Canadutch
It’s thundering outside with some lightning but I never bother to look at the lightning here because you can’t actually see it. I wish we got really cool fork lightning here that I could take photos of, but we just get the white sky kind.
The closer it gets to summer the more and more irritated I’m getting watching people on their bikes with children. I’ve probably bitched about this before but I can’t help it.
Here in the Netherlands it’s quite safe to bike, I admit. There are bicycle paths everywhere and the Dutch are definitely seasoned bikers… but does that mean they shouldn’t protect their children from the unexpected?
I swiped this photo from somewhere online just doing a random search for ‘moeder met kinderen op fiets’, which means mothers with children on a bicycle and it shows what I see pretty much every day. Moms and dads cruising around on their bicycles with a kid on the front in the handlebar seat and another in the seat on the back. Many of these kids are VERY young, not even a year yet… and yet NONE of them are wearing helmets!!
Do the Dutch just think they are invincible or that their bike riding skills are so fantastic that they’ll just never fall? Hell, ride around for their entire lives without helmets themselves, but childrens heads (especially only months old) are so unbelievably fragile! All it takes is a simple spill from the bike and the children could be seriously injured. Why… WHY is it not the law here for children to wear helmets when they are on bicycles with their parents? I just don’t understand it.
These parents need a good swift kick in the arse, as my dad would say. A good swift kick in the arse indeed!!
Another good one of hers is Harvesting The Heart. Made me BAWL!
While I agree there’s a risk of head injury if there is a bike spill, how often does that happen?
How often are parents with children on the bike with them going so fast that they can’t control the bike if there is an unexpected dip, pothole, or bump in the road?
Yes, the kids should have helmets. Yes, “Once” is too many for a child with a serious head injury. But I would caution you Breigh about leading your country down the same road as the US, where Gov’t acts as the Safety Monitor for the citizens.
Many laws for public safety are needed, but too many and suddenly people aren’t as concerned about personal responsibility. If it’s not against the law then make a law to cover it, add the expense of enforcing it, with minimal gain overall.
I want to be clear that I agree the kids should have helmets, but I would rather educate the parents instead of legislate the helmets.
You neglected to mention that the biking parents are ALSO on the cell phone, and sometimes trying to manage an umbrella, too.
:)
There’s a project for you!
LOL. I am from Asia and the photo makes me nostalgic. I remember when we used to be squashed up in our old motorcycle. It was a much bigger model though. And yes we did get in an accident once without helmets. It was my foot that took the worst beating though since it got all burnt (after getting stuck between the wheels and exhaust). Though it makes me feel nostalgic I wouldn’t allow my little boy to ride without a helmet. My dad has learned the lesson too and my little cousin who rides his relatively newer motorcycle always has a helmet on. We don’t ride squashed up now either. Crazy and dangerous as it is…i miss it.
Yikes, you’re right, those kids should have helmets. Still, it’s the same in Asian countries, with whole families squashed onto a mo-ped. Those kids should be given helmets, and there should be stricter rules about capacity, or at least the current rules (two to a moped, not five!) should be upheld.