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Politics, Religion and Guns
Blatherings From The Editor Now there’s a collection of thought provoking and potentially deadly subjects. No matter which party, religion or brand of firearm you know is “The Best”, somebody out there is going to disagree, possibly violently, with your obviously correct and righteous position. I learned my lesson recently - they don’t mix well on a BMW Motorcycle web site either. No problem, there’s plenty of passionate and controversial motorcycle related subjects out there we can talk about. For example... Because I choose to ride with a helmet all the time, I’ve never really followed the helmet law debate. Actually, I had to look up the helmet laws to find out what Arizona’s stance is on the issue: “An operator or passenger of a motorcycle or motor driven cycle who is under eighteen years of age shall wear at all times a protective helmet on the operator's or passenger's head in an appropriate manner that is safely secured while operating or riding on the motorcycle or motor driven cycle…” Turns out for the rider who prefers to ride without a helmet, Arizona is a helmet law friendly state. Other states require a helmet for all riders of all ages; and others have no requirement to wear a helmet at all. Each state has the prerogative to set their own laws, usually brought on by local citizen concerns and campaigning. Back when the helmet law debate was regularly on the front page, all kinds of interesting “stuff” was spread about helmet use and non-use. Anti-helmet law advocates made the claim that you couldn’t hear traffic or safety vehicles when wearing a helmet. They also pointed out that the loss of peripheral vision made them unsafe to wear. The pro-helmet supporters spouted how head trauma injuries were skyrocketing off the scale, along with the associated insurance and health care costs. A neighboring state attempted to pass a law that would have made you a body-part donor if killed in a deadly motorcycle accident without a helmet on. A pretty drastic measure to push helmet use I’d say. Many motorcycle magazines (and e-zines!) are talking about another explosive issue (pun intended) - noise and its impact on the riding community as a whole. Riding and non-riding citizens are taking exception to the excessive noise and antics of irresponsible riders. The annual Harley Davidson anniversary in Milwaukee with the deluge of open-exhaust cruisers has sparked some interesting new legislation to be enacted in HD’s very own home town. It appears to allow anyone to summarily accuse and convict any vehicle they deem to be excessively loud. A stiff $$$ fine to follow. The “Loud Pipes Save Lives” crowd is slowly but surely insuring local government will step in and do something most of us don’t want. Jay Leno, the Tonight Show host who has a world class collection of motorcycles, was interviewed by one the monthly motorcycle magazines recently. They asked him what he thought about loud exhausts. His answer, “…what are these people [with loud exhausts] thinking!” Similar laws and regulations are being enacted in California to detour sport bike riders with open exhausts from stunting on the Interstates. Open exhausts, and really radical riding, are convincing a large portion of the population that something needs to be done about these loud, crazy motorcycle riders before they kill us all. The backlash, I’m sure, will be more motorcycle bans enacted by local governments. After a near fatal accident back in the ‘60s, I have worn all the gear all the time (ATGATT) regardless of the law of the land that I happen to be riding in. I insisted from the start that Wanda do the same. Now with our new, way-bright neon jackets we subscribe to the “Loud Jackets Save Lives” credo. Deryle and Wanda, can you see us now?
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