The Irony of Non Smokers, Cars, and Children

As a society, we have all been well versed on the negative health impact on our children from second hand smoke. Many parents have become proactive and either kicked the "habit" or elected not to smoke in their homes and/or vehicles. A society, priding ourselves on protecting innocent children, we've even enacted laws requiring seatbelts, toddler seats, and infant seats to optimize their safety. We've resoundingly said "No" to cigarette smoke and "No" to traveling without seatbelts. Yet ironically, we've obliviously accepted "YES" when it comes to exposing our precious cargo to the deadly effects of exhaust emissions. It's like going all out taking precautions to protect our children against chicken pox, but apathetic when exposing them to small pox. Children 6 and under, including unborn fetuses, are especially susceptible to toxic exhaust emissions. Daily our children inhale poisonous substances into their little lungs - toxic entities with devastating long term and/or immediate life-threatening affects. While we happily motor down the highway, children safely secured by seatbelts, along with millions of other drivers, we are spewing into the environment deadly emissions via the process of burning gas, bio-diesel, or diesel in our engines: