Originally Posted by
yugyug
Does he care about safety, or is does he just have a bad personality?
Tell him that helmets make (utility) cycling appear dangerous (when it isn't, relatively) and this inhibits people from cycling. When there are less cyclists on the road, the roads become more dangerous for cyclists.
Its a simple argument, supported by some evidence from Australia and elsewhere (though in Australia we have a particularly intense, even toxic, climate of debate and the evidence is also disputed, but you don't have to tell him that).
I don't actually want to interact with the person at all. I try not to judge personalities of others, as mine would probably be questionable as well. Hell, I have stayed out of this thread except to make fun of it a little, back around page 180+/-.
Interestingly, I own four helmets, not including the two that are on the "shelf of respect", or whats left of them. While I don't know if my life was "saved", it was certainly made less complicated by at least one of them. Three months after that wreck, and the various bones and muscles had knitted enough to ride again, I decided to ride without a helmet for a while. Mostly because it was pretty unnerving getting back on at all, and even though in that case the helmet had worked in a textbook fashion, direct impact landing strait down on pavement, I don't want a psychological leash.
It strikes me as funny, that as someone who generally does wear a helmet, its not the first time I have been bothered for not wearing one. Once, on tour, I picked up the Katy Trail in MO. As soon as I was off the sketchy rutted highway and on the trail, I took the lid off and put on my sun hat. Two hours later two sweet older ladies were lecturing me about how my mother would be so sad if she saw me without my protective gear. So, I did tell them that my mother had never owned a helmet in her life and rode all through the seventies, so probably wouldn't care much.
I have read some interesting responses to my original question, and am encouraged that everyone seems to draw the line at bothering people on the street. Since I don't need a hobby I probably wont spend to much time debating my lack of one way or anotherness on the subject.