DVXuser Tai Helmet Fund

Kirk Gillock

Kirk Gillock

Rebel with a cause
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Last week two more of my Thai students died in two seperate motorcycle accidents. Right in front of the school. The police do nothing because the schools "told" them to never give tickets to students for not wearing helmets. Even though it's the law, it saves lives, and they give tickets to adults.


Yesterday, after some very long meetings, I was able to convince the schools and Chief of Police to start giving tickets to teenagers. In a few weeks we will have the police come to educate the students and then police will begin giving tickets to students who are not wearing helmets.


Along with this, I am trying to raise funds to buy motorcycle helmets for Thai students. Helmets only cost $3.25 each, so ALOT of good can be done with very little money.

If you would like to buy a few helmets and help protect the lives of young people in a developing country, please PM me or visit http://www.laundryday.com/about/helmets.htm

100% of every dollar will go to a helmet. Thank you DVXusers. Together we can make a HUGE difference. Yo JOE!! :cheesy:
 
PK, sorry to hear the bad news. It's pretty much the same way in Cambodia. Some people just don't learn. They need to be educated. I'm sending you money order tommorrow and money for your book as well. Keep up the good work!
 
Easier. I had to wait three weeks plus for my battery. Maybe I should have ordered a T-shirt just to make it fair?
 
Thank you VERY much Isaac, Jarred, Bluespider, Terry, and Galt. I spoke with the dealership today, they are going to give me an estimate on the cost of helmets tomorrow. I'm hoping to get a discount. When we donate the helmets (in about 2 weeks) I'll be sure and take photos and post them here.

Thanks again! Every bit helps.
PK
 
PK, I'm sorry to hear about the accidents involving your students. It is good to know that you're over there to act as a steward and mentor for these kids! How many helmets do you estimate that you need?

e
 
Sorry to hear when someone is killed on a motorcycle. I ride a Harley Davidson and almost never wear a helmet. Sometimes at night or in the rain. I probably should more but I believe it should be a choice to wear one or not to wear one. I don't think the police should give out tickets for not wearing one.
I think we need more training on motorcycles, educate people driving to be more aware of motorcycles. Most motorcycles accidents here in the US involve alchohol or riding to fast.

$2.50 for a helmet? I have one helmet that is DOT approved. $100.00. Another that is DOT and Snell approved it was close to $200.00. A $2.50 probably won't do a bit of good. It is a great idea to buy helmets for people who want them but you might as well give out a few that will really work. A helmet is made to absorbe the force of a blow. Once it's done that the helmet is no good. Cheap helmets are no good at all and a lot of them are just for looks. Maybe helmet are just cheaper over there but $2.50?
 
have a friend who was just in Thailand and was amazed that it was not uncommon to see a family of 4 riding together on a motorcycle just like your picture. really scary stuff.
 
Zim - I understand your point about it should be a choice. I believe that too. BUT I also believe that some people have not been educated enough to make an educated decision or educated choice.

Making people wear seatbelts in the US worked. It saved lives and the people saved probably aren't complaining about choice. People didn't want to wear them at first (I didn't), but now most feel uncomfortable not wearing a seatbelt (I do.) And I bet, if they removed the seatbelt law and gave Americans a choice, most would now wear them because they've been educated and they've seen that it works. I feel the same program could work for Thailand. Show them what life is like with helmets. Have the police do their job. ...And then, decades from now, let them make an educated choice on what they want to do.

Yes, there are different quality helmets. The most expensive being $15 and that's the full face, racing helmet. Nice! The point is not the helmet itself. The point is to get Thai people to start caring about life. Once they start to realize that life is important then they will start to care more about education, equality of the sexes, corruption, the environment, and everything else that we take for granted. A cheap helmet can get the ball rolling.

Things to Think about:
- Thailand has NO social security system. Children typically support the entire family. Young boys are the main bread winners and are also the #1 demographic killed in accidents. Every student that dies keeps a family poor and hurts Thailand. Protect the children, even if it means making them wear something they don't want to wear, and the overall population will grow and develop.

- Riding a Harley on a US road is VERY different from riding one here. There are no rules here or atleast the police don't enforce them. It's every motorcycle for himself. If everyone drove safely then we wouldn't need to wear a helmet. But safety is not a concern here, yet. They are still developing.

- 99% of students and teachers drive motorcycles or ride with their friends. Because of school uniforms (skirts), girls typically ride side-saddle. Another reason to wear a helmet, they're riding freakin side saddle! A difficult task even for circus performers. :)

Sorry, I tend to ramble about issues that bother me. So here's another photo. It's my college's parking lot.

motorbikes.jpg


-pk
 
Overland Films - I want to eventually donate 1,000 helmets to a few different schools here (junior high, high school, and college level). I'm hoping similar programs can be developed in other regions where things are even worse.

Barry_S - Thank you for your donation. That will help a lot!

And thank you to everyone else who has already donated or given words of support (which helps just as much as money).

pk
 
Today I found a great price on a nicer style helmet. It's what I use. The padding is strong and it's got a plastic visor, which is very important to have because of the amount of dust, sand, and bugs in the air. Also, it has a quick fastner (like a seatbelt) which is great too. A lot of people just place helmets on their head and don't even fasten it.

This new style is cooler and will appeal to the students more.

helmet.jpg


Normally this helmet is about $4, but I was able to talk them down to $3.25. Do you think it's worth it?
 
I think the better helmet is worth it, since those who do get one would have more incentive to actually use it, and the dust shield will make their experience much less troublesome. Tough call really, weighing number of people helped v/s quality of help per person. I say ask the monk from Romance Is Dead and see what wisdom he offers.
 
P.K. I sent a Pay-pal payment hope it helps. Look for one from mbchambers4 I hope it helps,
Scott C.
P.S. Thanks for caring !
 
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