We did a lot of stupid stuff on our bikes in the 60’s and 70’s, I never knew anyone that hit their head. There were a lot of skinned knees and elbows and a few broken arms and toes. I suppose the helmets are worth the cost to prevent the truly rare catastrophic brain injury, but “so much safer” I question.
I hate to be that “actually” guy, but actually kids really are safer today than we were when I was a kid, despite fear mongering to the contrary.
1 — Helmets for bikes; covered above.
2 — Seat belts and car seats. If they existed at all, they were minimal (i.e. lap belts) and not mandatory. Hardly anyone wore them.
3 — Better communications. You can now keep tabs on your kid with a cell phone. If a modern-day Timmy falls down a well, he might not need Lassie to find him (assuming he has a signal).
4 — Sex offender awareness – this was simply not discussed when I was a kid. Oh sure, we had “don’t talk to strangers” and “that neighbor’s weird”, but there were no registries and no classes in school warning us about them.
5 — Pollution is way less now than it used to be. I experienced the pleasure of camp counselors on hikes telling us not to go in the water of certain streams because they were so bad. I remember cars belching clouds of bluish-black smoke.
6 — Bullying happened everywhere you went. It’s nowhere near as pervasive as it used to be.
7 — I’m running out of space, but you also have medical advances, better storm predictions and all sorts of other things that have been developed since I was young that contribute to kids’ well being. It’s simply not true that kids are less safe, but there are many organizations out there with agendas that need you to believe that.
markkahler52 11 months ago
And not in much any way else, any more…
purepaul 11 months ago
What drives me bonkers are the adults biking with a helmet and their kid(s) without same.
rhpii 11 months ago
We did a lot of stupid stuff on our bikes in the 60’s and 70’s, I never knew anyone that hit their head. There were a lot of skinned knees and elbows and a few broken arms and toes. I suppose the helmets are worth the cost to prevent the truly rare catastrophic brain injury, but “so much safer” I question.
InquireWithin 11 months ago
I hate to be that “actually” guy, but actually kids really are safer today than we were when I was a kid, despite fear mongering to the contrary.
1 — Helmets for bikes; covered above.
2 — Seat belts and car seats. If they existed at all, they were minimal (i.e. lap belts) and not mandatory. Hardly anyone wore them.
3 — Better communications. You can now keep tabs on your kid with a cell phone. If a modern-day Timmy falls down a well, he might not need Lassie to find him (assuming he has a signal).
4 — Sex offender awareness – this was simply not discussed when I was a kid. Oh sure, we had “don’t talk to strangers” and “that neighbor’s weird”, but there were no registries and no classes in school warning us about them.
5 — Pollution is way less now than it used to be. I experienced the pleasure of camp counselors on hikes telling us not to go in the water of certain streams because they were so bad. I remember cars belching clouds of bluish-black smoke.
6 — Bullying happened everywhere you went. It’s nowhere near as pervasive as it used to be.
7 — I’m running out of space, but you also have medical advances, better storm predictions and all sorts of other things that have been developed since I was young that contribute to kids’ well being. It’s simply not true that kids are less safe, but there are many organizations out there with agendas that need you to believe that.
BRBurns1960 11 months ago
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BRBurns1960 11 months ago
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BeniHanna6 Premium Member 10 months ago
Bike helmets: Result of lawyers and insurance companies maximizing profits. For everyday riding not needed, if you ride competitively a good idea.
tenthwife 10 months ago
Kids had more fun back then and got more exercise.