I am writing in support of the mandatory motorcycle helmet law. I rode motorcycles for years where I grew up in Maryland, enjoying the wind blowing through my hair and feeling one with nature. One day in 1970, I was downtown and was going to ride home on the back of a friend's bike. It was the first day that the mandatory helmet law had been passed so we spent an extra half-hour going to a friend's house and borrowing a helmet for me. On the way home, going around a hairpin turn in the road through a scenic public park at 35 mph, we had a blow-out in our rear tire. Although I had 70-some stitches in my leg and a nasty headache, the "mandatory," borrowed helmet saved my life when we collided head-on with a car going the same speed.

If the government is the organization responsible for the care and maintenance of our streets, then I believe they have the right to legislate how we protect our lives on them.

Berni Crawford

Bellingham