Monday 30 August 2010

Look ma! No helmet!

Back home in NZ, it is against the law to ride a motorcycle without a helmet. And for that matter, you have to wear a helmet when you ride a bicycle. However, this does not seem to apply in Shanghai, or China in general.

Passenger and driver, no helmet.

2010-08-29 - Shanghai - 14 - Scooter with passenger


Passenger and driver, no helmet.

2010-08-29 - Shanghai - 08 - Scooter with passenger


Passenger and driver, no helmet.

2010-08-29 - Shanghai - 05 - Scooter with passenger


This is more like the photos I wanted to take. I saw one family on a scooter, but I am too slow on the draw with my camera to have caught it. There were four people on the scooter, two kids on the foot area, the father driving and the mother sitting behind him. In this case however, it looks like three friends riding a scooter. Unfortunately, it is a little blurry.

Passengers and driver, no helmet.

2010-08-29 - Shanghai - 04 - Blurry overloaded scooter


I remember the day where some lady came and talked to the students at my college about her brain damaged son who was wearing a helmet, but was still brain damaged by his accident. This was part of the scheme to get students wearing bicycle helmets. But there has to be some middle ground. I've yet to see someone's head smeared along the road like strawberry jam, or for that matter the crazily driven cars colliding. China is a good example of how other countries go all kneejerk in making things look safe to the detriment of a free and natural lifestyle.

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