Then I can only conclude that bicyclists in China are utterly reckless and nonchalant when it comes to their own safety. Because, after all, the drivers are so bad ...

But wait — self-preservation is a primal impulse (fast-food analogies notwithstanding), so isn't it possible that vast swaths of the globe contain people who have done their own benefit analysis and arrived at different conclusions? NYC is fascinating, and all, but the OP is asking about a residential ride on a mountainbike in central Florida.

My boss told a co-worker he could no longer sit on his exercise ball because it's "non-standard equipment" and could leave the company liable for "injuries" sustained in a non-ergonomic environment. Is there a sense in which Americans are overprotective and occasionally paternalistic when it comes to their perceived well-being? Wouldn't this debate about helmets seem peculiar to the average Dutchwoman?

a.) yes
b.) yes
c.) yes