I know it's a free country and all, but since so many people are apparently just TOO stupid to be trusted with their own safety, isn't it about time the government step in and make helmets and leather riding suits mandatory?

No. Haven't you ever heard of Darwin's theory of natural selection? I think George Carlin summed it up best: "The kid who eats too many marbles doesn't get to grow up to have kids of his own"

Now the flipside to this argument is the same as the seat-belt law and smoker argument: These people raise all of our insurance rates. That's BS, insurance is such a protection racket and scam already, theres absolutely no reason they should get compensated for insuring these people. If I lose my job because I didn't anticipate that it was going to be outsourced, do I get to be hired at a higher salary somewhere else? Why not, thats exactly the break that insurance companies get.

Don't get me wrong, I don't smoke, wear my seatbelt and helmet, and self-insure whenever possible, but legislating personal responsibility is just wrong. It IS a free country, and the idiots are free to be weeded out.

-DSR