The Glade 4.0

Why not radios? Or speaking to passengers?

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"Dress cops up as soldiers, give them military equipment, train them in military tactics, tell them they’re fighting a ‘war,’ and the consequences are predictable." —Radley Balko

This is the part that lost me. Once the machine is going... it seems to do the work itself. It tends to balance just fine, even when letting go of the handlebars briefly.

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

He's speaking as someone who doesn't ride, notice the arbitrary weight thrown in for effect? My Ducati weighed 200 pounds less than [insert random big number here].

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"Dress cops up as soldiers, give them military equipment, train them in military tactics, tell them they’re fighting a ‘war,’ and the consequences are predictable." —Radley Balko

Actually you don't know if I ride or not Vindicarre. (I don't, but you don't have any way of knowing that) My weight estimate was a fair one for a large motorcycle. If I had wanted to go extreme I would have said 800+.

Furthermore, a motorcycle IS inherently unstable. At rest it will fall over (even if perfectly balanced a strong wind will tip it over) no differently than a bicycle (which I do ride)

You proved you don't ride by virtue of making that statement.

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"Dress cops up as soldiers, give them military equipment, train them in military tactics, tell them they’re fighting a ‘war,’ and the consequences are predictable." —Radley Balko

I'm not sure that helmet laws specify if face shields are required, but I would argue that a helmet with a full face shield wouldn't necessarily prevent a crash after taking a large bug to the face at 75MPH (although I concede it would certainly help).

I'm also trying really hard to conjure up scenarios where people would legally be going 75 with pedestrians nearby.

You could use the same justification to outlaw convertibles, driving with your windows down, and for reducing the maximum speed limit to 25 miles an hour.

Think of " The Children!™ "

Edit: Just to be clear, I'm not advocating riding without a helmet. I won't even ride Motorcycle out of fear I'd kill myself on one, but I'm not in favor of outlawing everything that might be dangerous.

Nope. It's competition is big and heavy though, and you'll be a bug on someone's windshield if you drive one like you drive a car, but it's actually quite stable. I've been up to 165 mph on my '87 VFR700F2 when it was new and I was young and stupid. Like riding on rails.

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In time, this too shall pass.

Any body is unstable if force one direction or another will lower the center of mass of the system yielding a lower PE. Basic physics.
Yes, there are gyroscopic and other forces that do help stabilize the bike, but absent complicated systems that are NOT present in most bikes, in the end a bike is not wholly stable.

I think after... oh, 3 or 4 more posts, you and I will see eye to eye.

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In time, this too shall pass.

I'd be much more worried about serious injury from flying debris. When I'm in my car and stuck behind a dump truck hauling dirt, and can hear the dirt particles it's jettisoning everywhere, I sometimes shudder to think what that would be like on a motorcycle.

I just don't follow them closely...it's not so bad.

Is this an argument for making helmets required by law? Or just a good reason to wear one?

I've long believed that anyone who truly wants to die has the right to kill themselves. I just think Russian Roulette and other risk associated methods is a stupid way to do it. If you want to kill yourself, first seek some counseling, and if that doesn't help, do something assured to be fatal, not these stupid chance games that may just leave you paralyzed and a drain on those you should have left behind.

Why yes, that statement is pertinent to the discussion, if you were wondering.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

It doesn't answer my question about making it required by law though...

Oh, no, I don't think wearing a helmet while operating or being a passenger on a motorcycle should be required by law.

I believe wearing helmets should be encouraged by the licensing agency and pamphlets of gruesome examples of the remains or remnants of once healthy motorcycle riders should be made freely available.

I think that insurance companies should be able to exclude coverage when riders choose not to wear helmets.

I think that hospital emergency rooms should be able to make freely available the organs of any rider's corpse brought in who was not wearing a helmet, whether they have a donor card or not.

However, if someone wishes to play Russian Roulette with their life by riding without a helmet, that should be their right. Just as jumping off a bridge or tall building or shooting themselves in the head or the heart should be their right. I do not believe they have the right to land on anyone or accidentally shoot another person or in anyway damage the person or property of another person while committing suicide and any estate they have should first be distributed to the survivors such a mayhap.

Stupidity should not be outlawed. It might improve humanity through practical application of the survival of the fittest principle.

Does anyone have any questions as to where I stand on not wearing a helmet while riding or what I think of the practice?

I'm of the same mind on the subject of not wearing seat belts, on all points.

Go ahead and kill yourselves, just do your best not to hurt anyone else on the way out.

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The U. S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up with it yourself. B. Franklin

"A mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone." -- Tyrion Lannister, A Game of Thrones

If you really believe that they have the right to ride without a helmet, you need to drop your choice limiters.

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A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. ~ John Stuart Mill

I'm good with all of the above points.

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It needs to be unfettered imho.

If you have the right to ride without a helmet, and insurance companies can drop you for it, and you can't ride without insurance, do you still have the right? So its actually removing choice.

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A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. ~ John Stuart Mill

They just refuse to provide medical payments for you. Liability insurance (the part you are legally required to carry in all but ~5 states) would still be in-tact.

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I could go with that amendment to the situation as stated. That way each party can retain their "rights"

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A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. ~ John Stuart Mill

Most policies already contain a provision to exclude coverage for illegal activities. It typically is not enforced because most insurance companies do try to do what is right for their customers.

http://www.motorcycleinsuranceco.com/46 ... xclusions/

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Timmit is wise.

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Darksiege
Traveller, Calé, Whisperer
Lead me not into temptation; for I know a shortcut

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/07/04/new.yo ... 1&iref=NS1



irony.

I heard about that incident. He died on impact and from an injury that would have killed him helmet or no. Just another example of agenda driven media.

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