needing some advice...on advice

Earlier this week I was walking through the parking lot – dodging cars to make my way to the door – and saw (without too much investigation) an infant car seat forward-facing inside of a car. EEK!

And a couple weeks ago while picking up the munchkin from day care I saw a mom place a little boy in a convertible without a booster seat and proceed to place the seat belt behind the little boy’s back – effectively breaking all of the “rules.” And of course – every day I see kids well below the age of 13 in the front seat, or toddlers with their head’s hanging out of the window or standing up in the cab of a pick-up truck – obviously not properly secured in a car seat.

Is it appropriate for me to say something? Now for a good friend of mine I would easily say something like, “you know, that probably isn’t the safest way for Johnny to ride” and we would have a good laugh about me as a safety  geek but I think my friends would be appreciative of me giving a little advice.

But what about complete strangers? What is the best way to approach strangers when they are doing something extremely unsafe? Do I say – “Hi, I’m Jessica, I’m the injury prevention coordinator at Dayton Children’s and your baby is not safe.”

Do I leave a note on the car with my business card? Do I roll down my window down and yell at the family next to me at the stop light? What would you want me to say if I saw you doing something unsafe? Would you want my advice – even if you didn’t take it?