ATV safety

When I got to work this morning, someone had left a message on my voice mail. He was complaining about this morning's editorial on ATV safety. His main point was summed up in this one sentence: "It's nobody's business but the person riding it."

Maybe. As long as the person who rides carelessly has insurance that covers the entire cost of medical treatment. But if that person does not and expects someone else to pick up part of that cost, it becomes the public's business.

Also, too many drivers don't wear seat belts, despite overwhelming evidence that wearing seat belts saves lives. And how many people still don't buckle their babies or toddlers in child safety seats while driving? Last year I saw a child that couldn't have been two years old standing in the back seat of a car on 8th Street in downtown Huntington. I got a good look at the child because I was in the next car back.

No one's business? Not as long as people who refuse to follow basic rules of safety and common sense expect other people to pay the cost of their mistakes.