From: Frank Sayre <sayre@ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu>
Subject: Re: accepting risk (was speed traps on 2222)
Organization: Vanderbilt University Computer Center
X-Useragent: Nuntius v1.1
Date: Thu, 5 Nov 1992 20:00:49 GMT



>Newsgroups: austin.general
>Path:
news.Vanderbilt.Edu!vuse.vanderbilt.edu!uunet!decwrl!hal.com!halaus!ables
>From: ables@hal.com (King Ables)
>Subject: Re: accepting risk (was speed traps on 2222)
>Message-ID: <1992Nov5.150831.24700@hal.com>
>Organization: HaL Computer Systems, Inc.
>References: <21813@rpp386.lonestar.org>
>Distribution: austin
>Date: Thu, 5 Nov 1992 15:08:31 GMT
>Lines: 33
>
>From article <21813@rpp386.lonestar.org>, by jfh@rpp386.lonestar.org (John
F. Haugh II):
>> 
>> Think about it.  The danger behind not riding a motorcycle is that you
>> might get maimed and no longer be able to ride a motorcycle.  So you just
>> skip the maimed part and go straight to not riding the motorcycle.  This
>> is supposed to be a smart idea ...
>
>While I agree with the spirit of your statement, which is that the cure is
>sometimes as bad as the ailment, this particular comparison is kind of silly,
>don't you think?  I mean, if my choice is one of:
>
>	a) I won't ride a motorcycle and I'll be maimed
>	b) I won't ride a motorcycle and I'll *not* be maimed
>
>then I'm gonna pick b) every time.
>
>Yes, this is simplistic, too.  This whole discussion is pointless becuase
>everyone's risk level is different.  Hell, I drive on 183 almost every
>day, what does that say about *my* risk acceptance?  ;-)
>
>If you are willing to take more risks than someone else, then enjoy the
>fact that you will have more exhilarating experiences than some others.
>But don't put them down for not caring about those particular experiences
>enough to take the risk.  A long and healthy life is important to some,
>too, and it's a perfectly reasonable thing for which to strive.  We don't
>all have to be "pushing the envelope" in everything we do.

To carry this a little further, I'd add that risk/exhilaration take many
forms.  If you happen to have kids, just think back to the moment of their
birth. Now, there's risk AND exhilaration pretty tightly bound up. And the
risk goes on and on and on, as anyone who has accompanied his/her child 
to the emergency room knows. (Of course, the exhilaration tends to 
fluctuate.)

Now I don't presume to speak for anyone's spouse or children, but I
strongly suspect that there are a few of them who are grateful when
we choose to be satisfied with life "as it is" with those whom we've
committed our lives to love and take care of... i.e. children, spouses, 
parents, friends, whomever.

Perhaps I missed it, but nowhere along the line have I seen mention of 
the fact that risking your life at high speed NEARLY INVARIABLY 
involves putting someone else at risk, such as your parents, children, 
or friends who stand to lose by your loss. To say nothing of others on 
the highway who just happened to be at the wrong place when you came
barreling down the road, like Mr. Ansley's wife who lost her life to a
speeder on 2222 (which, BTW, was where the "risk/exhilaration" part 
of this thread all started).  

On another subject, if Lance Bledsoe happens to read this: your barbecue
and potato salad parody was a real breath of fresh air for a Texan in exile
in Tennessee. Thanks.

==================================================================
Frank C. Sayre
sayre@ctrvax.vanderbilt.edu
Newsgroups: austin.general