Yes, believe it or not, up until 1984 there were absolutely no laws stating you needed to wear seat belts while riding or driving a car. That’s the year that a law that made it mandatory, I guess they finally thought it was a good idea.

I remember seeing commercials, everyone talking about it, and even seeing public service announcements like this one:

Up to that point, you could play in the back seat, jump over the seats to the back or even lay on the floor while the car was careening down the road. It was quite fun, but super dangerous.

The most ironic thing was, just because they passed the law it didn’t mean that every car even had seat belts! The law was just so new that I guess it took a while to enact.

I do remember riding in my grandparents’ car. They would just put up the arm rest and I would sit in middle fron bench seat with just no restraints. I’m surprised I’m still alive to tell the tale!

11 thoughts on “Events of the Analog Age: The Seat Belt Law

  1. JarMan says:

    god damn, that commercial brings back memories!

    1. gabe says:

      Ha! Awesome! I was looking for others, but thought this was the best.

  2. Savage says:

    When my brother and I were small enough, we’d run back and forth across the back seat, while my folks were driving.

  3. knuxkitsune says:

    Does anyone else here remember riding in the back window by the speakers?

    1. gabe says:

      My Dad had a van where he installed 6 speakers. We would lay down on the carpet in the back because there weren’t any back seats!

  4. I don’t know if anyone noticed, but I realized that the vehicles in the flintsones have to be VERY difficult to drive. How hell do you even turn? Plus the steering wheal was pretty much useless.

    1. JarMan says:

      Tell me about it, plus, those cars had to have weighed hundreds if not a thousand pounds!

    2. gabe says:

      It is crazy! I mean, how can they even start it, just to get those rocks rolling?! It’s like a wooden fork balanced on stonehenge rocks!

  5. SalomonFenix says:

    Very curious Gabe

  6. Chris Sobieniak says:

    I recall ABC use to play this PSA long after “The Flintstone Kids” was already off the network!

    Where I grew up, Ohio didn’t have a strict seatbelt law at all but Michigan did, so whenever we drove across the state line, I can recall my mom telling me to put mine on (we live just a half mile from the border and often did stuff up there).

  7. Gaff says:

    Dammit, I remember that song! That ad used to play all the time when I was watching my cartoons.

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