It seems that fate is indeed not without a sense of irony. A New Zealand man with a history of fines for 32 seatbelt violations died in a car accident last week. Death came as a result of injuries incurred when he struck the steering wheel after crossing the center line and colliding head on with an oncoming vehicle. The coroners report makes note of...
a fake seatbelt which was installed in such a way as to be laid across the chest, thus fooling passing motorists and police into believing he was wearing the safety device properly. The coroner went on to say the likelihood of survival was quite high, had the man been using the ubiquitous restraint. We're left wondering two things. First, do you imagine the last thing through his mind was a realization of the necessity of seatbelts? And two, how high this fellow will be on the 2008 Darwin Awards nomination list. [International Herald Tribune]