In the air, buckle up
Air turbulence injures 58 airplane passengers a year, according to an Associated Press story.
Any number of causes -- slippery bathtubs, for instance -- claim far more victims. But there's an easy way to prevent most of those accidents on planes. Even when the plane is cruising high and easy, passengers should keep their seat belts buckled.
That's a message airline attendants constantly preach, of course -- and a message that airline passengers largely ignore. Now that a passenger has been killed in a highly publicized incident on a United Airlines flight, the attendants may get more attention and the airlines may become more insistent that passengers heed the warning.
We'll add our voice on the side of the attendants. It can't hurt to keep your seat belt fastened as long as you are sitting. It can certainly hurt if you don't.