# Why is nothing safe for kids to do these days? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 9, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202 "2010-09-09T17:40:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Strassia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@Strassia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strassia)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/61 "2010-09-10T22:09:46Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > > [@CutterJohn](#): > > > > Dad let us ride on the back of the truck. Not the bed.. Standing on the bumper while holding the tailgate. Not on the rode.. If it was on the road we had to be in the bed, but we would put the tailgate down and hang our legs. > > > > The guns were never locked up, but we only used them under supervision of dad, of of the oldest brother when he was around 10. > > The ponds out back were for swimming. We were responsible for spotting snapping turtles and reporting them to dad for extermination. They can get pretty big! > > > > We would go to town for scouts. After the meeting was over, we would go to the bar across the street, where we could order hamburgers and a soda and eat while we waited for dad to show up. Secondhand smoke abounded. > > You sound like my neighbor. > > I grew up riding a bike, a horse, sledding, snow and water skiing, and I never had a helmet, and still dont. Neither did my kids. We also had a lake and we always kept loaded guns handy(an unloaded gun is not much good). > > We learned to steer, to avoid cars and trees, learned how to swim, and we were taught not to shoot our playmates. > > We didnt shelter our kids, nor did we give them helmets and flak jackets every time they went out the front door, instead, we taught them common sense and how to do things in a safe manner. Instead of giving your kid a helmet, just teach him to not run into trees!!! > > I can not imagine riding a bike, horse, sled, or skiing while wearing a helmet. > > I think some people believe in a Nanny state and NEED to be protected from themselves, and other people learn how to take care of themselves. Its a different mentality. I hate to break it to you, but for most of us, wear a helmet is taking care of yourself. Rants like this annoy the crap out of me. I am actually on the side of kids need to be kids and not wrapped in bubble, but not all precautions are silly. Just because nobody you knew had a head trauma does not mean it never happens, even to people who know what they are doing. You can’t learn to bike well enough to avoid all accidents any more than you can eat healthy enough and exercise enough to prevent viral infections. I have always buckled my seat belt, and I always wear a helmet. I have gone 30mph down a narrow single track over a forty foot drop (once on both sides!) without falling or having any kind of accident, but I have also gone over my handle bars when going 10mph on a paved bike trail because a five year old burst out of the bushes. Overall there are two trends here, one good and one bad. Good: more data is being collected and we can see the low hanging fruit of easy gains in safety for low cost (seat belts, bike helmets, etc.) Bad: 24 hour news cycle needs to be fed and we read all the stories about all the rare incidents that happen out there. My personal pet peeve is Halloween fears. Trick or treating is almost dead in most places because of a few hoaxes a few years ago. Last time I looked into it in detail the only cases of actual candy tampering that have ever been confirmed to be real were done by family members, not strangers. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/62 "2010-09-10T22:30:29Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > For bicycles, I’d never, ever wear a helmet around my (Michigan) neighborhood. That would be, well, ridiculous. On the other hand when I go out on the trials, I certainly use a helmet. This Teach kids how to fall and roll instead of going through life like a Monty Python skit waiting to happen. If you’re going to put a helmet on kids for riding bikes then they should wear them when using play ground equipment along with knee, elbow, and shin protection. Mountain trails are justified because they route them through gaps in trees barely wide enough to get the handlebars through. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/63 "2010-09-10T22:40:50Z")
Why is it ridiculous to wear a helmet on a bike? You can’t compare a bike to playground equipment because you’re moving much faster and because you can’t control for other stuff that might come up and hit you. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/64 "2010-09-10T22:53:33Z")
> [@Strassia](#): > > My personal pet peeve is Halloween fears. Trick or treating is almost dead in most places because of a few hoaxes a few years ago. Last time I looked into it in detail the only cases of actual candy tampering that have ever been confirmed to be real were done by family members, not strangers. Ooh, I hate Halloween paranoia! Halloween is my favorite, and it’s such a great neighborhood event. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/65 "2010-09-10T23:25:06Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Why is it ridiculous to wear a helmet on a bike? Why not wear a helmet in your car? The fact of the matter, is that wearing a helmet in a car crash can prevent or lessen injury. Every race car driver, and every demolition derby driver, where car crashes are more likely, wears a helmet. Having every family member ALWAYS wear a helmet while in your car is not just whistling Dixie either, because hundreds of thousands of people actually do get into car accidents each year, tens of thousands of people in cars actually do get killed each year. I think many many more helmetless people in cars are killed and injured than helmetless bicyclists. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/66 "2010-09-10T23:33:19Z")
You’ve got more protection in a car, though. You’re not in an enclosed space in a bike. If something barrels into you and knocks you over, you could be dead or seriously brain damaged. People can die in a car crash, too, but we try to take precautions against that by wearing seatbelts so we don’t go flying and hitting our heads on things if we smack into something. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/67 "2010-09-10T23:50:32Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > You’ve got more protection in a car, though. You’re not in an enclosed space in a bike. If something barrels into you and knocks you over, you could be dead or seriously brain damaged. People can die in a car crash, too, but we try to take precautions against that by wearing seatbelts so we don’t go flying and hitting our heads on things if we smack into something. The fact of the matter, is that more kids die in cars rather than on bikes, sleds, skis,and horses COMBINED!. Also, driving kids around in small compact cars is just asking for trouble. What do you think is going to happen to your kids when the tiny compact car your kids are in runs into a big full size van? Having kids wear helmets on bikes or sleds is mostly fluff, it rarely protects, and it mostly lessens guilt feelings of parents who want to pretend they are doing something to protect their children while ignoring the greatest danger. Infant car seats have proven to protect infants, so if a child is too big for a car seat then he should be wearing a helmet. Driving kids in a large heavy car, large full size van, GMC Surburban, or very large steel framed pickup truck would also help. I would much rather see kids in cars wearing seatbelts and helmets and in large heavy vans, than kids on bikes wearing those funny looking and almost useless bicycle helmets. I think “the masses” like to **pretend** they are doing something by recycling and by putting their kids in bicycle helmets, while at the same time ignoring the true threats and ignoring the greatest dangers. (Oh Geeeez! …this topic reminds me of all those people who wanted record immigration and have added 100 million people to this country’s population but since they “recycle” their non-water bottles, they think they are saving the planet) ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/68 "2010-09-10T23:57:19Z")
“Why not wear a helmet in your car?” One obvious reason is inconvenience/embarassment rather than a real risk argument. the other is that head protection equipment does exist in most modern cars now, in the form of airbags and seatbelts as a replacement for helmets. Yes we could do helmets too, but it isnt the case that we dont do head protection for cars at all, unlike other activities. Edit: And in Australia at least, car seats are mandated for children, with reverse ones for infants. Neck injury is a major concern so helmets arent a real solution in these situations. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2010, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/69 "2010-09-10T23:57:24Z")
You don’t necessarily have to die for a bike to be dangerous. If you bang into something and hit your head, you can be brain damaged, which will negatively affect you even if it doesn’t kill you. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/70 "2010-09-11T00:08:10Z")
> [@Otara](#): > > 1. One obvious reason is inconvenience/embarassment rather than a real risk argument. > > 2. the other is that\* head protection equipment does exist in most modern cars now\*, in the form of airbags and seatbelts as a replacement for helmets. 1. I think bicycle helmets are \*\*goofier \*\*looking than race car helmets. 2. I dont buy it. I worked in ER. Lots of people, and lots of kids, get very banged up from being in car crashes. It is not unusal at all to see head injuries from a car accident - it is VERY common. ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/71 "2010-09-11T00:13:34Z")
So your basic point is we’re not doing enough in one area so we shouldnt do it in another? Its not like the risk doesn’t exist in the other area after all. Bike and motorcycle accidents arent exactly unknown. Otara ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/72 "2010-09-11T00:25:28Z")
Something I see a lot of is parents trying to discipline their children in public and teach them the safe way to do things and the kids don’t mind. I’d say at least half of the parents just give up and let them do as they please. When we were told not to do something and we did it anyway there were swift consequences. All but the most contrary of us didn’t do it again. That’s something I don’t see often anymore. Last week I was swimming and I listened to a mom threaten half the afternoon that if her children kept doing what they were doing they were going home. Never happened. Apparently mom wanted to be there and that was more important than teaching the little rascals that her word was the law when their safety was involved. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/73 "2010-09-11T00:37:16Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > skiing while wearing a helmet. I think Natasha Richardson’s family would tell you otherwise. I believe there was a huge debate over whether she should have been wearing a helmet. Besides, if kids are like we were, they’ll be able to find ways to be even MORE dare-devil while wearing safety gear like helmets. At least, that’s what my friends and I would have done. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/74 "2010-09-11T00:40:56Z")
I think the other problem with Natasha Richardson is that she didn’t seek medical attention right afterward because she thought she was fine. Generally the protocol is to go to the doctor after a concussion, no matter how small. Even if she weren’t wearing a helmet, she might still be alive had she gone to a hospital. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/75 "2010-09-11T00:53:06Z")
This is stupid: You know how many times I fell of my bike as a kid? More times than I can count. You know how many wrecks I’ve been in? None. And I’m not abnormal. There’s just no comparison. ---
**Author:** ![HazelNutCoffee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@HazelNutCoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HazelNutCoffee)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/76 "2010-09-11T03:02:36Z")
Bike accidents may be rare, but they do happen, and a lot of grief can be prevented by just wearing a damn helmet. It seems like a pretty reasonable precaution. I don’t get the people who seem to be adamantly against it. ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/77 "2010-09-11T03:05:48Z")
> [@gwendee](#): > > They might not be able to cram their little fingers in there, but they could stick other stuff like twist ties or a butter knif. I don’t know why one would. We did not cap all our empty outlets but we did have a few covers, sort of snap on plastic cases that covered all of the plugs in an outlet to keep things powered and prevent the scenario you describe. If you had to choose between outlet covers and cabinet latches, go for the cabinet latches. “Daddy… puts a plug in there.” (Daddy is working with his woodworking tools) “I have a paperclip.” “I can unbend the paperclip.” "I put one end in! Nothing happened. Huh. Okay, what happens when I _WHAM_ I remember that very vividly. (Age 2 or 3) So, that’s sledding through a rock wall (Yes. THROUGH. Face first. Age.. six? ) and sticking things in an electrical socket. Yeah, I wore a helmet in the 80s. Caught hell for it. Split the helmet. Didn’t give a rat’s ass if I caught hell for it. I also had what might have been the first mountain bike in NY. I did all _kinds_ of incredibly stupid and dangerous stuff. Mostly because I kept wondering ‘So… what if I..’ I used to jump off the top of a three story building into a tree, then climb down. I don’t know why! It was just neat to do. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 9:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/78 "2010-09-11T09:17:54Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > Why is it ridiculous to wear a helmet on a bike? You can’t compare a bike to playground equipment because you’re moving much faster and because you can’t control for other stuff that might come up and hit you. A small child on a swing is moving at 9 mph. Of the approximately 100 children under 16 killed on bikes, 64% of them are at intersections (read hit by cars). If you want to save a child then half the battle is teaching them to ride safely. The [percentage of deaths](http://www.helmets.org/stats.htm) broken down as a percentage (no-helmet versus helmet) is 91% and 8% respectively so there appears to be a correlation with the use of them although there is no breakout regarding head injuries. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/79 "2010-09-11T16:39:48Z")
You can teach them to ride safely, sure, but there are things you can’t always plan for. Why not wear a helmet just to be safe? You only get one head after all… ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [September 11, 2010, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202/80 "2010-09-11T16:52:40Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I dont buy it. I worked in ER. Lots of people, and lots of kids, get very banged up from being in car crashes. What did you do in the ER? If you’re a health professional, then you’re one very, very rare specimen of RN or physician or other, one who rejects safety equipment after dealing with trauma. My ER and trauma career has been loaded with many episodes of “boy, you were lucky you were wearing a helmet” and even more of “what a shame they weren’t wearing a helmet”. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-nothing-safe-for-kids-to-do-these-days/553202.md?page=5)