THE AIM/NCOM MOTORCYCLE E-NEWS SERVICE is brought to you by Aid to Injured Motorcyclists (A.I.M.) and the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), and is sponsored by the Law Offices of Richard M. Lester. For more information, call us at 1-(800) ON-A-BIKE or visit us on our website at http://www.ON-A-BIKE.com.

NCOM NEWS BYTES
Compiled & Edited by Bill Bish,
National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM)

EUROPE QUESTIONS THE ROLE FOR MOTORCYCLE “TOYS” ON PUBLIC ROADS
A leading EU transport "expert" has questioned whether there is any place for motorcycles on Europe's roads. In an official report from the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC), Norwegian Rune Elvik says: "In Norway, I believe all the most cost effective measures have been implemented - mandatory helmet use, strict licensing, engine tuning ban, daytime running lights for motorbikes. The question that needs to be raised now is whether there should be any place for these motorized toys in the transport system at all."

On December 21, 2007 the Flemish Parliament in Belgium was presented with the ETSC report as a basis for legislation on motorcycle safety. However the Motorcycle Action Group (MAG) Belgium, with the support of Members of Parliament, defended the riders' position by using the Federation of European Motorcyclists Associations' (FEMA), European Agenda for Motorcycle Safety, which highlights the importance of finding real solutions to improve the casualty rates for motorcyclists.

As a direct result of MAG Belgium's action, the ETSC report was rejected and instead, MAG Belgium's motorcycle-friendly program was adopted.

Motorcycle Action Group (MAG-UK) General Secretary, Trevor Baird, said, "Motorcycling is under constant threat from the European safety agenda. The introduction of this agenda has been thwarted in Belgium before it spreads further like a rash across Europe. MAG will continue to protect motorcycling and defend riders' rights from whatever quarter the threat comes."

MOTORCYCLE BAN ON PHILIPPINE ROADWAYS
Philippine lawmakers want motorcycles banned on main roads and highways, despite being the being the most common means of transportation in the island nation.

House Bill No. 3080 filed by Reps. Narciso D. Santiago III (Party-list, ARC) and Marcelino R. Teodoro (1st Dist., Marikina City, Lakas-CMD) seeks to prohibit motorcyclists from using major public thoroughfares.

According to Santiago, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that in many countries in Asia including the Philippines, deaths and injuries from motorcycle accidents are now considered a “Public Health Epidemic.”

Dr. Soe Nyunt-U, WHO Representative to the Philippines also told a forum of the Department of Health on Road Safety that a helmet law would be the most effective way to reduce head injuries and fatalities from motorcycle and bicycle crashes. “Road traffic crashes are the second leading cause of injury and death for all ages such that motorcyclists should wear helmets while on the road.”

Health Undersecretary for Health Operations Dr. Ethelyn Nieto supported the statement
of Nyunt-U that helmet usage is vital to road safety. “Road safety is a must with 3.5 million motorcycles in the country,” said Nieto. Records showed that motorcycles are now the third most registered vehicles next to cars at 66.3 percent.

SAFER CYCLING, REPORTS GOVERNMENT STUDY
According to the Compendium of Motorcycle Statistics, released by the UK Department of Transport in December 2007 – an annual set of figures released by the British government - motorcycle traffic rose by 37% from 1996-2006 while the number of killed or seriously injured (KSI) accidents increased by just 8% (from 5,717 in 1996 to 6,151 in 2006).

The report also noted that speeding was only a minor cause of motorcycle crashes, repeating earlier findings showing that exceeding the speed limit is put down as a contributory factor – and even then not necessarily as the main cause – of just four percent of bike crashes where some blame is put on the rider.

The biggest factor is “failure to look properly”, a contributory factor in 15 percent of motorcycle crashes, followed by “loss of control” at 14 percent and “failed to judge other persons path or speed” at 11 percent. “Careless, reckless or in a hurry” also rates at 11 percent, but this doesn’t mean actually breaking the speed limit.

Despite UK Government figures showing as many as 25 percent of riders go more than 10mph over posted speed limits, “Exceeding the speed limit” was jointly rated as the bottom contributory factor, alongside “following too close”, also at four percent.

Other information in the report includes the fact that motorcycle riders are less likely than other road users to drink and drive, with just 1.5 percent of those tested failing breath tests, against an average of 1.9 percent for all road users.

INJURY REPORT SHOWS ALL-TERRAIN VEHICLES NOT CHILD’S PLAY
All-terrain vehicles (ATVs) pose a serious risk of injury and even death, according to the largest study ever conducted of ATV injuries in children. The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).

"Our experience shows that children's use of ATVs is dangerous and should be restricted," said Chetan C. Shah, M.D., radiology fellow at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock.

While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age of 16 be prohibited from operating ATVs, no laws are in place in most states. ATV accidents are seldom reported because the vehicles are unlicensed and typically operated off-road or on private land.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), ATV-related injuries in children under the age of 16 more than doubled from 1995 to 2005 with 40,400 children treated in hospital emergency rooms nationwide in 2005. This figure represents nearly one-third of all ATV-related injuries treated that year. Child fatalities resulting from ATV accidents have also nearly doubled since 1995 with 120 reported deaths in 2005.

ATV-associated injuries can be caused by crashes, rollovers, ejections or even disregard of simple safety precautions. But according to Dr. Shah, ATV use by children is intrinsically dangerous because of the instability of the vehicles and the small size of children. While reducing the size and power of the vehicles and wearing helmets and protective clothing might limit some of the injuries, there still remains the issue of whether children should be riding ATVs at all.

"The question is a little like asking, 'How can we make motorcycle use safer for five-year-olds?'" Dr. Shah said. "The problem is that five-year-olds should not be using motorcycles under any circumstances."

CALIFORNIA INSTALLS FIRST-EVER STOP SIGN CAMERAS
While red light and speed cameras are creeping into our traffic system, California has installed the first-ever automated camera in the U.S. designed to ticket drivers who make "boulevard stops" or slow to a crawl at a stop sign without fully ceasing forward motion. The little-known Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority has begun issuing $100 fines long Franklin Canyon in the heart of Los Angeles, located off of Mulholland Drive, and another at the top of Topanga.

The cameras are being installed as a prelude to the park agency's expected installation of speed cameras on popular canyon roads, despite state law specifically prohibiting their use. In 2000, the California legislature banned photo radar (CVC 21455.6) and per-ticket photo enforcement contract provisions (CVC 21455.5), but the MRCA believes the law does not apply to them. “Our Park Rangers are California peace officers and will always have traffic enforcement as part of their duty," MRCA Director of Public Affairs Dash Stolarz said in a statement.

Australian camera vendor Redflex will operate every aspect of the program in return for a $20 cut from every ticket the company is able to issue.

The stop sign devices are based on red light camera platforms, but they differ greatly in use. The more familiar stoplight cameras typically photograph a vehicle entering an intersection if a signal light changes to red between 0.1 and 0.3 seconds after the car crosses a stop bar line. With the new stop sign cameras, a machine will make calculations to determine whether a vehicle did not stop for a long enough period and deserves a fine.

BIKER’S SON SNUBBED BY MILITARY
When Jessi Lenti was 8 years old, his father took him to Canada's Wonderland where he dressed up like a little soldier and posed with a toy gun. "Dad, this is what I want to do," his father, Frank Lenti, recalls him saying at the amusement park north of Toronto. Now 23, Jessi has been rejected from joining the Canadian military because of his father's long-time association with outlaw biker clubs.

"I'm the criminal, so why punish him?" asked his 60-year-old father, formerly of the Bandidos, Loners, Outlaws, Rebels, Diablos and Satan's Choice motorcycle clubs. Frank Lenti made his comments from the maximum-security wing of a Toronto-area jail.

Jessi's application for the military was supported by strong references from teachers. He also has a black belt in karate -- and no criminal record. "This is me," he said in an interview with the Toronto Star newspaper. "I'm myself. I'm not my father. Judge me for who I am."

He said he was shocked this summer when an officer in the Canadian Forces told him that he couldn't enlist because the Canadian Security Intelligence Service had concluded he was affiliated with organized crime. York Regional police Chief Armand La Barge said his force has never considered the young Lenti to have a criminal profile. "To the best of our knowledge, he has never been a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang and to the best of our knowledge, he has never been a member of an organized crime group or entity either," La Barge said.

Jessi, who has a black belt in karate -- and no criminal record -- is appealing his rejection to the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

Canadian military historian Jack Granatstein said he has never heard of a case in which the son of a motorcycle gang member has been denied membership in the military because of his family ties.

Frank Lenti had always tried to shield his son from his business; "I had a lot of fun but in the end you end up in a place like this," he said Frank Lenti, gesturing at the cinder-block jail walls.

Ironically, Frank Lenti said he opposes the war in Afghanistan, and shudders at the thought of his son risking his life there, should he win his appeal and get into the military. "Why should we fight their war?" the senior Lenti asked.

Jessi said that he had planned since grade school to enter the military. "I've always wanted to do it, to serve my country. It was going to be a lifetime plan."

WEIRD NEWS: VIETNAMESE BIKERS TERRORIZED BY ELEPHANTS
And you thought your local commute was bad… Three wild elephants that escaped from a wildlife preserve terrorized bikers in Vietnam, where motorcycles outnumber cars 9-1. The elephants crushed motorbikes in their path and stormed into residential houses.
In one reported attack, a biker transporting chickens had to abandon his motorcycle to escape, returning later to the carnage. "It was a frightening spectacle," said Nguyen Van Phong. "The motorbike was a pile of scrap iron and 20 birds were completely crushed in their cages. Nothing could prevent these animals from doing that."

Local authorities in Ha Tinh province said the wild elephants wandered out of Vu Quang national park during their mating season.

"We have not yet found out an effective preventative method," said chairman Phan Duc Cung. "Killing the animals is not possible. People must be cautious of elephants, taking the initiative to avoid them."

TOXIC TANNING
Imported leather products may be hazardous to your health, claims a December 29 report in the News Journal. With the reality of a global economy and different countries' approaches to regulation, cowboys, bikers and other leather consumers need to be more aware of practices overseas and the journeys their exotic hides have made.

"Most of the leather that's for motorcyclists is from Pakistan," said Barney McCarthy, owner of Barney's Leather on North Beach Street in Daytona Beach, Florida. In Pakistan, the leather is tanned with lead-based chromium, which can be an environmental concern. "Overseas in Pakistan or China, people are getting really sick; they just pour all the chemicals in the water and people drink it," he said.

Tanning is the process that turns skin, which can decompose, into leather. It's done using natural or chemical additives, or a combination of the two. Most American leather is tanned overseas, so even if a product says "Made in the USA," that may just mean assembled here with leather treated elsewhere.

"The (Environmental Protection Agency) governs how we treat leather here, but not what comes in," he said. "That's why China can make toys with lead paint and they can come in here, but we could never make (the toys) like that."

America produces "the best cowhide in the world," but it's generally sent overseas to tan because domestic tanneries couldn't stay open -- a few still work for shoe companies but that's all he knows of, McCarthy said. "People buying boots from China, I'm wondering if it's like putting on toxic shoes," he said.

QUOTABLE QUOTE: "One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors."
Plato (429-347 BC) Greek Philosopher, student of Socrates