tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post4000744801705756889..comments2024-03-19T07:48:54.021-06:00Comments on Gus Van Horn: Three Cheers for Car Occupant SafetyGus Van Hornhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-25039409968711359422022-09-15T15:35:43.424-06:002022-09-15T15:35:43.424-06:00Great story. Thanks!
Yes, these safety innovation...Great story. Thanks!<br /><br />Yes, these safety innovations are triumphs of engineering and, I suspect, of capitalism.<br /><br />I have not delved into this yet, but the nonprofit that celebrated 50 years with that video appears to have been created by the insurance companies -- who doubtless would rather pay out for a car than a human life.Gus Van Hornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05126749051688217781noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8839412.post-37163784894907739522022-09-15T12:09:48.731-06:002022-09-15T12:09:48.731-06:00My father was a fire fighter (now retired). One of...My father was a fire fighter (now retired). One of his last runs was an accident that involved a semi truck hitting a car head-on at 55 mph, and a few other cars slamming into the resultant wreck. The saddle tanks on the semi ruptured and the fuel caught fire. Astoundingly, everyone involved walked away with minor injuries--some bruises from seatbelts, a few minor abrasions, and the like. He told me that going to the scene he expected everyone to be dead; even ten years ago no one would have survived. Now? The worst injury was a minor scrape that occurred while they were walking away from the car. Modern safety systems in cars are truly a remarkable triumph of engineering. <br /><br />They are also a triumph of values. Modern safety systems work by sacrificing the car to save the occupants. This means that cars are totaled in smaller wrecks than previous cars. But it also means human lives are preserved. Lives are, rationally, more important than cars. Applying that logic consistently, however, is not always easy. It takes real courage to say "I don't care how the damn car looks, I want the driver to stay alive" and stick to it during the design process! Dinwarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06138006602385020048noreply@blogger.com