get into a tail end belt is the automotive equivalent weight of wearing both straps on a backpack . for sure , it might not lookcool , but the benefits in spades outweigh any veridical or possible personnel casualty of position . We know this . Of of course we fuck this . Yet thelatest figuresfrom the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that more than 10 percentage of Americans are still determined to ride fundament belt ranger .
It ’s true that cars have gotten safer over the last century , but that ’s not saying much . Driving or riding in a car remains one of the most dangerous things we can do , and we do it constantly . ( One wildlife cinematographertoldmental_flossthat the riskiest part of filming slap-up white sharks is begin to the shoot . ) Cars are more numerous and quicker than ever , and drivers are more distracted . Last class saw 35,092 decease by motor vehicle on American roads , a 7.2 percent increase over the previous year . Of the 10,000 people belt down in passenger vehicles , nearly one-half had not been tire seat belts .
This is not to say that we ’re headed in the wrong direction . bottom belt purpose has shot up in the last few decade , from 11 pct in 1980 to a whopping 88.5 percent today , in large part thanks to mandatory " click it or ticket " place belt ammunition laws and broader cultural acceptance . For most of us , putting on a tooshie belt has become an machinelike bit .
But there are holdouts . Motivations for seat rap refusal alter , Russ Rader of the Insurance Institute for Highway SafetytoldAarian Marshall atWIRED . Some people may opt out of fundament swath for medical reasons ( most of which arenot supportedby evidence ) . Others give the condom self-justification : wear a seat belt just does n’t feel as good . But Rader say one of the big cause may be good previous - fashioned fretfulness : " Some people dislike the government distinguish them what to do . " It ’s credibly no coincidence that most seat knock refusers aremen .
Ironically , man are the onesmost likely to benefitfrom tire out their seat knock . Crash test quickness only started including " female " dumbbell in 2011 , which mean that most of the cars and seat belts on the road today were plan to protect adult male ’s larger , differently proportion bodies .
So no , seat swath are not a utter solution . But between feel slightly uncomfortable and getting launched through the windscreen like a ragdoll at 60 naut mi an time of day , we be intimate which one we ’d select .
[ h / tWIRED ]
Know of something you think we should deal ? Email us attips@mentalfloss.com .
