[contemplator]

"...back in the good old days when we could play on the streets and our parents didn’t have to worry about us.

What days were those? I'm of the opinion that the numbers were actually worse but were under reported. In this day of instant information and Amber alerts our society is accutely aware of the dangers. I believe that criminals know that their actions are under much closer scrutiny these days and as a result are committing fewer of these types of crimes. If you watch the interviews of serial killers who hunted in the 70's you'll hear horror stories about hundreds and hundreds of hitchhiker abductions and murder that simply went unreported. Local police back in 'the good old days' were less likely to coordinate with State and Federal law enforcement and would not even open an investigation unless the person had been missing for several days. Missing person cases might make the local papers but rarely got any attention on a larger scale unless the parents or family took matters into their own hands.

[MEGoody]

What days were those?

Oh, about 40 years ago. I remember being able to walk downtown by myself to see a movie when I was 12. Can't do that now, even as an adult.

[wtc911]

The 50s and most of the 60s were decidedly safer. Kids left the house unchaperoned and stayed out all day long. I never knew of a single incident where any kid in town was taken or harmed. I know of more than a few in the past twenty years.

A lot of folks who weren't there just can't accept that there were really was a 'good old days'.