[quote=KSMountain]In 4th grade (I was only 8 at the start of that year) I was walking me and my 2nd grade brother to school about 1/2 to 3/4 mile (PB to Birdrock).

Can you imagine nowadays? It never would be considered. My mom, who showed me the walking route all that time ago, never considered such a thing for her grandson even as a 14 year old entering high school.

So strange. I wonder is the danger really higher or just the perception of the danger? If the former then that is a huge societal failure – for things to be much worse 30 years later…[/quote]

Statistics show that the crime rate is down by quite a bit since we were young. Whether this is because the world is a safer place, or if it’s because more parents are helicopter parents, is up for debate.