Post by Wyldcomfort on Mar 7, 2007 0:49:06 GMT -5
Update Tuesday....
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Hello all. Well the interview is over...it won't be until much later that it will appear in the Oregonian. It is a huge story that will be over several days so my part may be insignificant to say the least. I just hope it won't be harmful. The reporter is exceptionally nice and very smart... It is so obvious he has done his homework. I respect him regardless of his report that will surely hit us hard. He is a man of integrity. He is taking the high road even if "we" may be very unhappy with his articles. He wants the same things we do but doesn't have the same interest in keeping this sport alive. His concern is with the danger and fatality rates. With kids. Without the benefit of his family's involvement, I hope he considers the positive side through us.
He has met with Sue and she is getting some pretty nasty calls and letters - hopefully not from any of us... He also put a more human side to her that all the information on the internet and her communications have failed to do. He said she has had a very difficult time dealing with all of this, losing her child, then fighting this fight. I can't even imagine. It is hard as she is one of the only contact people on this bill - she set herself up for oppositional contacts... We still need to be nice...
He confirmed there were eight kids in 2005 that died. That is unreal and truly tragic. So I am feeling a little lost tonight. We have done so much and it seems like we have gotten so far but there is so much farther to go and there is so much at stake. Many of us have dealt with the loss of a loved one, many have lost a child. This fight has been about us and how it affects our family. We have done an exceptional job of fighting for that.....but our kids have us fighting for them everyday of their lives, protecting them, caring for them, and taking our responsibility very seriously as a parent. But what about the kids that don't have a parent watching out for them - keeping them safe. Are they just acceptable casualties?? Is there any such thing with a child? So how can we fix it? Legislation, enforcement, safety training....public announcements, volunteer safety patrols, etc..... All of these won't save all of these children.... but it can save one, maybe two or more... and that will make it all worth it because these aren't just numbers, these are children. What Sue has done is make us more aware of the numbers of children that are dying - she stirred the pot. For that I thank her because had she not we wouldn't have all joined together to fix a problem we were never aware of. Sure, we would hear of a kid dying and we would justify it by the sheer stupidity of the parent who wasn't there to supervise, didn't make sure the kid had a helmet or control unsafe riding. Far removed from our life.....Don't we have a responsibility to get it right not just for us but for them? If not us then who?
We need information - consistent and complete information of all injury and fatal accidents. We need a good reporting system to keep track and break down these reports. We need public announcements on the radio and TV stating the risk of kids riding unsupervised - the need for safety training and equipment. We need laws that will enable the police to address these incidents on public and private land... We need police to be committed to enforcement and funding for that. We need media that supports the efforts and promotes safety education rather than old footage of three wheeler crashes. Are outraged by the lack of supervision on an obviously risk associated sport when a child dies. We need them to push the importance of supervision. We need a comprehensive training program for youth. We need a strict enforcement of "best fit". We need the support from everyone involved to make it work and most of all we need us. It begins with us. For whatever reasons we have become something from nothing. Just a rag tag cross-section of very passionate people.
So roll up your sleeves and prepare to get to work. Senate Bill 49 is on the backburner, a distraction for now at best. I have an apt. with Devlin on the 20th. When I met him I liked him. He seems a very nice man wanting to do the right thing. Hopefully he will see why Senate Bill 49 needs to end as it is pulling our attention away from good progress. We are very strong and we have shown we can turn the heat up or down as one, just as we will do if Senate Bill 49 moves a hair.
Everyone who has written in with comments on the draft proposal is right in line with each other. It is amazing actually. Speak up with all your comments - we need the oppositional side of them too. We have had several really good suggestions that we hadn't considered. We don't plan on putting the draft out until we get a little closer- we have a lot of work to do first. The other concern is having it in the hands of someone else that will propose it without our group. I am finding our communications are spread far and wide and everyone is getting everything. This needs to come from us, we have earned it.
My mom just called - I guess my letter made it into the editorial at the Statesman Journal - Lindy
| | | Inbox
Hello all. Well the interview is over...it won't be until much later that it will appear in the Oregonian. It is a huge story that will be over several days so my part may be insignificant to say the least. I just hope it won't be harmful. The reporter is exceptionally nice and very smart... It is so obvious he has done his homework. I respect him regardless of his report that will surely hit us hard. He is a man of integrity. He is taking the high road even if "we" may be very unhappy with his articles. He wants the same things we do but doesn't have the same interest in keeping this sport alive. His concern is with the danger and fatality rates. With kids. Without the benefit of his family's involvement, I hope he considers the positive side through us.
He has met with Sue and she is getting some pretty nasty calls and letters - hopefully not from any of us... He also put a more human side to her that all the information on the internet and her communications have failed to do. He said she has had a very difficult time dealing with all of this, losing her child, then fighting this fight. I can't even imagine. It is hard as she is one of the only contact people on this bill - she set herself up for oppositional contacts... We still need to be nice...
He confirmed there were eight kids in 2005 that died. That is unreal and truly tragic. So I am feeling a little lost tonight. We have done so much and it seems like we have gotten so far but there is so much farther to go and there is so much at stake. Many of us have dealt with the loss of a loved one, many have lost a child. This fight has been about us and how it affects our family. We have done an exceptional job of fighting for that.....but our kids have us fighting for them everyday of their lives, protecting them, caring for them, and taking our responsibility very seriously as a parent. But what about the kids that don't have a parent watching out for them - keeping them safe. Are they just acceptable casualties?? Is there any such thing with a child? So how can we fix it? Legislation, enforcement, safety training....public announcements, volunteer safety patrols, etc..... All of these won't save all of these children.... but it can save one, maybe two or more... and that will make it all worth it because these aren't just numbers, these are children. What Sue has done is make us more aware of the numbers of children that are dying - she stirred the pot. For that I thank her because had she not we wouldn't have all joined together to fix a problem we were never aware of. Sure, we would hear of a kid dying and we would justify it by the sheer stupidity of the parent who wasn't there to supervise, didn't make sure the kid had a helmet or control unsafe riding. Far removed from our life.....Don't we have a responsibility to get it right not just for us but for them? If not us then who?
We need information - consistent and complete information of all injury and fatal accidents. We need a good reporting system to keep track and break down these reports. We need public announcements on the radio and TV stating the risk of kids riding unsupervised - the need for safety training and equipment. We need laws that will enable the police to address these incidents on public and private land... We need police to be committed to enforcement and funding for that. We need media that supports the efforts and promotes safety education rather than old footage of three wheeler crashes. Are outraged by the lack of supervision on an obviously risk associated sport when a child dies. We need them to push the importance of supervision. We need a comprehensive training program for youth. We need a strict enforcement of "best fit". We need the support from everyone involved to make it work and most of all we need us. It begins with us. For whatever reasons we have become something from nothing. Just a rag tag cross-section of very passionate people.
So roll up your sleeves and prepare to get to work. Senate Bill 49 is on the backburner, a distraction for now at best. I have an apt. with Devlin on the 20th. When I met him I liked him. He seems a very nice man wanting to do the right thing. Hopefully he will see why Senate Bill 49 needs to end as it is pulling our attention away from good progress. We are very strong and we have shown we can turn the heat up or down as one, just as we will do if Senate Bill 49 moves a hair.
Everyone who has written in with comments on the draft proposal is right in line with each other. It is amazing actually. Speak up with all your comments - we need the oppositional side of them too. We have had several really good suggestions that we hadn't considered. We don't plan on putting the draft out until we get a little closer- we have a lot of work to do first. The other concern is having it in the hands of someone else that will propose it without our group. I am finding our communications are spread far and wide and everyone is getting everything. This needs to come from us, we have earned it.
My mom just called - I guess my letter made it into the editorial at the Statesman Journal - Lindy