The Mississippi State Legislature recently passed a bill making failure to wear a seatbelt a primary offense. Unlike the state’s current “secondary” seatbelt law, the new bill-if signed by Gov. Barbour-will allow police officers to pull motorists over if they are not wearing their seatbelts. Also, if signed into law, the bill will entitle the state to about $8 million in federal grants.
While wearing a seatbelt is generally a good idea, the whole idea of a seatbelt law for adults is synonymous with “government as parent.” While not wearing a seatbelt is a stupid idea, not wearing one does not endanger the lives of others-thus it should not be subject to government regulation for adults.
Without a doubt, the supporters of the new seatbelt law-and the old one, as well-are concerned for the well-being of their friends, families, neighbors and constituents. However, the very essence of freedom is the ability to do as one chooses, so long as those actions do not harm others, even if those actions are dangerous.
To suggest that the government-or anyone short of God-knows what is best for every given person is ludicrous and the foundation for authoritarianism. Body piercing and artificial tans both carry risks-staff infections and skin cancer-that I and many others cannot personally understand or justify, but that does not mean they should be illegal. Like sky diving, surfing, rock climbing or riding in a convertible-considerably more dangerous than a sedan-some people may find that the thrill, joy or convenience outweighs the risk. As adults, that is their choice.
Children are a different matter. The government does have an obligation to protect their safety until they become legal adults, held responsible for their own actions and personal safety. A primary seatbelt law that requires children, particularly minor drivers, to wear seatbelts is well within the state’s job and its mandate. Instead of the current law, the state should require vehicles with minors as the primary drivers to carry a special tag and allow law enforcement to pull these vehicles over if the driver or a passenger is not wearing a seatbelt. Furthermore, the punishment for repeated offenses should be a suspension of license.
Regardless of one’s stance on the seatbelt laws, all of the discussion and legislation seems somewhat insincere when one considers the irony that the state’s school buses-guaranteed to carry minors-still do not have seatbelts. As of 2001, there were about 7,000 school buses in Mississippi; how many have seatbelts? Perhaps the safety-oriented legislators could use the $8 million in federal grant money to upgrade the buses with safety belts and actually protect those too young to protect themselves. Until then, the new bill will allow officers to pull over and fine the unsafe school buses since they will definitely be traveling without seatbelts.
Of course, if the attempt to legislate seatbelt use for adults while neglecting the school buses that carry our children seems like poor policy, the federal grant system is downright abuse of power. While declared constitutional by the Supreme Court in South Dakota v. Dole, categorical grants-like the one given to states to pass primary seatbelt laws-are a form of extortion. The federal government taxes the state’s populace, money the state could otherwise tax itself with less economic damage, and then only returns the cash if the state meets Congress’s demands. This subverts the state’s authority to determine its own laws and favors the sweeping, over-generalized federal policies to more appropriate local ones; for instance, states that recognize their adult citizens’ ability to choose what is best for them.
Ultimately, individual safety should be the concern of the individual, even on the road. Since adult seatbelt use does not affect driving safety, it should not be regulated. Children definitely should be protected, but the best way to do so is to upgrade our school buses, something the new law does not address, though it does make driving a school bus a primary offense. Wear your seatbelt, but do so because it’s safe-not because the government tells you to.