TUE 30 NOV 2004
Letters to the Editor
Helmets save lives
Dear Editor,Recently, two of my fraternity brothers suffered fatal injuries in a motorcycle accident on the UI campus. About two weeks later another motorcycle accident involving a young couple struck our campus. Of the four people involved in these two accidents the only person to survive was the one wearing a helmet. In light of these tragedies, I feel it is imperative that we change the helmet laws in Idaho.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that motorcycle helmets reduce the likelihood of a fatality by 29 percent in a crash and are 67 percent effective in preventing brain injuries. The fact that helmets save lives and prevent injuries is generally undisputed. So why have motorcycle fatalities risen from 3,181 in 2001 to 3,276 in 2002, a rise of 95 deaths in just one year? It’s because helmets don’t save lives if you don’t wear them.
When the Highway Safety Act was amended to remove sanctions against states without motorcycle helmet laws in 1976, the rate of helmet wearers dropped from 99 percent to 49 percent. Between 1976 and 1980, when compared to the year before repeals began, motorcycle fatalities increased 61 percent when motorcycle registration only increased 15 percent. In 2002 helmet usage was at a mere 58 percent.
Most states that repealed their mandatory helmet laws set in place revised laws requiring minors to wear helmets. However, fewer than 40 percent of the fatally injured minors in these states were wearing helmets even though the law required it. In NHTSA’s latest survey, helmet use was reported to be almost 100 percent in states with helmet use laws governing all motorcycle riders, as compared to 34 to 54 percent in states with laws limited to minors.
The Fatality Analysis Reporting System concludes that from 1993-2002 helmets saved 7,808 lives. Had all motorcyclists worn helmets during this time period, 11,915 lives could have been saved, maybe two of them being my friends and fraternity brothers whom we lost not long ago. If in 10 years 11,915 people died unnecessarily by any other cause, there would’ve been laws put into place to prevent it. I don’t know why this issue is any different.
Daniel Reeves
Senior
Public relations and Spanish
Defend the defenseless
Dear Editor,In response to “Partial birth abortion misunderstood” (Nov. 16), I think it is important for people to realize that a partial birth abortion involves vacuuming out the baby’s brains and crushing its head so that it fits out the birth canal. Since the baby’s nervous system has long since been complete, this is just as painful for an unborn child as it would be for an adult.
My doctor told me that one of my children would most likely have Down syndrome and gave me the information for a clinic that could do a partial-birth abortion. I had to ask why a person with Down syndrome had less value than a child without this disability. I was also horrified to find out how such an abortion is done. I refused to get an abortion — and gave birth to a healthy baby. As a society, we need to take another look at how we assign value to human life, and how we treat those who cannot defend themselves.
Elizabeth Miles
Graduate student
Counseling and school psychology
Vandals are ready for the WAC
Dear Editor,If I hear one more person tell me that the Vandals suck I think my glasses are going to fog up. Last time I checked we were 8-0 and our quarterback set 4 NCAA passing records. With numbers like that I see no reason that we should drop back down to Division I-AA, especially when we’re knocking on the door of the Fiesta Bowl.
I think the Vandal football team is the greatest show on Earth. For me it doesn’t get any better than when the Vandals storm the field at the Kibbie Dome. Thanks to my hero Bill Gates, that is exactly what they do every day on my Xbox.
I get tired of hearing my friends tell me that it’s not real and that it’s only a video game. Why would people buy video games that aren’t realistic? Have you ever heard of “Zelda”? I sure have. The conditions of the game are still the same. I even renamed the coach Nick Holt. We play in the Kibbie, same uniforms, I even warm up for two hours before game time just like the Vandies.
If it can happen in a video game, it can happen in real life. “Halo 2” happens every day on “Deep Space 9.” Now tell me that’s not real. Everyone I know thinks that we shouldn’t join the WAC next year, but I think we’d be “WAC” if we didn’t.
Jesse Allen
Senior
Accounting and finance
Thanks UI and Moscow
Dear Editor,“Your toughest times in life are your richest times in life, because they determine the man or woman you will become. Those tough times will make you strong and successful, preparing you for anything.”
When we were younger, Eric and I promised each other that we would not live our lives negatively. He shared this quote with me and we tried to live with it. I am still trying to keep my promise. I believe Eric kept his.
For a couple of weeks now I have been struggling to write this letter. I want it to come across with meaning and express my heartfelt sincerity.
My family and I would like to thank the Moscow community and especially the University of Idaho. Thank you to all of Eric’s friends and acquaintances who greeted me with kindness.
I would like to thank University of Idaho President Timothy White, head coach Nick Holt and his wife Julie, coach Alundis Brice, Andrea Ausmus and the rest of the coaching staff and their wives for taking care of my uncle, John Ligon, and me.
To the Vandal football team and friends of my brother, thank you! Your love for Eric has made me stronger. I would especially like to thank those who supported me on my hardest day in Idaho. You know who you are.
To the players who branded themselves with the memory of my brother, you men are unforgettable.
To all of my new extended Idaho family, you will be in my heart forever.
I experienced the love that you have for Eric, I can feel it and it comforts me.
Erica McMillan and
The McMillan and Ligon Family
Partial birth abortion wrong
Dear Editor,I am writing in response to “Partial birth abortion misunderstood” (Nov. 16). Cessnun errantly states that partial-birth abortion (also known as D&E) is a misleading term not used by medical professionals. In fact, “partial-birth abortion” is defined in the Merriam-Webster medical dictionary as “an abortion in the second or third trimester of pregnancy in which the death of the fetus is induced after it has passed partway through the birth canal.” What this actually entails is dilating the woman’s cervix, removing the unborn child partially from the womb feet first, inserting a sharp object into the back of the head, vacuuming the brains out, crushing the head and completing the delivery. This is excruciating for the unborn child, who is fully capable of responding to touch and feeling pain. And yes, I use the term “unborn child” because there is nothing about passing through the birth canal that magically transforms the fetus into a human being.
Cessnun further states that the procedure is only performed when there is a serious threat to the woman or the fetus. This is simply not true, as admitted by abortion providers in publications such as American Medical News and the New York Times. She goes on to say that the proposed ban makes no exceptions for cases in which the health of the woman or fetus is at risk. In fact, the ban exempts cases when the life of the woman is at stake. And what line of reasoning would lead one to conclude that the solution to a risk to the fetus’ health is to kill it altogether? The fact is that “health” is often just a euphemism for abnormalities such as Down syndrome or birth defects that the mother finds undesirable.
The primary issue in the abortion debate should be the personhood of the fetus, not the “right to choose” to harm another person. If there is disagreement about when human life begins, shouldn’t we err on the side of safety? And shouldn’t we draw the line at “rights” that impinge on the most basic, fundamental right there is – life?
Cheyenne Smith-Sarkkinen
Senior
English and family and consumer science
UI Argonaut, 301 Student Union, Moscow, ID 83844
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