Originally Posted by
docmonkey
Why would it be crazy to take an infant on a flight without a car seat? Seems rational to me. Don't you think the money spent on the plane ticket for the infant could be much more effectively used by putting it toward installation of fire sprinklers in the home where your child sleeps?
Do you carry your infant on an escalator without a car seat? Stairs? Is it absolutely crazy to do so? Is it any more dangerous than taking your infant on a flight without a car seat?
I think it would be crazy for my child, but I acknowledge that many (most?) people don't think that. Everybody has different risk tolerance for themselves and their children. Affecting that risk tolerance include how you perceive the likelihood of the event, and the marginal value of a dollar, etc.
I would guess that the data are on your side,my above hyperbole aside. Studies show that people tend to overemphasize very low probability events (i.e. we have a very hard time understanding that something with a .005 percent chance is 100 times less likely than something with a .5 percent chance).
My point is that it would be silly to legislate something that would make us worse off. If we are free to put the kid in a seat now and don't do it, then making us do it would necessarily make us worse off.