Are seatbelts necessary “We have all heard the excuses before, it’s uncomfortable, I'm only going around the corner, I'd rather be thrown out of a car than be stuck in a seatbelt and my favorite, and I’m a good driver I don't need to wear one.” These are just a few quotes I am sure we have all heard when it comes to buckling up. Guess what accidents happen! Seatbelts are designed to help protect you in case of an accident.
Some people argue that seatbelt laws infringe upon a person’s civil liberties and since in some instances seatbelts may cause injury or death, that the government has no right to force a person to do something that may be endangering ones safety. Benjamin Franklin once said, "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety”.
Firstly, seat belt use should not be mandatory because seatbelt campaigns spend millions of taxpayer dollars that could go toward funds for causes such as schools and charities. We pay taxes, right. In addition, our taxes are supposed to go to the government to be spent on causes that help the population, right. Well, would you want your hard-earned money spent on enforcing an unjust law? Dr. Walter Williams states, in an article published September 10, 2003, “Under the Transportation Equity act for the 21st Century, the federal government is spending $500 million to enforce seatbelt laws.” Do you want your taxes to be spent on enforcing a seat belt law? Think of all the new textbooks $500 million would buy for schools. Think of all the charities $500 million would fund. Think of all the homeless $500 million would feed. Do you want that money to be used to fund a law that forces people to wear seatbelts? Second, not one penny of the said $500 million has been shown to prevent even one car accident, and has been proven to cause them?”
William J. Holdorf stated, "because wearing a seat belt gives a person a false sense of security as promise by the government, studies have shown that drivers tend to be more reckless.”
Auto accidents are the leading cause of death for people under the age of 35. Wearing a seat belt can prevent death in about half of these accidents. About every 15 seconds, someone is injured in an automobile accident if they are not buckled up, And that about every 13 minutes someone is killed in a wreck. Failing to wear a seat belt adds to more fatalities than any other traffic safety behavior. According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration, seatbelts saved nearly 12,000 lives in the United States in the year 2000. The NHTSA estimates that more than 8,000 U.S. car accident fatalities in 2000 would have been avoided if the victims had been wearing seatbelts. Around sixty percent of the people killed in accidents were not wearing seat belts. The NHTSA also stated that seatbelts reduce the risk of death for a front seat car occupant by about forty percent. For the people who use the excuse that "They are just going around the corner" should realize that 80% of traffic fatalities occur within a 20-mile radius of your home and at a speed of 40 miles an hour. Buckling up to, drive around the block is probably the best time to do so. Everyone knows that car crashes can cause death; yet because people do not buckle up all the time thousands of people still die in auto accidents every year.
“Sunday, April 3, 2011 Rescue vehicles responding to a fire call this afternoon in Vincennes, Indiana. The wreck between a Vincennes Fire Department rescue truck and a Knox County ambulance occurred about 1:30pm CT at 6th St and Hart St in the city. Reports indicate two firefighters in the rescue truck and two EMT's on the ambulance were injured. All members were treated and released due to the use of seatbelts by all members!” I believe it is a person’s own right to decide whether they wish to wear a safety belt, it is not up to the government to decide if a person wishes to put their life at risk. Allowing them to do so is just one more step in the direction of losing our freedom. As Benjamin Franklin said, "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety”. So in conclusion, I will urge to seriously look at the issue the issue is not do seatbelts save lives or take lives. The issue is are we going to let the Government make laws governing seatbelts and take away our freedom of choice. We the people are the only ones who can take a stand but it must be done as a whole not just a few individuals.

Works Cited. http://www.newswithviews.com/guest_opinion/guest27.htm http://econfaculty.gmu.edu/wew/articles/03/ticket.html http://www.firefighterclosecalls.com/news/fullstory/newsid/133221 http://www.ushistory.org/franklin/quotable/quote04.htm http://www.nhtsa.gov/ http://www.wikipedia.org http://www.motorists.org/seat-belt-laws/testimony http://www.123helpme.com/