Can you imagine? No seat belts in cars? No bicycle helmets? No food police? No 55 MPH speed limit?

I think you've died and went to heaven. Be sure to write.

Yea it was a cool time. How did we survive?

There were a lot fewer cars on the road back then, our road congestion has had a lot to do with the need for safety equipment. I knew you never had an accident - because if you had under the conditions you described - you wouldn't be here to post this question! The good old days!

It's one thing for people to espouse "personal responsibility" and object to seat belts, bike helmets and other safety precautions. But those same people want the government to take care of all their needs when they or their kids get injured. Who should pay for the EMT's and trauma centers for the uninsured injured? Who should pay for their recuperation or disabilities? Who should pay for life-long care of seriously brain injured? What about children who should lack the maturity to use all the proper safety equipment? Since kids learn by example, what example will they follow when their parents don't wear seat belts? When people raise the personal responsibility issue and demand to be treated as adults, they should not expect taxpayers to care for the tragic consequences of their foolish behavior when they get in trouble. If you want to relive the 'good old days' with no safety equipment, you can always restore a 1950's era car with none of those features and drive to your heart's content. But you won't have the ABS brake system, side crash barriers in the doors, crumple zones, airbags, radial tires, and all the other modern safety features. And you will have a carburetor that needs frequent adjustment, points that need to be replaced and adjust the distributor timing every 12 months or 12, 000 miles. Been there, done that. No thanks.

Metal dash...no collapsible steering wheel...single hydraulic brake cylinder...lap belts...vacuum operated windshield wipers that froze in the middle of the windshield when accelerated...3 on the tree that had to be double clutched and speed matched for the gears. a 292 V8 with mechanical lifters that had to be manually adjusted to the cam...a DC generator that didnt charge at idle...carbs...points...and nylon bias tires...well at least it had safety glass with side wing windows. yes, a different time...lucky i never had an accident either.

Times have changed: Driver's attitudes have changed: The inexperienced are yet to learn: Then there is the driver who drives to conserve fuel, wear and tear Your own body is like a vehicle, would you mistreat it?

Yeah but there are a lot more vehicles on the road now and it's all about making a buck now so everyone is in a hurry to get somewhere. Then add all the distractions like phones, i-pods, navigation, DVD systems, power this and power that, and so on . Driving used to be relaxing and a Sunday drive was peaceful, now it's a 7 day work week with no break in traffic ever.