I can see why people want to protect each other, but education and guidance rather than enforcement should be the approach. As the old saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

When we capture dolphins from the wild and make them live in pools, some adjust and do as their trainers want in order to get fed and stay alive. However, many don't. They choose freedom over their own lives and have been known to drown themselves. Some people are the same.

You can tell someone the have to wear a cycle helmet and explain why, the may still choose not to wear one. You can tell them they don't have a choice, it's the rule, but you can't force one on them. You can threaten them and fine them, they can just ignore. When they don't pay the fine you can march them off to prison, that will stop them cycling without a helmet! At this point they have by your force truly lost their freedom. What if they choose death over freedom? It's not surprising that suicide rates in prison are high. Instead of protecting someone who values their freedom, you've now driven them to their death.

Okay this is an extreme example, but as more laws and enforcements come into place and more freedoms are impinged upon more people are starting to push back and their answer seems to be punish more. Where do we draw the line?