Power of People to Protect People


Power of People to Protect People

December, 2016

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
Power of People to Protect People
Legal Reader has published an article that I authored “Power Of People To Protect People”.  See http://www.legalreader.com/power-of-people-to-protect-people/ This article was inspired by the lifetime of safety work by:  *  Clarence Ditlow:  See his presentation at http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=16672 *  Joan Claybrook:  See her presentation at http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=17360 *  Ralph Nader:  See his presentation and many others at his Conference “Breaking Through Power” at  https://www.breakingthroughpower.org/    The Graphic of Lady Justice was inspired by the writings of Marianne Karth, a mother of two daughters tragically killed in a crash that should have been prevented by regulations on truck under-ride guards delayed for decades.  See http://annaleahmary.com/2016/12/road-to-zero-coalition-considers-priority-actions-to-reduce-traffic-fatalities/  Lady Justice Graphic is available to the public for free use with attribution to Legal Reader and the artist Neil F. Angeles.
Never underestimate the power of people – especially crash survivors and victims – to protect other people.   *  Cally Houck, mother who lost two daughters in a recalled but unfixed rental car.  Seehttp://www.corporatecrimereporter.com/news/200/ben-kelley-on-death-by-rental-car/ *  Stella Gurr, mother who lost a son in a 15 passenger vehicle crash.  Seehttp://blog.vanangels.ca/2015/03/mothers-say-changes-to-motor-vehicle.html. *  Laura Christian, mother who lost her daughter in a GM vehicle with a defective ignition switch.  See http://www.gmrecallsurvivors.com/  They also inspire and continue to work to save others because they suffered losses to vehicle violence.
Presidential Power Failure
The record of Presidential failures to protect people dictates that we the people have to step up and use our power.

The Power of People was written as Americans approach the end of 8 years of one Administration with a tragically disappointing auto safety record with a NHTSA  estimated  251,647 deaths due to vehicle violence under President Obama from 2009 through the first six months of 2016.   NHTSA data shows that the number of motor vehicle related deaths is accelerating and estimated to increase an additional 10% approaching an Obama legacy of 270,000 vehicle deaths.  See https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812332

Nader and Ditlow told us so.  See https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/29/opinion/weak-oversight-deadly-cars.html

President Obama failed year after year to adopt a Vision Zero Goal despite petitions of the American people.  The Swedish Parliament adopted Vision Zero in 1997.  Seehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vision_Zero
Powers of People – Needed Now More Than Ever
Daily losses due to vehicle violence in the U.S.A. today: 
*  100 deaths
*  400 serious injuries
*  $2 Billion
This is at a time when we have more technologies available to achieve an end to vehicle violence in or by new vehicles in a decade than ever before in human history.

Now as we face an incoming Administration that is talking more about the problems of regulations on business than about the problems of deaths and injuries to people, we need to begin anew conversations about what people can do to protect people.   Ralph Nader warns us of the Trump people and policies that we face.   Seehttp://www.eurasiareview.com/27122016-ralph-nader-tripwires-for-the-trumpsters-oped/

Lou Lombardo

 

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