Decades Of Deaths By Truck Underride

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
Marianne Karth has written an excellent article for Trucks.com.

“When Will We Tackle Underride? – The Hidden Dangers in Trucks”

See https://www.trucks.com/2016/08/10/trucks-underride-hidden-danger/

Almost every other day in the U.S.A. today someone is killed in a truck underride crash as counted by NHTSA.

Worry when you see a heavy truck on the road because NHTSA has failed to fix the problem for decades.  If you can see the truck, you are in danger – danger that NHTSA has not seen for too long for too many Americans.Inline image 1

Lou Lombardo

Decades of Deaths and Injuries By Design of Weak Seats

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Deaths and Injuries By Corporate Designs
The problem has been carefully and powerfully described in an excellent CBS video at http://www.cbsnews.com/news/seat-back-failures-injuries-deaths-auto-safety-experts-demand-nhtsa-action/

The video relied in part on the noble and diligent work of the Center for Auto Safety for decades to end these needless tragedies.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/blog/blog-seatbackfailuresresponsibility/

Some progressive political pressure grew but not enough to move the Obama Administration yet.  See

Yesterday, the Center for Auto Safety released additional information that continues to build the case for humane and moral action to end this vehicle violence.  The CAS found evidence of 327 deaths and 3,278 injuries since 2003 that NHTSA should have acted on.  The data shows Ford had the most deaths while GM had the most injuries.  See http://www.autosafety.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Supplemental-EWR-Letter.pdf
Decades of NHTSA Failures to Protect Americans Here
Where is the Obama Administration?  Defending shipment of $400 million in cash to Iran – apparently in part for 4 American hostages.  Compare $400 million to the 327 deaths valued at $9 million each using DOT policy value of a statistical life = $3 billion.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/crash-costs.php

Note the Obama Administration spends more than $100 million each year on vehicle safety research – but it is managed by former GM employees.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/blog-lastdecade.php
Resources Not Spent On Safety
Where are the Foundations?  The largest Gates spends 75% of our money overseas.  (Yes, I think of it as “our money” to some extent since it was made here in the U.S.A. and tax sheltered here for years.)
Imagine how many lives would have been saved if the Center for Auto Safety over the past 40 years had a budget of $10 million each year (actually it is far less than $1 million).
Note the Obama Administration spends more than $100 million each year on vehicle safety research – but it is managed by former GM employees.  And because of the freely spinning DOT Revolving Door by too many past, present, and future corporate servants.
Under Obama, American taxpayers bailed out automakers, but Obama has overseen scandals at NHTSA and an estimated 250,000 deaths by the end of this year here in the U.S.A.  Currently, vehicle violence is resulting in 100 deaths + 400 serious injuries and an estimated cost of $2 billion every average day in the U.S.A. today.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/MonthlyReportforJanuary2016-Corrected.pdf
Lou Lombardo

____________________Lou Lombardowww.CareForCrashVictims.com

Forbes Offers Blind Spot Crash Avoidance Technique Free

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

A good article on how people can avoid blind spot accidents has been published by Forbes.

This is a Mirror Adjustment technique that I have used for decades and have taught my children and grandchildren.  See

This is one little known thing we can do to be safer.
Lou Lombardo

____________________Lou Lombardowww.CareForCrashVictims.com

Four Million Reasons To Sign Petition That May Save Your Life

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

A Mom and Grandmother who lost two young daughters in a crash, Marianne Karth and her family, have started another petition to get President Obama to do his job of protecting us all here at home in the U.S.A. today.  Her petition to end preventable deaths by vehicle violence is easily accomplished.  She simply asks for the appointment of a Traffic Safety Ombudsman to pursue reasonable and effective safety policies.  Seehttp://annaleahmary.com/2016/08/new-care2-petition-to-end-preventable-crash-deaths-appoint-a-traffic-safety-ombudsman/

If anything has been learned in recent years, it is that the Federal government, now captive of corporate powers, has failed us all. See http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/29/opinion/weak-oversight-deadly-cars.html?_r=0

Today we are on a path to counting our 4 millionth fatality due to vehicle violence in the coming decade.  See

https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/MonthlyReportforJanuary2016-Corrected.pdfWhen government is not doing its job of providing for our safety, the Declaration of Independence says that it is up to us all.
That is what the Karth family is doing and they deserve the support of all Americans.
Please consider signing and sharing their petition.
And note this woman’s exploration of the tragedies of vehicle violence and what can be done to end such violence is inspirational.  I recommend people read her work as she asks the important humane questions of the governance that has failed us all for decades.
Lou Lombardo

____________________Lou Lombardowww.CareForCrashVictims.com

Freedom of Information Act After 50 Years

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Michael R. Lemov, author of “Car Safety Wars” and of “People’s Warrior”, has noted the 50th Anniversary of the Freedom of Information Act in a piece carried by The Detroit News.

Lemov wrote:“It is now 50 years since Congressman John Moss’ greatest triumph, the Freedom of Information Act. Since then, the law has been improved here and adopted, in one form or another, in over 100 countries….

As I interviewed Moss for a book about his life, I asked whether the Freedom of Information Act had been all he hoped for. “If you ask me if we are better off now than before we passed it,” he said, “I would definitely say yes. If you ask me are we where we should be on open government, I would say, not by a long shot. … The battle never ends.”

Lemov is right to remind us all of Rep. Moss’ “The battle never ends.”
Paul Fletcher, the recent President of the Society of Professional Journalists, noted the 50th anniversary in Quill as follows:

“PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICERS. In December, I led a group to the White House, where we spoke with President Obama’s press secretary, Josh Earnest, on behalf of 53 journalism organizations.

The topic: The trend by public information officers at federal agencies to prevent journalists from doing their jobs and getting information to the American people. The problem has gotten worse, not better, under the “most transparent administration in history,” which is what the president called for the day after his inauguration in 2009.

PIOs have become a stifling pinchpoint for information, or in the case where interviews actually are allowed, minders who seek to make sure that the company line is preserved.

Earnest was cordial and the conversation was candid. But we haven’t seen any follow-up as the Obama administration plays out the clock.

I choose to be an optimist on a daily basis, but this problem is only going to get worse. And it doesn’t matter which candidate wins the presidential election in November.

FIX FOIA by 50. Finally, this was a big one. SPJ is a member of the Sunshine in Government Initiative, a combine of nine journalist and open-government groups. SGI worked tirelessly on behalf of the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, a measure that passed both houses of Congress unanimously. “Fix FOIA by 50” was the mantra, seeking passage of the bill before the 50th anniversary of the act’s initial passage.

The bill brings FOIA into the 21st century; among other reforms, it allows for electronic requests and requires electronic documents to be created. There will be a single online portal to submit FOIA requests to agencies. It establishes, by statute, a presumption of openness in our government.

President Obama signed the bill on June 30, just a few days before July 4, the day President Lyndon Johnson signed the first FOIA in 1966. We fixed FOIA by 50, and we gave America a little something extra to celebrate on Independence Day this year.”  See http://blogs.spjnetwork.org/president/2016/08/09/the-last-roundup/

Lou Lombardo

____________________Lou Lombardowww.CareForCrashVictims.com

Democratic Party DRAFT Platform Gun Violence Prevention YES But Vehicle Violence Prevention NO

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

The DRAFT Democrat Platform contains the following subjects:

    • “Ensure the Health and Safety of All Americans
    • Universal Health Care
    • Community Health Centers
    • Prescription Drug Costs
    • Medical Research
    • Drug and Alcohol Addiction
    • Mental Health
    • Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice
    • Public Health
    • Violence Against Women and Sexual Assault
On page 25 one can read:“Gun Violence Prevention
With 33,000 Americans dying every year, Democrats believe that we must finally take sensible
action to address gun violence. While gun ownership is part of the fabric of many communities,
too many families in America have suffered from gun violence. We can respect the rights of
responsible gun owners while keeping our communities safe. We will expand background checks
and close dangerous loopholes in our current laws, hold irresponsible dealers and manufacturers
accountable, keep weapons of war—such as assault weapons—off our streets, and ensure guns
do not fall into the hands of terrorists, domestic abusers, other violent criminals, and those with

severe mental health issues.”

Hmnn…. Both are important.  But NHTSA has recorded a 9.3 % increase in fatalities in early 2015 to a level of nearly 35,000 Americans dying every year now.  In addition, every day nearly twice as many Americans suffer serious injuries such as brain and spinal cord paralysis due to vehicle violence than to gun violence.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/blog/blog-gunviolenceandvehicleviolencethoughtsonfathersday2016/So why are Democrats so silent on ending vehicle violence?Campaign finance money?Automotive (Dems & Reps): $15 million See https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/

Gun Control (Dems): $1.7 million in 2015   See  https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=Q12Gun Rights (Republicans): $11 million in 2015  See  https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/indus.php?ind=Q13

So what are Americans who are concerned with ending vehicle violence to do this election year?
Lou

____________________Lou Lombardowww.CareForCrashVictims.com