The Seatbelt Argument Gets Dirty

The argument of whether citizens of New Hampshire should be free to choose for themselves whether or not to wear a seatbelt is getting down and dirty having already passed the house.  As the debate moves on to the state senate questions have come up on whether or not everything is being done on the up and up.

One of the key reasons people push for this to be made into law is because of the promise of federal money.  If it were to pass we'd get $3.5 million in federal funds, ah but what are the strings that come with all federal dollars?  According to Peter Thompson as quoted in the Union Leader this money could ONLY be spend on "road safety initiatives".  What exactly are road safety initiatives?  Simple, advertisements.  So along with having another liberty stripped from us we'd be forced through federal taxes to pay for commercials in NH reminding us to buckle up.  And this is being pushed as a benefit for passing the law?  Wouldn't it make more sense to get the federal government to stop taxing us in the first place and letting us keep that money in our pockets?

Another incorrect argument is that forcing laws on people telling them to buckle up will lower insurance rates.  A quick search shows that isn't the case.  NH is the only state left without mandatory seatbelt laws, so if forcing people were a factor in insurance costs then clearly we should also be one of the highest rates in the country.  We aren't.  In fact there are only 16 states currently with lower rates then we pay on average.

But money isn't the worst of it.  Now there are emails circulating around implying that groups such as the NHLA actually support this bill when in fact they don't.

An email from State Rep. Sally Kelly stated:

"I appreciate your very respectful letter and ask you to take the time to read the report. As you can see the commission included members of the NH Liberty Alliance along with the ACLU and we did come to a consensus that a mandatory seat belt law along with education is the BEST way to increase usage."

Clearly this is not true.  The NH Liberty Alliance has been VERY vocal about their stance against manditory seat belt laws.  One member of the NHLA wrote the following open letter back to Rep. Kelly.

Rep. Kelly,

I insist that you immediately cease and desist from your misrepresentation of the position of the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance with respect to mandatory seat-belt laws. The following was sent to me by an NHLA member:

Denis -

Thought you might be interested in knowing that Rep. Sally Kelly is inferring that members of the NHLA support this bill.

Taken from an email from her to a friend of mine:

"I appreciate your very respectful letter and ask you to take the time to read the report. As you can see the commission included members of the NH Liberty Alliance along with the ACLU and we did come to a consensus that a mandatory seat belt law along with education is the BEST way to increase usage."


The above quote, if you made it, is in error. The NHLA has acknowledged that a mandatory seat belt law along with education is the MOST EFFECTIVE way to increase use. This is meant in the same sense that making the spitting out of one's gum on the sidewalk a capital offense punishable by death is the MOST EFFECTIVE way to prevent such behavior. It is, however, ABSOLUTELY NOT the "BEST" way.

I trust that you will refrain from making such misrepresentations in the future.

Denis Goddard

When it comes to having to misrepresent the opinions of others to help your cause as Rep Kelly appears to be doing here, then clearly the arguments may not be all that strong in favor of this anti liberty bill.

But Rep Kelly doesn't stop there.  She has an editorial in the Union Leader that also has some interesting points raised within it.

Today, I understand that being a culture of fiercely independent individuals is so much more than merely clinging to old ideas. In New Hampshire, we do a lot of listening and thinking. A recent University of New Hampshire study found that 64 percent of New Hampshire voters support a mandatory seat belt law today.

So majority rules is the way to go?  The majority of this state object to children being allowed to get abortions without their parents knowing anything about it but that didn't stop our state government from putting that into law.  The majority object to the high levels of spending we're seeing in Concord yet we don't see programs and spending being cut.

Majority is something people like Rep Kelly toss in our faces when its beneficial to get their way forced on those who oppose it and then they ignore when they are "acting the best interest of the state" in other cases.

Another interesting quote in Rep Kelly's editorial is the following:

Our current safety strategy of using only education has resulted in our current average of 69 percent usage as compared to the national average of 83 percent.

The above statement alone may not be all that interesting by and of itself but when you consider that NH is the only state in the country without mandatory seatbelt laws that 83% looks a little more interesting.  Even when FORCED by government laws people still opt not to wear their seatbelts.  Government has turned 17% of the population of this country into criminals by stripping them of a liberty.

Remember, bad laws turn good people into criminals!