When you get in the car, do you buckle your child in?  Do you make sure their seatbelt is secure?

I suspect that most people are pretty good on this front, so it staggers me that they don't afford the same care to their kids, or themselves for that matter, when getting on a boat. 

While in the Bay of Plenty last weekend, I was astonished to see the amount of people heading out - without life jackets. 

It was a challenge to remain focused on my kids, who were steeped with excitement at being on the wharf with the bait catcher (catching nothing) because I was fixated on watching boat after boat launch - complete with the rods, bait, the chilly bin. But not the lifejackets.  On the boat already?  Well it's no good looking at them. Or knowing where they're stored, you've got to put them on. 

To make it worse, most of the boats carried kids.

Not a crime though, is it? There's no law saying you must wear a life jacket on a boat. But why they hell isn't there? 

That same weekend, we met up with friends who recounted their approach by the Harbour Master that morning, threatening them with a $200 ticket for not wearing a life jacket on a standup paddleboard!

So, you can cop a heft fine for not wearing a lifejacket or carrying a flotation device a mere two metres from shore on a stand up paddleboard, but you can play roulette with your life on a boat. It's madness.

Around twenty recreational boaties lose their lives every year. They're mainly men, and stats show that over two-thirds would not have drowned had they been wearing a life jacket. 

The fact is, it's a hassle.  They cramp people's style. Always got by without one and not about to change, they say. They're the stubborn bunch we shall call "The Resistance".

A number of the The Resistance declare they know their vessels and the conditions - and they know best.  Nineteen foot tall and bulletproof, they all seem to be.  The reality is, you could have all the skill of Michael Phelps in the water but a fat lot of good that'll do when you're face down in the sea unconscious after your boat's flipped. 

And isn't it spooky that anyone, anyone can get in a boat and drive it?  No license required.  

There needs to be a culture change towards the attitude of lifejackets. There are countless reasons why they should be worn. Little logic in why they should not.

The modern life jacket is compact and unobtrusive.  Claims they're too uncomfortable and bulky are a cop-out. And spare me the argument that they're too expensive. If you can afford the boat and the fuel, you can afford the lifejacket.

Members of The Resistance, get your tackle in a tangle all you want (fishing tackle that is): Lifejackets should be mandatory.

You can’t regulate common sense, but you can regulate responsibility.