“Just last month 20 people in our state lost their lives to drowning,” says Secretary of Health Mary Selecky in a statement sent a few minutes ago. “Preventing a drowning tragedy starts by making sure that everyone playing, swimming, or boating in or near the water is wearing a life jacket—period, no exceptions.”
Twenty people? Just last month?!
Washington has over 120 life jacket loaner stations, where you can borrow a life jacket for the day, and they’re listed here. Think of it as a condom to protect your lungs from water. Or don’t. But wear a life jacket and don’t drown. I don’t want you to drown.
life jackets are for pussies
Dominic,
That’s quite a sobering stat. I wonder how many people were killed riding their bike in a month in Washington state? At least wo were killed in one week just a week ago.
BTW, I also read that Yosemite National Park in California has had 14 (!) fatalities this year so far.
Wow.
I support water safety, but “everyone playing, swimming, or boating in or near the water is wearing a life jacket–period” is koo-koo. It suggests that Ms. Selecky does not in fact know what the word “swimming” even means.
@3 – precisely – the overprotectiveness craze has gone totally off the deep end here. and Dominic, really? aren’t you being a bit alarmist here? Can you imagine how silly it would look at Madison beach with all those fine bodies confined to paddling around with a life jacket on? Have you ever tried to make any forward progress through the water with a life jacket on? It’s designed to hold your head high and back – not so much to move – it looks and feels silly.
Here’s an idea – LEARN TO SWIM if you’re going in the water. If you don’t want to or can’t, stay in shallow water. That should cover 98% – for the rest, fine, strap ’em in.. but really the idea of everyone in the water wearing a life jacket is completely ridiculous.
My parents just bought a house with a pool. I better get a life jacket.
People drown in the bathtub, too. Better get lifejackets for everyone.
One should know that apparently drowning doesn’t look like drowning: http://gcaptain.com/drowning/?10981
@7 rara avis–wow, thank you for that link.
@7. That was actually interesting and informative. Thank you!
anyone who asks me to wear a life jacket while i’m swimming is officially invited to go fuck themselves.
I don a Mae West to shower each morning.
For the record, I agree with fnarf–and others–that wearing a life vest when swimming in, say, calm water is hilariously unnecessary. Personally, though, I wear one when I shave, but only while the water’s running.
@12, calm water? Have you ever played in the surf? Boogie-boarded? Surfed? Have you ever even seen a picture of anyone surfing with a life jacket on? Other than lunatics like Laird Hamilton being towed into 60-foot waves, that is?
@13 awesome closer w/ the laird hamilton reference!
Considering how many morons ‘forget’ to use condoms, probably not the best analogy.
This is what some people in the medical field callously refer to as “transplant season” because drowning victims make perfect organ donors.
Yeah. The second leading cause of death for kids ages 1 – 14 is real funny. Asswipes.
I also wear a snorkel when I’m in the back yard. There’s a kiddie pool for the dogs, and you never know, I might fall in, unconscious, face first & drown. Even when mowing the grass or gardening, thirty or forty yards from the pool, is, I think “near” the water, and you can’t be too careful!