🚀 go-pugleaf

Do you think the truth will ever get the law reversed?


the-vehicular-cyclist wrote:
> A number of news items have been added to The Vehicular Cyclist website
> <http://magma.ca/~ocbc> including bike lane effects in Dublin, research
> on more cyclists=safer cycling, and abuse of statistics by helmet
> lobbyists.

DiscoDuck wrote:
> Do you think the truth will ever get the law reversed?

It's possible.  Remember Prohibition in Ontario got repealed :)

And as a note http://www.cycle-helmets.com/helmet_statistics.html "The
Northern Territory government of Australia has repealed compulsory
bicycle helmet laws for adults on paths not adjacent to roadways."

Maybe just a start but it is a start  If there is nothing to oppose
helmet zealots exagerations then we certainly will not get a law
reversed.

>
>
> the-vehicular-cyclist wrote:
> > A number of news items have been added to The Vehicular Cyclist website
> > <http://magma.ca/~ocbc> including bike lane effects in Dublin, research
> > on more cyclists=safer cycling, and abuse of statistics by helmet
> > lobbyists.

If you mean in BC, the answer depends on future political action.

I have noticed in many jusrisdictions like BC, the opposition to helmet
laws has not been organized, whereas the helmet lobby like SafeKids has
been. The exceptions have been Ontario (OCBC-led opposition), Quebec
(VeloQuebec) and Spain (a Spanish organization called Amicis de
bicicletes). Only Velo Quebec has managed to totally thwart a helmet
law proposal (twice). OCBC played a key part in exemption of adults
from Ontario's law, and the organization in Spain got a number of
exemptions for cyclists in Spain's law.

I am trying to encourage likeminded individuals in the UK to launch a
national campaign as helmet legislation threatens there at the moment
and a strong helmet lobby is at work.

It is easy and inexpensive to organize a campaign using the internet. I
think ours in 1993 was the first political campaign of any kind run
over the internet. The use of it is well suited to overcoming Canada's
geographic communication challenges. Furthermore, since our first
campaign, there has been significant compilation of scientific facts on
our side. Also we have a global assembly of experts to assist in
countering the exaggerations and disinformation diseminated by helmet
lobbyists. We had few of these experts available to us in the 1990's.

Given that where no helmet law exist over half of cyclists choose to
ride bareheaded, and that a large part of Canada's poulation are
philosophically opposed to more government meddling in our lives, it
indicates a strong political but silent base of opposition to forced
helmet use.

If anyone wants help in launching a campaign they should contact me via
The Vehicular Cyclist website at http://magma.ca/~ocbc