What do seat belts (and bike helmets) have to do with gun legislation?

Team 26, elite riders on their way from Newtown to Washington DC in support of the 26 lives lost on 12/14, all wearing safety helmets

On Saturday March 9, Team 26, a volunteer group of elite riders and their support crew, took off after a Newtown rally with Connecticut Sens. Blumenthal and Murphy, and Reps. Himes and Esty for a press conference in Washington DC with the entire CT delegation in support of sensible gun laws.

So what do "sensible guns laws" really mean? Well, here's a take out of recent history that might clarify the intent.

Once upon a time, back in 1968, the federal government passed a law requiring seat belts to be fitted in all vehicles. They were not made mandatory for use until 1984, when NY became the first state to require them to be used (link), and it's at the state level that mandatory use emanates.

Why did this all happen? Well, a fellow you may have heard of, Ralph Nader, wrote a scathing book in 1965 called Unsafe at Any Speed:

Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile by Ralph Nader, published in 1965, is a book detailing resistance by car manufacturers to the introduction of safety features, like seat belts, and their general reluctance to spend money on improving safety. It was a pioneering work, openly polemical but containing substantial references and material from industry insiders. It made Nader a household name.

And while there was a pretty big gap between 1965 and 1984, the pressure that started with Nader's book culminated in the drive to make seat belts mandatory.

Did they work? You betcha.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration chart of lives saved

But more on that, and the initial reaction to seat belts below the fold.