Those of us who admit to having any kind of libertarian instinct run the risk of getting called hypocritcal or dishonest or philosophically incoherent any time we express the mildest approval for any kind of government action (see previous post on high-speed rail, for example). So I feel bad about criticizing Neal Boortz, syndicated radio talk-show host and self-described libertarian, but he went off the deep end a little about seat belts.
He starts his piece by wondering "how many people will Glen Richardson kill this year?" Richardson is the Republican Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives, and his sin, in Boortz's estimation, is holding up a bill that would remove the exemption pickup trucks have under the state's mandatory seatbelt laws. "Statistics show that fatalities in pickup accidents in Georgia exceed fatalities in other vehicles by 31%," Boortz writes. So Richardson is killing all those pickup drivers, never mind that they choose to drive without seat belts.
Boortz realizes he will be called on the libertarianism question, so he attempts a preemptive strike:
I'm told that Speaker Richardson is refusing to allow it to come up for a vote. When asked why, he mutters something about government intrusion into our lives. Who knows what the real reason might be.
You want to talk about government intrusion? How about the government seizing money from me to pay for the medical treatment of idiots who don't fasten seatbelts? How about the expanded Medicaid costs? How about the danger from secondary collisions caused by people who aren't kept behind the wheel when they get into a wreck? Oh .. and how about the millions of Federal highway dollars the State of Georgia loses every year because of this pickup exemption?
You've heard the old joke about the kid who killed his parents then begged for the mercy of the court because he was an orphan. The "your stupidity will cost me money" is a little like that. The government ensnares us with all sorts of funding and rules that require us to be responsible for one another, then that fact is used to expand government still further. I can no longer be responsible for me and mine but have to pay for your stupid actions, too. That is the sort of collectivist, anti-individualist drift that should be resisted, not aided and abetted.
Don't give me that "You're not a libertarian" crap either. You can drive your car all you want .. 24/7 .. on your own property or on the private property of another person without wearing a seatbelt. Go rent a racetrack and do it. When you elect to drive on public highways you are a party to a contract with every other driver. If that contract, which requires insurance, headlights, brakes and such as well as seatbelts, is too inconvenient for you .. then catch a cab.
But if I harm myself through my own stupidity, what does it matter where I do it? Whether I kill myself on the road by not wearing a seat belt or motorcycle helmet or in my own living room by smoking or drinking, the issue is still one of whether I affect only myself or "society" must also bear some of the burden. If government makes you pay for my visit to the intensive-care unit, that should be your concern, not how I came to need the ICU. Let's not confuse the implied consent we give by using the public highways -- which is legitimately cited for things such as impaired driving and other reckless behavior that can harm others
