A cautionary tale

The picture on the front page of today's Bermuda Sun was undeniably shocking. It showed 17 year-old Dejon Simmons, after the accident that left him with third degree burns to 90% of his body.

Mr. Simmons' accident occured while he was speeding on a stolen bike; his story is now the subject of a documentary to be aired tomorrow (Thursday) evening. "I don't want nobody to go what I've been through or what my mom's been through," said Mr. Simmons, explaining his reasons for wanting his story to be told.

Certainly it's difficult to imagine anyone looking at his picture and not thinking twice about their own behaviour on the roads. Transport Minister Dr. Ewart Brown recently described the way that some people ride their motorbikes as more suited to a "circus environment". He was right to do so. I am frequently overtaken by bikes on the inside, or see them speeding past in the "third lane", their riders often sitting side-saddle, one foot scraping along the road. It's a wonder that more are not killed.

Will Mr. Simmons' story have any lasting impact on riding behaviour in Bermuda? I don't know. I just hope that as many people as possible watch it, and that the parents of any teenagers make them watch it too. It may not make for comfortable viewing, but if it can save the life or prevent the disfigurement of even one person, it's surely worth it.

The documentary airs at 8pm tomorrow (Thursday) evening on all local channels. Mr. Simmons' website, which gives further details of his ordeal, can be found here.

Comments

[Big Bad Wolf ^..^ on 30.11.05 at 23:48]

His tale will freeze a few minds for a brief moment.Sorry but the lesson occurs when you and your bike part company.Young people feel invincible and one of the ways they thumb their noses at authority and the general boredom of Bermudian life is by playing Russian roulette.The promo has it right with the bikes passing at speed into corners.Nothing will change but maybe if just one or two young people take it seriously beyond the shock of the moment....they may live to see twenty.

[Denis on 30.11.05 at 23:54]

I caught Mr. Simmons' story on the radio the other morning along along with comments from Dr. Brown.

My heart truly goes out to him as certainly I would wish his ordeal on noone. I truly commend him for having the courage to share his story so other Bermudians so we can associate with the risks of our sometimes reckless actions.

The question of bikes on the road poses another. What is being done about traffic? I had to ride into town early this morning for a meeting and both harbour and middle roads were backed up all the way to warwick with cars. I watched as many bikes of obviously young school kids wizzing past, some taking blind corners with no regard for their own safety.

I certainly do not want to draw attention away from the story of this unfortunate boy. However this begs me to ask the question. Does not a small part of the blame for the lack of safety go out to all the people who drive cars in alone?

Its our nature to always take the path of least resistance. So it comes as no surprise to me that youth forgo safety for a quicker trip to school, which likely also produces many bike accidents on our roads.

Should we not be doing something to get more cars off the road? Perhaps we need to introduce manditory car pooling during certain hours of entering and leaving town via major roads, policed by random checks.

It may put strain on our already stretched police force but random stops in the morning and fines given to those who don't find someone to carpool with might make a difference and encourage more to take alternative means.

Certainly we all know somebody we could be sharing with rather then congesting our roads and making things more dangerous?

[bda youth on 01.12.05 at 00:12]

it hurts to see stories and pictures like this b/c as a youth in bermuda (only 20yrs old) i've had 3 friends die because of traffic related accidents. my friend, scott "sprocket" kozma, died earlier this year b/c a paddy wagon struck him through a cross road. i honestly just want to see people my age grow up and respect that their lives are at stake. i want them to realize that they can be hurt! even though you feel untouchable, there are soo many people our age dying! god bless those who have survived

[Sal Monilla on 01.12.05 at 02:54]

Unfortunately - it will do little or nothing at all...

Young people today are wilder, more defiant & rebellious than any generation before them. Most think videos & music is a REAL environment and respect for all things & authority is at an all-time low.

Like drugs and guns, their popularity only continues to grow - even in the face of death & destruction.

Young people live in the best times and want for little , they have far too much free time and learn little of responsiblity, nobility & integrity. Only when something so terrible & tragic occurs (Like a nuclear detonation, natural disaster or pandemic) will they stop and see that the world - and by extension, what they believe to be important is really a fantasy.

[VB on 01.12.05 at 09:39]

Even as a parent of a bike riding teenager I find it difficult to find sympathy for this young man. The bike was stolen. The teenage grapevine says that the bike did not have a gastank top, just a rag stuck in the hole &, to make matters even worse, the gas had an additive in it for greater performance making the fuel much more flamable. He was riding a two wheeled molotov cocktail & he did it by his own choice. Nobody forced him onto that bike at gunpoint.

There was another horrific crash (there is no such thing as an accident) this past Sat night. Another teenager. Alcohol involved. Injured another innocent road user.

What will it take to stop the madness? Certainly not a halfhour TV program forgotten in a day or two.

Here is a novel idea. How about some real police presence on the road? Where the hell are they? Pay them on a basic salary plus commision basis. They get a portion of the fines levied on those convicted. Make sure that the cost of operating the traffic division is covered by the fines of those who actually use that division i.e. those who cannot abide by basic road rules & common sense.

Why should I pay? I have not had a crash or been caught (not that I have not) speeding in over 20 years.

To those on bikes who like to ride the third lane, I hope we never meet especially going in the opposite direction. I drive a truck. Think about it. Your few hundred pounds verses my thousands of pounds. I will not move over & risk hitting my side on a wall for you. I don't care if you live or die. It is your choice.

[Denis on 01.12.05 at 09:59]

San Monilla,

A great review of the current pandemic we have to face from today's youth.

This is not just a Bermuda problem, it is apparent throughout the developed world.

Being a youth myself, I directly attribute it to the lack of responsibility placed upon parents to educate and raise their children properly.

Society has cracked down so hard on enforcing the "rights" of individuals that we've all tied our hands behind our backs and obsolved ourselves of any real responsibility. Teachers have no power, neither do police. They're too afread of losing their jobs then cracking down as they should. The few abusers of the position ruined it for the rest of us.

Respect is something that needs to be earned as well as taught. We focus so hard on preventing bullying of our children that we've lost the natural caste system of age groups in schools that taught the younger to respect the older.

This has filtered now into society where today's youth in general have little or no respect for their elders.

My father has said it for years. His generation lived through the age of the paddle and the cat-o-nine-tails. This generation made it their promise to keep from treating their own children the same. The problem is we as a society have gone too liberal.

My own generation will one day grow old and when we have to live through the disrespect from youth ourselves only then will we realise what "respect" truly means. Which is alot more then giving props to your ace boy and citing respect like you think you have a clue.

Our own children will have so little respect at such a young age that we will learn the hard way and the balance will once again shift back.

If it isn't beginning to shift back already...

[Murmur on 01.12.05 at 10:03]

Well VB aren't you just the most Machiavellian person we know now. Why gossip and disrespect life and courage in the same breath? This child has brought himself back from a tragedy and behaved bravely. There is plenty of room for sympathy for an injured person, even if they contributed to their injuries. I have a suspicion that you would have trouble with your conscience if you felt you had not done all you could to prevent another's death. Although perhaps you would sleep easier knowing your paint job was intact.

[Monsignor Treeb Lopez on 01.12.05 at 10:26]

Murmur

have you read "The Prince"?

What will it take for a small group of Bermudian youths to acknowledge the consequences of their actions - what would be an effective sanction against those that ride their bikes without insurance with impunity. Do they care about getting fined? Having their deathtraps confiscated?

Some police I know want to go down the road of confiscating passports for a year for young offenders which sounds draconian to my libertarian ears.

In Christ

Mgr

[Monsignor Treeb Lopez on 01.12.05 at 10:27]

Murmur

have you read "The Prince"?

What will it take for a small group of Bermudian youths to acknowledge the consequences of their actions - what would be an effective sanction against those that ride their bikes without insurance with impunity. Do they care about getting fined? Having their deathtraps confiscated?

Some police I know want to go down the road of confiscating passports for a year for young offenders which sounds draconian to my libertarian ears.

In Christ

Mgr

[Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. on 01.12.05 at 10:43]

VB,

Unlike you most people are not perfect. Most of us as young people did stupid, ignorant things, maybe not steal a bike but no sin is any worse than the next. The only difference between this young man and us is that he nearly paid with his life.

You say you have a teenage bike rider, you cannot vouch for the way your child rides, nor for the things that he/she does when no in your presence. I have heard all too often that my child would never do this or do that, until they do it.

Show some compassion for others as you never know when as a parent you may face similar circumstances.

We all make mistakes and the key is what we learn from those mistakes.

[silencedogood on 01.12.05 at 10:47]

Murmur,

Ease off of VB. I don't think anyone is saying what happened to Dejon is not a tragedy or would try to take away from the courage he has to cope with his injuries.

All VB was doing is pointing out that Dejon bears the responsibility for his choices in life.

I feel sad for Dejon, but more personal responsibility could have avoided his unfortunate situation. It's commendable that he wants to help others by telling his story, but no one will be helped by making him into a hero.

His story can only teach people something if his poor choices and their negative consequences are acknowledged. That should be the message.

There is no need to curtail everyone else's rights because of this. (car restrictions)

[silencedogood on 01.12.05 at 10:47]

Murmur,

You need to ease off of VB. I don't think anyone is saying what happened to Dejon is not a tragedy or would try to take away from the courage he has to cope with his injuries.

All VB was doing is pointing out that Dejon bears the responsibility for his choices in life.

I feel sad for Dejon, but more personal responsibility could have avoided his unfortunate situation. It's commendable that he wants to help others by telling his story, but no one will be helped by making him into a hero.

His story can only teach people something if his poor choices and their negative consequences are acknowledged. That should be the message.

There is no need to curtail everyone else's rights because of this. (car restrictions)

[tilti on 01.12.05 at 10:55]

murmur, Machiavellian and unsypathetic are not synonyms, don't throw the term around. I think that this kid deserves some sympathy, not empathy, but I can also relate to VB. After all everyone suffers from increased insurance costs, or medical costs if it was government paid. The kid could also have killed someone walking down the street.

And Denis, I am opposed to any analysis that see libertarianism as the central problem because of the implication that it needs to be curtailed. Liberal values are not in and of themselves the source of the problem. The most liberal countries in the world, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Toronto and Victoria (both cities, but more liberal then the rest of Canada) have minimal crime rates while having excelllent education standards.

I also know that you are very ambitous about bringing about change, but I don't think that this is the appropriate venue to make a plug for car-pooling. You obviously have a lot of good ideas, why not write a piece rather than hijacking threads?

[Murmur on 01.12.05 at 11:26]

Machiavellian: where expediency is placed above morality. I analogize this to valuing a paint job more highly than another person's life -- the expedient (or convenient) is supposedly better than the moral. Nothing to do with sympathy or lack thereof.

It's academic though cos I'm sure VB would swerve if it came right down to it.

[wild bill on 01.12.05 at 11:27]

You expect me to feel sorry for this motherfucker. He stole a bike and then went speeding off on it. As long as he didn't hurt any innocent people when he crashed I say take your medicine sonny boy.

[loki on 01.12.05 at 11:27]

A couple of points: first of all, Dejon is not asking for anyone's sympathy and, indeed, he was quoted in yesterday's newspaper as saying that he didn't want anybody to feel sorry for him.

That being said, I generally feel pretty ambivalent when I hear of people killing themselves in cycle and car accidents in circumstances where it is obvious that they were driving or riding in a reckless manner. Reckless driving has reached epidemic levels in Bermuda and, whilst it would be preferable for no one to die in vehicle accidents, I'd rather that these idiots kill themselves rather than other road users.

Insofar as Dejon is concerned, he should be praised for the brave struggle that he has been through, and also for allowing others to learn from his story.

[Onion on 01.12.05 at 11:28]

For goodness sake,this 17 year old kid is coming forth, recognising that he has made mistakes, repeatedly stated in interviews that he wants no sympathy and he is making a video to warn others of the dangers of reckless driving and all some of you can say is "serves you right". Wow! I admire this kid for his courage and honesty.

VB, what is the weather like on top of that horse?

[tilto on 01.12.05 at 11:39]

murmur, that is the most incomprehensible analogy I have ever read. I've had to read The Prince seven times (university really is cruel) and that made no sense to me and I fail to see how it relates.

[silencedogood on 01.12.05 at 11:39]

Wow, Wild Bill, you are a bastard...let's not make the kid a hero, but your comment is extreme to say the least. At least he's trying to do something positive with his mistake. Was he on your bike or something?

[Kate on 01.12.05 at 11:41]

VB

I do understand where you are coming from. It is a unusual to have a trip in the car and not have to break sharply because of another road users actions. The standard of driving is so bad on the Island that it is easier and more relaxing to drive in London or New York.

There seems to be little or no road sense in Bermuda and the road layouts and positioning of crossings is so bad to be laughable.

I remember that when I was at school there was road safety as part of lessons. We were frequently taken out and taught how to deal with being on the road as a pedestrian and as a cyclist. Frequent ads on TV drove the message home. Some of those messages I still remember today. Good old Jimmy Savill telling us that "only a fool breaks the two second rule" - well I still use that oone to check my distances when driving. The ad about being hit my the force of an elephant if rear passengers are not wearing seatbelts - yuk!

The shock ads work for many people. However, I do believe there is a section of the younger people that will not be reached. Making them aware of the danger only makes it cooler to behave in a reckless and dangerous manner. There is a rise in male mortality during the late teens early twenty because of a surge in testosterone - this hormone surge seems to be linked to increased aggression, competiveness, risk taking behaviour. Having said this, though, we have all seen older people driving as if the devil is chasing them. I think that one of the problems is most people get away with it most of the time. Driving home from town, especially late at night, I rarely see a police presence. I did follow a police car home one night, we passed and older man on a bike who was waiting to come onto the road. He had a huge spliff hanging out of his mouth and was so drunk he could barely keep his bike upright - so you would imagine that the police would stop and check whether he was fit to drive, well either that or wave cheerfully at him. Go figure!

I do feel incredible sympathy for Dejon. Yes, it is true that his suffering is a result of his own actions, he has said as much himself, but the consequences of him actions were so awful that to not feel for him would be inhuman.

Do I feel that his story will make a difference. Maybe to a few but in the main, sadly, no.

[Big Bad Wolf ^..^ on 01.12.05 at 11:52]

I think it is wrong to write Dejon off for the worst mistake of his life that has cost him so much personaly along with his family and friends.I am certain that every poster has made mistakes taken risks and done stupid things on our roads.When I was 18 I sped to Somerset one perfect evening racing my Yamaha 125 against my cousin....We made it in about fifteen minutes from town....along the straights we were hitting 75mph.I took Somerset bridge so fast that I was airborne and landed on the opposite side of the road...luckily no car was comming.My luck held through those years but even better I was caught going 55 on Southshore and given three years off the road....bye bye bike....and yes at sixteen I packed raced along with all my other friends.I'm really glad there is atrack at the East end to blow speed out.Hopefully there will be young riders down there learning how to handle speed and leave it on the track.The roads of Bermuda is the first real freedom that young Bermudians experience all parents dread it for good reason.Every kid is playing the odds soon as they get on a bike.I admire Dejon doing something out of his terrible mistake....For the rest of you works of perfection go straight to heaven!

[Full Fullish on 01.12.05 at 12:04]

Man, it was awhile before I could post here. That picture made me recoil a bit especially when I read how it was done....

Here is an example of what happens when gamble on fate. In life we all bear the scars of choices we have made, some scars are a lot more visible or run much deeper either emotionally or physically. I've always thought that life was the greatest teachers of all. I don't agree with the circumstances of how Dejon got to where he is. Yeah it was pretty stupid, but hey, at 15, 16 and 17 we have ALL done some pretty stupid things. I in no way condone what Dejon did, but he's taken a bad situation and doing something positive with it, and that I admire. I don't think that the "Serves you right attitude" helps at all, life has already dealt out it's punishments.

I hope that all the parents of teenage bike riders makes their children sit down and watch this tonight.

[SmokingGun on 01.12.05 at 12:08]

Before I was sixteen I learned to race bikes off road. The first thing I did when I got my Moby at sixteen was to pull it apart, add some gearing, drop the seat and chrome a few pieces. I then proceeded to tear up the island. One night I had to borrow my sister's bike. It was an up-right Honda. (Not very cool, but hey I needed a ride.) Coming home from Disco 40 at three in the morning I was going a little fast when I noticed car lights come on and I thought it was the police. I went over the hill and ducked into a park off middle road. Little did I know there was two inch chain strung between two trees. I managed to dump the bike at the last second and the chain took me accross the chest. I had to wear long sleeve shirts for a month to hide the welts and bruises. If I were on my Moby it would have taken me arount the neck.

This was just one of many many instances, heck I even had a freakin run-away horse charge into me and knock me down on Tee street. And this was thirty years ago! Today's bikes are faster and the roads are more congested. I and many of my friends just got lucky. Dejon is just like many other kids and he did not.

There is a certain amount of freedom that we all should cherish. But it should come with a certain amount of responsibility. I think this young man has had a lot of time to think seriously about the ramifications of his actions and having spent so much time in his own personal hell I am sure his desire is to simply warn all the others just like him that sooner or later their luck might just run out.

I feel his efforts will be a wake up call to many. If he can change the ways of just a few then he has done a great service to Bermuda. Hopefully parents will take notice and the police will be more forceful in pulling un-safe bikes off the streets and enforcing better driving. We certainly need it.

[Bill Cook on 01.12.05 at 12:12]

Any road user whose life or limb is threatened by the choices made by anyone the law allows to drive on our roads is perfectly entitled to voice his or her opinion on ANYONE who violates that privelege without being preached to about morality.

The facts are that many young people drive with some care do not break the law and do not endanger the lives of others.

Some care and study should take place to find what causes behavioural patterns in order to arrest if possible that behaviour.

Symtomatic with speeding and reckless behaviour, seems to be attitude ie lack of respect, arrogance, no recognisable discipline,
and absolutely no respect whatever for authority.

Attitude is something that starts real early in the home and later in the school then the workplace, so logically that is where a possible solution should start.

That this young man has choosen to come forward and do what he is now doing shows that he always had character and it just needed to be developed sooner to assist him earlier.

Sadly it is unlikely that his message alone may not have the desired effect, as if the fundamental ground work has not been laid already,to be responsible for not just their own safety but to respect the safety of others.

Certainly how we tackle road users who break the law is not working and there seems almost no control of speeding, loud machines and unregistered vechicles much in use.

We lack the will to really clamp down and change all that, and little positive will happen until we do in my opinion.

[Full Fullish on 01.12.05 at 12:30]

SmokingGun -
It's unfortunante, but it almost always takes something like that to change our ways. I was in an accident a few years back. I stupidly worked for a full 24 hours without a break (cept to gulp down some food). Needless to say I was exhausted, decided to hop in my car and head home for a shower and a nap....I passed the Aquarium and literally dozed off at the wheel, didn't even know about it until I rammed straight into an oncoming truck, both of us doing about 30Mph. Both vehicles (My peugot 206 and his Heavy truck) were a complete write-off. I'm very lucky that the driver lifted his legs out of the way as my car crushed the lower section of his cab. Fortunantely I was wearing my seat belt (a habbit I picked up from driving overseas) or I would have probably been killed myself. Luckly I only sustained brusing across my chest, where the seat belt was (Felt like someone slammed my chest with a 2x4) and my knee where my dashboard crashing into it. The other driver was unhurt. Lesson I leaned was NEVER EVER get into a car tired (let alone drunk). Take a taxi, call someone...and ALWAYS wear your seat belt!

[Uncle Elvis on 01.12.05 at 12:33]

The way I look at it, if this documentary causes even one kid to say, "DAMN! Ok.. shit... I gotta slow the hell down.", if it saves even ONE life, it is a success.

I don't have a drop of sympathy for the punk-ass, gangsta wanna-be that crashed a stolen bike while speeding like a fucking crazy person, but I admire the hell out of the man that walked away from it.
It takes balls to stand up and say "I was a fucking idiot".

[Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. on 01.12.05 at 12:37]

BBW ans SmokingGun,

Those are very real world examples of what most who grew up in Bermuda experienced. We all exercised our thrill of speed at some point during our days of riding on the streets in Bermuda.

I just wonder if those who have the attitude of "serves him right" feel that way because the cycle was stolen or because of the frustration they face with young riders on the roads of Bermuda day in and day out.

Would these persons feel the same way if this happened to their son or daughter? As I said earlier, no parent can vouch for the actions of his/her child when that child is not in his/her sight.

This young man has clearly stated he is not looking for sympathy, he simply wants to do his part is stressing the dangers of the actions he took and the actions may young people is Bermuda take.

He is willing to make a difference and turn a negative event into potentially something positive. We wonder why the kids say adults just don't understand and why kids rebell. It is because we as adults tend to conveniently forget the things we did as kids and before we listen we chastise.

[wklc on 01.12.05 at 13:29]

If you cannot have any sympathy for Dejon, that you are nearly inhuman and have absolutely no feelings at all.
No one condones what he done to put himself in this predicament. However what he has chosen to do since which is to be commended, especially with the disfigurement that he has endured. We all know that kids, and teenagers can be the cruelest people in the world. That was until I read some of the posts on here, specifically VB, and DEFINITELY Wild Bill's. I hope that if you have children, that nothing bad ever happens to them. But I also hope, that if you have children, they do not do anything wrong, because you seem to have the mentality that if you do something wrong, you deserve whatever repercussions come of it, no questions asked.
Dejon is using his newfound situation to try and show others what can happen when a situation goes bad. He could have thought selfishly and self-pitied himself, but instead he has picked himself up and tried to do what he feels is right. Yes, what he did prior to the accident was wrong, but can he at the very least, have some credit for trying to find some good in the situation.
Some posters here are so self-righteous and self-serving, that it almost literally makes me sick. I hope these harsh posts that you made were to provoke and instigate discussion, rather than being your true feelings. If not, then I do feel sorry for you.

[Raptor on 01.12.05 at 13:48]

It’s not just testosterone, it’s also the common teenage feeling of invincibility. And recent research has shown that the teenage brain takes far longer to mature in terms of good judgment than was previously realized (into one’s early 20’s). Some teenagers handle all this better than others—often it’s the ones who come from the most stable homes, it seems, who aren’t pushing the envelope.

What Dejon has been through in terms of the treatment and surgeries for these kinds of burns is just about the worst torture imaginable. And he has more surgery to go.

I think it takes a lot of guts to put his face on the front page of the paper instead of hiding; to state he’s not looking for sympathy; to realize his terrible mistake; to understand his behaviour was potentially destructive to others as well as himself; and to sincerely desire to warn other kids. It is a miracle he’s alive after 90% of his body being burnt.

Kids should be educated about things like this in school—what happens in an accident when a bike doesn’t have a proper gas top but only a rag; how a barely wet road is far more slippery than a very wet road; how very much longer it can take you to stop; how a lot of water can send you hydroplaning; how you should allow one second between yourself and the vehicle in front of you for every 10 mph you’re traveling; what burn treatments are like—peeling off your skin; the instability of some of these lesser bikes in particular, etc. Not that it would solve the whole problem, but maybe some of them would think harder.

[Murmur on 01.12.05 at 13:51]

No one is above making silly mistakes. Consequences vary though. Where someone is grievously injured because of a youthful indiscretion (no I don't justify or glorify what he did, but an appropriate punishment might be a couple of weeks in jail, not being nearly burned to death) it's only human to have a good dose of compassion for that person.

It's easy to spout off on this online while sitting at your desk, but, take the acid test. Go up to his mother sometime and tell her "Serves the little bugger right."

[Onion on 01.12.05 at 13:57]

"You expect me to feel sorry for this motherfucker. He stole a bike and then went speeding off on it. As long as he didn't hurt any innocent people when he crashed I say take your medicine sonny boy.

Posted by wild bill on 01.12.05 at 11:27"

That's real nice. Real nice. You have kids?

[Onion on 01.12.05 at 14:00]

Let's all go up to Berkely Institute and walk into this boy's class and tell him to his face, "take your medicine sonny boy."

[Murmur on 01.12.05 at 14:18]

Tilti, sometimes reading something too often rubs the honed edge off ones faculties. The central theme of Machiavelli's Prince was that moral considerations should never deter a prince from taking the expedient course of action. I would say the analogy is apt since saying you'd run someone down instead of trying to avoid them is not moral.

[loki on 01.12.05 at 14:18]

Hey, wild bill. Just wondering: when you were a child, did you while away the hours by torturing cats and sundry small animals?

[tilti on 01.12.05 at 14:33]

I don't think Wild Bill is good with his words, emotional or kind but we are treating him like he is starting a nazi movement.
He likely didn't spend his childhood "torturing cats and sundry small animals." He is probably like the rest of us, but less patient and his opinion is formed from constant interactions with bad motoris (he drives a truck and is probably on the road more than most) has polarised his view into an 'me against them extreme'. His views are then the product of bad driving - road rage turned into ideology - not some psychotic mentality.
It is hard to badmouth this kid, but come on, we all hate bad drivers, and a personal history of bad driving should help in our understanding of the situation, but it shouldn't make it permissable. There is hypocrisy in being a parent, and that comes to good affect sometimes.

[SmokingGun on 01.12.05 at 14:39]

I think some people just like to throw out stupid flames to get people's goat. Some people get through life and all their stars just seem to aline magically. Some don't. Guys like WB just might not have had the opportunity to spend time with a very young person who's life has been totally smashed. I've been to Shriner's Hospital in Boston and Dejon is just one of many kids who've been horribly disfigured and had to endure the terrible pain of not just their injuries but the looks and stares of others.

And as far as VB - if you can't seem to find the sympathy at least I hope you find the time to make sure you and your bike riding teenager see the documentary tonight.

[jake on 01.12.05 at 14:56]

I remember when I first heard that people were putting model plane fuel into gas tanks. It was almost 20 years ago.

I remember because I heard of a guy whose bike blew up. I decided I would pass on that particular adjustment.

I did however, ride with the pack. It was unsafe and stupid.

I have also lost several childhood friends to motorcycles. My neighbourhood was famous for that.

At 17 you don't know anything about the world. You know that you can experience pleasure, but you may not have learned what pain really means. That is in the context of the rush of a motorcycle or falling in love with someone.

In short, you don't know what the limits are.

Pain teaches us to pull back. Pain warns us to avoid the line. The pain I felt as I looked at this young man was only amplified by the fact that I know his step-dad well.

This child does not deserve to be described in the hateful tones expressed by some here.

Children test the limits. Poor young Mr. Simmons has willingly decided to demonstrate them for all of his peers to see.

I admire him for that, for the willingness to have the courage to go public.

Past indiscretions aside - he is a hero for me.

[Jimmy on 01.12.05 at 15:18]

Jake,
How is he a hero? He was riding a stolen bike which he knew was stolen, and speeding which is breaking the laws of the road. What happened to him was certainly unfortunate, and I do admire him for his honesty and what he is doing now to open the eyes of dangerous driving teens, but a hero? I think not. A hero is someone we look up to and someone who sets an example. I don't think we want a bunch of teens idiolizing a kid who went off speeding on a stolen bike do we?

[VB on 01.12.05 at 15:22]

No, I don't ride on a tall horse. However I have had more than a few decades & more than a few hundred thousand miles of Bermuda's roads. Oh yeah I did some dumb things on my Moby too. What saved me was most likely a lack of skills as a mechanic & the fear of what might might become of me or my bike should my parents find out about stupid antics on the road. We had a real police force then & many of them knew your parents. I know what it is to say 'Yes Sir, No Sir' to the likes of Roger Sherratt & Harold Moniz sitting on a Triumph. I know what road rash is though luckily I have never broken a bone. There was alot less traffic then & you could not travel more than a mile or so without seeing a police vehicle.

My teenagers are treated more or less the same way I was. It is commonly known as the 'old fashioned way'. It works. Both know what the inside of Magistrates Court looks like & they know what it looks like without a parent standing next to them. They paid their own fines. Minor speeding offence when the police were on one of their ticket writing blitzes. They know that if they do anything really stupid no matter what the court says, their bike becomes my bike & they ride the bus. They know that is not an idle threat, it is fair warning. They have never had to ride a Bermuda bus.

Maybe this is what is the root of youth madness on the road, not that it is just the youth,a lack of parenting. This lack of parenting is the source of too many problems.

No I am not perfect. I am simply fed up with the insanity on the roads. Mercifuly I no longer do 200-300 business miles a week.

[SmokingGun on 01.12.05 at 15:31]

Jimmy - If I may, he is a hero in Jake's eye because Jake has obviously spent time with the family, and when you get close and personal to someone who is going through what Dejon is, it is very easy to start seeing them in such a way.

I have spent much of this year tending to a little girl dealing with a life threatening condition. She is a hero to me because she goes out of her way to help other children and comfort them. I have even seen her console a parent who has lost a child. For Dejon to come forth with his story to help warn others is an act worthy of praise considering what he has already been through. He may not be a hero for his past discretion but certainly is for his new direction.

[loki on 01.12.05 at 15:33]

"No I am not perfect. I am simply fed up with the insanity on the roads."

Amen to that. One of the few things that really makes my blood boil is the growing class of roadusers that have absolutely no respect for anyone's life or property. It used to be an attitude confined to the young, but I see more and more boneheaded, reckless and agressive driving from brain-donors at more advanced stages of their lives. Overtaking around a blind corner at 80K? Not uncommon anymore. Oh, and when these assholes actually do injure someone and/or their property, hit and run seems to be considered the appropriate thing to do.

[Raptor on 01.12.05 at 15:42]

Anonymity let's people like Wild Bill get rid of any restraint and exhaust the anger and frustration.

One of my friends, who is blind, told me that blind people have a surprisingly high incidence of strangers abusing them in the city on public transportation--spilling hot coffee on them, tripping them, bumping them aside, etc. I was incredulous. But she pointed out "it's safer" for the perpetrator because a blind person doesn't see it coming and can't identify. The perpetrator wouldn't do something like that face to face.

I thought the advice above was good--for Wild Bill to visit Dejon's mother and say what he did to her face. I don't think he'd do it; at the very least I don't think he'd put it the way he did.

I'm not making excuses for Dejon, and he doesn't seem to expect any. What he did was wrong. But what he has done since then takes a heartfelt conversion and courage.

[Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. on 01.12.05 at 15:44]

Jimmy,

Is it more important that this young man was riding a stole cycle and speeding (show me one Bermudian who has never sped on the roads in Bermuda) or the fact that through this accident he is trying to highlight to his peers the dangers of his actions?

Why should we focus on his negative actions when he is doing nothing but trying to positiviely help the young persons in Bermuda?
The problem with humans is that when someone does something positive we ignore it but when someones does something negative we never let them forget it.

Let me ask you this question, "When you travel do you declare every single item you purchased and pay duty on it?" If you are like most there are some items you conveniently leave off the declaration form. That action or misaction is stealing, you are stealing from the people of Bermuda. Stealing is stealing. Your theft is just as illegal as the fact that this young man was riding a stolen cycle.

Maybe its time for us to stop casting judgement for the mistakes that people make in their lives. Let's face it none of us is perfect and before we judge others we need to judge ourselves.

[Bill Cook on 01.12.05 at 15:44]

I would have hoped that the purpose of this forum was to use this example to endeavour to prevent others from a similar incident.

Not much purpose in discussing or defending this young mans previous actions resulting in such terrible injuries,as he has punished himself already and that cannot be reversed.

The focus should be in coming up with suggestions or solutions to as much as possible prevent a similar situation happening to others.

Take a drive out on the roads today and see the way people are driving esp on bikes right now.

Still no one is getting serious about doing anything to make a start in addressing this dilemma possibly because the last time they did people were up in arms at being stopped and having their bikes checked with road blocks etc.

We need those with the power of authority to do what needs to be done to slow up speeders remove cycles from the irresponsible and remove all vechicles from those driving illegally to start with,anything would be better than nothing as is presently the case.

[silencedogood on 01.12.05 at 16:01]

Raptor,

Anonymity may allow wild bill to be a jerk, but it also lets many of us criticize his comments.

I would never post in bermuda under my real name, but value my online persona the same as my real-life one. It frees me to speak my mind where I would otherwise be silent for fear of reprisals.

Let's not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

[Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. on 01.12.05 at 16:12]

Silencedogood,

There is nothing wrong with using a pen name but if you are going to make personal attacks on someone you should at least do so under your own name.

I was always against the use of pen names to make public comments but after participating here on Limey I have found that it is helpful as it does create open dialogue on issues by removing the person. That is a whole lot different that making personal attacks.

Wouldn't you agree?

[silencedogood on 01.12.05 at 16:17]

Guilden,

I do agree. I'm not saying it's ok to use personal attacks. I've made statements to the contrary often (of course I comment most when they are directed at me!).

All I'm saying is that if someone is abusing anonymity, ban that person from posting, don't get rid of anonymity altogether.

[Guilden M. Gilbert, Jr. on 01.12.05 at 16:21]

Silencedogood,

Agree

[Uncle Elvis on 01.12.05 at 16:21]

" I don't think we want a bunch of teens idiolizing a kid who went off speeding on a stolen bike do we?"

No, we don't. We want them idolizing a MAN who, while he messed up in a completely life altering way, isn't letting the fact that he has been through one of the worst kinds of torture you can imagine (ever burnt your thumb on a match? Multiply that by about a bajillion and have it happen every hour of every day for months on end. You'd rather have that happen than what this guy went through.) and come out the other side strong and sane and willing to not only face up to his mistake, but also try to help others not make the same mistake.

Hell, going through what he went through, self-inflicted or not, and staying sane is heroic enough for me!

[H Reardon on 01.12.05 at 16:33]

"The focus should be in coming up with suggestions or solutions to as much as possible prevent a similar situation happening to others."

Where are the parents? For such a small island, (not unlike the small town in the South I grew up in), we weren't really able to get away with much because someone who knew us would let our parents know we were up to no good.

Many of you are trying to put the burden on the police--which is in effect putting it back to all of us paying taxes to support those police. Where are his parents? Where are the parents of all those other side-saddeling, one-arm driving, 3rd lane speeders? Where are the parents like VB (his other comments aside)? Why is it my burden to police your out of control teenagers?

In regards to Dejon, I'm glad to see this kid step up and take responsibility for his actions. He is no hero, but he is a responsible adult--not enough of that in his age group these days.