Originally Posted by chucky

In order of importance, the reasons I wear a bike helmet:
1. To mount stuff.
2. They're light.
3. They're well ventilated.
4. Liability.

Protection is not one of them. Although speaking of design, helmets are designed to (in order of priority):
1. Look good.
2. Be well ventilated.
3. Be light weight.
4. Make money.
5. Provide protection.

I doubt the forward/backwards orientation of a helmet has much influence on the particular low priority design goal of which you're concerned. For christ sake they're made out of styrofoam.

EDIT: Actually now that I think about protection is on the list of reasons why I wear a helmet. It protects my thinning scalp from skin cancer, which unlike some concerns is a real and actual danger the helmet is capable of protecting against.