Fastening those seat belts might avoid a lifetime of regret.

Such a small thing; such a huge regret. The latest annual report of the Kansas Child Death Review Board showed that 84 Kansas children died in car accidents in 2001. Of those, 64 were not wearing seat belts.

To bring the statistic a little closer to home, a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper assigned to Douglas County told the Journal-World this week that she did seven death notifications in 2003. “Five of those deaths could have been avoided with seat belts,” she said. “Four of the five were under age 20.”

Because they didn’t take the simple step of fastening their seat belts, four youngsters didn’t live to see their 20th birthdays.

Currently, state law requires children younger than 14 to wear seat belts while riding in a car or truck; children under 4 must ride in a safety seat. Some child advocates have concluded that stricter laws are the answer, but personal responsibility might be an even more powerful tool.

It’s just too easy to jump in the car and take off without clicking that seat belt on. It’s too easy not to take the time to argue with a child in the back seat about the need to put on a restraint. The chances of being caught are slim and the penalties aren’t that severe.

Whatever legal penalty could be handed out, however, pales by comparison with the punishing regrets any adult would have if an unrestrained child was killed in his or her vehicle. Thinking about that possibility is the only motivation a parent should need.