SAFETY

I was walking in the park at lunch a few weeks ago on a sunny Autumn day. I came upon a lady walking with her mother and following her daughter on a bicycle (the relationships are my assumption). The little girl was about 4 or 5 years old. She had a cute little pink bike with streamers hanging from the handlebars. The bike had training wheels. She wore a helmet and knee pads and elbow pads. They had stopped because the left elbow pad had slid down on her forearm. As I passed them, the tot was complaining to her mother that the elbow pads made her arm sweat.


This kind of stuff drives me crazy. That kid will probably marry a guy who wears suspenders and a belt. Their house will be equipped with hot and cold running antiseptic lotion. Her children wont be allowed to ride a bike at all.

Each generation thinks that it has to outdo the previous one with regard to safety. Will it never end? Every safety issue opposes a freedom issue. Every inch of safety reduces an inch of risk. If you can get your mind around it, it becomes obvious that at some time in the future, humans will eliminate all risks and live as unmoving vegetables in a bubble. I suggest everyone delay this eventuality as best they can. You are not a bad parent if your child falls and scuffs his knee but you are if your child is afraid to run and play.