Sunday, October 29, 2006

Acts of Dubious Intelligence #1

Take some time out of your day today and simply observe the other people who share our tiny slice of this great big planet. What I believe you will find is that many people are frightfully lacking in common sense, for they do things that anyone who possessed that fine trait would never consider.

I'd like to state for the record that these things shall henceforth be known as Acts of Dubious Intelligence. And one to get us off and running:

1) Riding a Motorcycle without a Helmet

Never in my life have I seen as many people riding these two-wheeled death machines without some sort of skull protection as here in CO Springs. Perhaps it is a side-effect of oxygen deprevation--CO is awfully high up in the atmosphere. Now, I understand that your chances of survival upon being thrown from your seat at 50, 60, 75 miles per hour have GOT to be slim to none, even if you were wearing a helmet. But just toodling around town in the 30-45 mph range, I'd imagine that hard hat would greatly increase the possibility that you would one day be able to function normally after taking a spill from your bike. Not to mention the fact that your baby girl/boy might get to grow up with you rather than not. That your wife or husband would not be left alone with the cash from your life insurance policy, which on all counts is not very good to cuddle with at night.

The point is, I'm baffled. Is the feeling of wind tossling your hair SO TREMENDOUSLY INTOXICATING as to render all thoughts of family, health and safety null and void? If anyone can help me understand this, I'm willing to listen. I don't know that my opinion will ever be changed on this issue, but I'd like to hear you out. And if it's just about the fact that, in CO, one CAN legally ride sans helmet, I don't want to hear it. I don't believe the government is here to protect us from ourselves in most situations. But I would hope that, given the freedom to choose between permanently scrambled brain and perhaps temporary steamed brain (I'm guessing helmets can get toasty), people would choose the latter for the sake of everyone involved. But that's just me.

Ah, the life I lead

I have pondered at length and reached this very definite conclusion: There are few things as scandalously luxurious as lying in bed under a down comforter, reading on a weekend morning.