Val

Just put things in perspective, it is worth remembering that the helmet law is not part of the Traffic Code - it is part of the Health Code. This puts it on the same level as such things as maintaining dishwasher water temperature and wearing a hairnet when preparing food. When was the last time you saw police officers aggressively citing food service workers? Exemtion from the law is not the issue here; blatant discrimination is.

Kneez

It seemed like you were suggesting that your having loaned your helmet to someone else absolved you having to obey the law. If that is not what you meant then I must have misunderstood you. I don't understand, however, how the fact that you commute by bike or that you know how to ride safely without a helmet is germane. You made a choice to violate the law and you were duly fined when you were caught. There really isn't anything to complain about here, is there?

As for not needing laws to live your life, I would suggest that you are deeply mistaken. While it is true that living in accordance with the rule of law requires the individual to make certain sacrifices, in the final analysis we would live in a brutal world in which the majority would live and die at the whim of an empowered few. If you do not wish to live in a society with laws, you will need to head out into the wilderness and live entirely off the grid. Even then, I am not so sure you would succeed in living outside of any legal system.

Finally, I am, contrary to your assertion, a very nice person. We can go out for a bike ride sometime. I promise I won't say a word about helmets or laws or anything. Even if you were correct in your assessment of my character, however, it would not have any bearing on the question at hand, namely whether the policeman was correct in enforcing the helmet law.

Kneez

I am not making an argument about helmets. I am making an argument about obeying the law. When I say that wearing a helmet is the answer to this alleged problem, I mean that it is easier to obey the law and wear a helmet than to go through with this far more convoluted process of complaining on line, mapping out the locations of citations, etc.

Kneez

Yes, I know that people do not literally make the choice not to wear a helmet because it a difficult task. Difficulty has nothing to do with it. In fact, it takes far more effort to not wear the helmet, pay the associated fines, make maps, and post on-line.

You are right that people do not feel a law should apply to them when they feel it is not in their interest. That is precisely what is going on here. Those who see the helmet law as an inconvenience do not want to comply. As you say, there is nothing unusual in this. They may make the choice to violate the law but with that choice comes the possibility of paying hundreds of dollars in fines, being late to work, etc. Those are the possible outcomes of the choice. There is nothing astonishing or unjust in these potentialities coming to pass. They are part and parcel of the choice not to wear a helmet in Seattle.

As you suggest, the decision not to wear a helmet is not an especially serious transgression in the cosmic moral calculus. You are also correct that the mere fact that something is legal does not make it morally right. But in this particular case, the effort and possible ramifications of violation are so much greater than the trivial inconvenience of compliance as to render some sort of civil disobedience campaign absurd. There are people who see the question of helmet law as on par with the civil rights struggles of the 1950s-1960s. I am not one of them, as you may well guess. If one does decide, however, to enact free will and chose not to wear a helmet, one must also take responsibility for the choice, accept the risk of being fined, and not blame others for the problems that arise as result of that choice. If I elect to ride without a helmet and get ticketed, it is not the policeman's fault that I lost time and money. It is mine.

mattm

I'd hate to see cyclists try to pull the same "why should I follow the law?!" crap that drivers try to do when they run red lights, don't wear seatbelts, etc..

Don't like the Nanny State? You can always move.... or vote to change the law. Or take the cop to court. Complaining online doesn't help much. Finding out the "patterns" of this cop is dumb too, he obviously goes downtown to catch all you hot dogs, that's the pattern.

Also, you know what looks dumber than a helmet? A busted head, and brain injuries, that's what. =]

And finally, if you're not wearing a helmet, you're not riding fast enough! Once I started doing 40+ mph down hills I decided there was no question, helmet always.

Anyway, glad money is coming in to keep our roads paved, keep up the good work! Somebody's gotta pay for it I guess...

Val

mattm: Gosh, I didn't realize that there was a minimum speed requirement. You're right, I'm not going that fast, ever - I guess I should just quit, along with everyone else who can't keep up with you. Seriously, when police officers patronizing a restaraunt head into the kitchen and cite anyone they see in violation of Health Code statutes before placing their lunch order, then I will admit that the law is being equitably enforced. Until then, something is a bit fishy about all this, aside from the questionable value of the law itself.

Kneez

I didn't realize that the helmet law was part of the health code. Interesting. I went and read the code and found that cops on the street are authorized to enforce it. I don't know if that is true for violations of the health code in restaurants though. I think you'd need more evidence to support your assertion that police are discriminating against cyclists, if that's what you were suggesting.

LesterOfPuppets

If you're rollin' 40 through downtown you're breaking the speed limit, unless you're on I-5 or the viaduct, then you're breaking other laws...

Val

My assertion is that the selective and and aggressive enforcement of this one statute of the Health Code discriminates against cyclists. I aloso assert that it is amusing to imagine uniformed cops patrolling Seattle's kitchens for hairnet violations. Feel free to disagree.

Kneez

I guess I don't really understand. The helmet provision is not the only portion of the health code that is enforced. Many are. I am in full agreement that the image of cops looking for hairnets is indeed amusing. This is a matter of objective fact beyond disputation.

On a more serous note, I don't know that uniformed policemen are authorized to enforce the entire health code. I do know that they are specifically authorized to enforce the helmet law.

CB HI

Hey KNEEZ, get back to work

Val

That post shamelessly encourages helmetless shenanigans. Deplorable. On the other hand, it raises the question: can mall cops enforce the Health Code?

LesterOfPuppets

I saw an airport cop on a Segway totally bite it at Hartsfield Airport once. Funniest thing I've ever seen! I don't recall if he was helmeted or not, however.

Kneez

I don't recall authorizing you to use my likeness.

mattm

The flaw in your logic is that laws are not based on logic.

Val

Logic? When did I mention that? All I said is that this mode and method of enforcement discriminates against cyclists. Until I see uniformed police officers patrolling with meat thermometers, I will stand by that statement.

raincycle

Another cyclist harassed by officer Mulkey. The law is the law so okay, I should wear a helmet but really couldn't this guy focus on the actual crime problem in Seattle instead of wasting time targeting cyclists? The most frustrating part is that this officer is a notorious jerk! He yelled at me until I gave up defending my own civil rights (because I had to get to work) and emptied out the contents of my pannier onto the city side walk. This guy is a bully that obviously has it in for cyclists. I hadn't even broken any traffic laws and this guy wanted to search through my stuff. What a waste of tax payer dollars! Complaints about this particular motorcycle cop are all over the internet. Hopefully the SPD will take notice and do something. Sigh.

jgadamski

while I don't HAVE to, I do wear a helmet. My call. However, infrequently enforced laws become trigger laws. I find the most BS little point I can harrass you with and I will use it. Case in point: coming to a 'complete stop' at a stop sign.
Cops are neither your friend nor there to evenly enforce the laws. A zillion drivers can do a 'California stop' at an intersection without sanction, a cyclist does not put a foot down on the ground and its a ticket. Go to court to fight it, you pay in time lost, and risk an even greater loss if the judge is a prick. The cop, on the other hand, gets (usually) time and a half at the public expense. The Oregonian newspaper often does a story on the highest paid City employees. Traffic cops are always leading the list.

fietsbob

Laying off the potheads leaves surplus police time?

Medic Zero

The moto cops are a separate unit, and if there isn't a parade or protest they're pretty much just writing tickets, either downtown, or when they set up speed traps like the regular one on Aurora just north of the Ship Canal.

One is never safe from the police though. :/