Seat Coalition.

Booster seats reduce a child's risk of injury by 59 percent, according to coalition data.

Is this actually true? Or is this just the booster seat coalition pushing to get more sales for their product? I mean, holy shit, this has got to be the weirdest law ever.

[Junkie Mod]

[Straw Man]

Not to suggest it's all the same, but when I was a tiny toddler, all the kids whose parents forced them to wear helmets when riding a bike were the subject of ridicule. Funny thing, these days you rarely see anyone without one.

[Komataguri]

Originally Posted by RuHo

Not to suggest it's all the same, but when I was a tiny toddler, all the kids whose parents forced them to wear helmets when riding a bike were the subject of ridicule. Funny thing, these days you rarely see anyone without one.

I never see anyone wearing a helmet.

[Straw Man]

Originally Posted by Komataguri

I never see anyone wearing a helmet.

Around here, other than teenagers and older people, I guess it's more used here. Then again it's the law (but that law isn't really all that enforced and you really don't get sanctioned for it). Still, you don't get really ridiculed if you do wear one.

What I guess I'm trying to say is helmets, seatbelts, condoms and such are kind of considered stupid from the get-go, but eventually it might not be such a ridiculous idea. Not to suggest this about these damn seats, I wouldn't know of their real usefulness towards accidents, but for helmets I can understand that. I'd estimate you have much better chances of keeping your brain inside your skull if you pad it with something before you smash it into the pavement with velocity from 1.5 feet

[Komataguri]

Originally Posted by RuHo

Around here, other than teenagers and older people, I guess it's more used here. Then again it's the law (but that law isn't really all that enforced and you really don't get sanctioned for it). Still, you don't get really ridiculed if you do wear one.

What I guess I'm trying to say is helmets, seatbelts, condoms and such are kind of considered stupid from the get-go, but eventually it might not be such a ridiculous idea. Not to suggest this about these damn seats, I wouldn't know of their real usefulness towards accidents, but for helmets I can understand that. I'd estimate you have much better chances of keeping your brain inside your skull if you pad it with something before you smash it into the pavement with velocity from 1.5 feet

I fell off a bike doing 20mph downhill, I wasn't wearing a helmet, I skidded like 10 feet on my forhead before the rest of my body made contact with the ground.


and I'm ferpectly pine today.

[möbiustrip]

you have to be kidding.

Originally Posted by http://depts.washington.edu/booster/about_us.html

The Booster Seat Coalition is comprised of healthcare professionals, childcare providers and educators, traffic safety experts, advocates from government agencies, and private interests in Washington State.

You aren't kidding.

Maybe if they write enough $112 tickets they can stop hosting on the U Wash servers? Do not miss the Spanish language PSA's.

[Trachei]

You can tell the law is made by private interests for one reason. They associate age and height into the law. If my 7 year old is 6 feet tall then why the fuck does he need a booster seat? There should be no link between age and height in the law, only that a child under a certain height be required to have a booster seat or an apparatus that makes the seat belt in a safer position for the child.

[2slow]

Yeah well, someone I used to know had to dodge getting doored at maybe 13-15 mph, but she went down, hit her head on a curb and now she's dead.

You lucked out.

Originally Posted by Komataguri

I fell off a bike doing 20mph downhill, I wasn't wearing a helmet, I skidded like 10 feet on my forhead before the rest of my body made contact with the ground.


and I'm ferpectly pine today.

[seiferguy]

Originally Posted by möbiustrip

you have to be kidding.

You aren't kidding.

Maybe if they write enough $112 tickets they can stop hosting on the U Wash servers? Do not miss the Spanish language PSA's.

I couldn't believe it myself. It's absolutely insane. I'd really like to see an independent study and not some "booster seat" committee telling me how dangerous it is for kids not to be in these seats.

[Trachei]

Originally Posted by Whatsisname

Yeah well, someone I used to know had to dodge getting doored at maybe 13-15 mph, but she went down, hit her head on a curb and now she's dead.

You lucked out.

I think the OP was being sarcastic, read the last line.

[möbiustrip]

Originally Posted by Whatsisname

Yeah well, someone I used to know had to dodge getting doored at maybe 13-15 mph, but she went down, hit her head on a curb and now she's dead.

Popular first rule of bicycle safety: wear a helmet.

Actual first rule of bicycle safety: STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM CARS.

Seriously, let's think about this. You're on a stick with wheels. You have the right of way. Cars have the conservation of momentum. Guess which law wins.

[Komataguri]

Originally Posted by möbiustrip

Popular first rule of bicycle safety: wear a helmet.

Actual first rule of bicycle safety: STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM CARS.

Seriously, let's think about this. You're on a stick with wheels. You have the right of way. Cars have the conservation of momentum. Guess which law wins.

My head?

[Trachei]

Originally Posted by möbiustrip

Popular first rule of bicycle safety: wear a helmet.

Actual first rule of bicycle safety: STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM CARS.

Seriously, let's think about this. You're on a stick with wheels. You have the right of way. Cars have the conservation of momentum. Guess which law wins.

No, first rule of bicycle safety is a helmet. When you ride on the road you ride with traffic, how the fuck do you avoid a car coming at you from behind when you can't see it. You may say, stay in your line, your right, they have bicycle lanes, but there a billion more idiots on the road than bicyclists.

[möbiustrip]

Originally Posted by Trachei

No, first rule of bicycle safety is a helmet. When you ride on the road you ride with traffic, how the fuck do you avoid a car coming at you from behind when you can't see it. You may say, stay in your line, your right, they have bicycle lanes, but there a billion more idiots on the road than bicyclists.

yeah, you missed the point, I'm saying stay the fuck off the road. it's where the cars are.

Rule #2, wear a helmet, lessens the chance of brain damage should your head suddenly impact a dense material.

Rule #1, STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM CARS, lessens the chance this impact occurs.

edit 17: it's like the first rule of not getting your leg bitten off by a shark...here's a hint, it isn't "wear chainmail pants"