Sometimes we all do stupid things. Today we’re releasing a new video that shows a kid who’s challenging another guy in a basketball game and betting his dad’s car. Unfortunately for the kid, the other guy is like three feet taller than him. It reminded me of when I was in college and would play pickup basketball games with some of the MU men’s players.
Ok, I’m tall for a woman, but at 5’9” there’s probably still about a foot difference between me and some of those guys. And, if I’m being truthful here, I wasn’t that good either. So, I fouled a lot and ended up with a few chipped teeth… but at least I didn’t bet my dad’s car. It was fun, but probably still kind of stupid. Still, it wasn’t near as stupid as not buckling up. Luckily for me, I always wear my seat belt, and that's a slam dunk for my safety.
Unfortunately for 24 percent of Missourians, they still don’t buckle. In fact, seven out of 10 Missourians killed in traffic crashes are unbuckled. It’s sad, really. It takes a couple of seconds to click your seat belt, and it can save the rest of your life.
In my life, I have a list of stupid things I’ve done about a mile long, but forgetting to buckle up isn’t one of them. So, please Buckle Up and Arrive Alive!
4 comments:
I'd love to see a statistic on where the 70% lived. I've lived in Jefferson City most of my life and people tend to chastise others for failing to buckle. I've seen the same in Rolla and Columbia. In Fulton, I was asked why I did, and even told not to by coworkers there.
I'll see what I can find out for you about location. In the meantime, please buckle up and encourage your friends, family and coworkers to do the same!
Hi Merennulli - I have a spreadsheet with those stats you mentioned. If you would like to e-mail me at Laura.Holloway@modot.mo.gov, I can send this to you. Thanks!
Thanks again for sending me that data. My suspicions were confirmed. 70% of the no-seatbelt accidents were by 30% of the population. I haven't got all the math done on it, but those outside of 10k+ population cities have a significantly higher chance of being in that non-seatbelt fatality column.
I can think of several causes for this. Less education investment, less enforcement, or a more independent culture could all be factors. I think incentives for rural enforcement would probably be the best place to start. Or at least have the commercials for "click it or ticket" show a rural road so it's clear buckling up is not just a "city thing".
There is some statistical deviation (such as River Bend having 10% of its population in one wreck), but the "Non-City or Unincorporated" vs large cities is pretty clearcut.
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