Basically, all that did was teach kids to be afraid of strangers. The number of children kidnapped by strangers is a rounding error compared to the total number of kidnapped/missing children.
I ever tell the story about how my maternal grandmother was kidnapped by a woman, who then skipped across the state line, married my great grandfather, under an assumed name, and passed off the little girl she had kidnapped as her own? Of course, people werenât in a big, central, database then, nor carrying around a ream of papers certifying who they were. You were who you said you were.
Steve
Itâs insane. My wife and I very often frequent a theater (we have one of those monthly memberships that allows us to see all the movies) that is just on the edge of an affluent residential area and all the schools are right nearby. If we go see a 1:35 movie, we already see cars lining up for pickup that begins at 2:30!!! And both schools on our route to the theater have the same thing, long rows of cars blocking an entire lane (there are only 2 lanes on that road) of traffic for an hour. I tried to figure out why parents are so insane as to sit in their car on the side of the road for an hour and the only thing I could come up with is that they need to be FIRST IN LINE so they can get their kid and bring the kid to some activity (music, sports, whatever) that is scheduled right after school ends.
When I was a kid, I went to school in the city, and for many years WALKED to and from school, maybe 1/2 mile or 3/4 mile depending where we rented at the time. Later, when we moved to the suburbs, I took a bus for one year. And then there was a year or two when I moved in with my grandparents (who still lived in the city) from Monday through Friday so I could walk to school and avoid the long commute.
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I agree with all thatâs said and also bemoan the loss of a simpler social life and childhood freedoms.
In fairness, though, I recall some of the socializing I endured as a child, because I had no choice. Kids today have a choice and choose something more stimulating. Yeah, theyâre losing contact, in some regards, too, but Iâm not sure I wouldnât have done the same, given a choice. You get something, you lose something.
Regarding kidnapping, Iâve been near a child abduction. It happened in an instant. The kidnapper was two blocks away before the parents knew. I understand why parents are cautious. You insure against that which you cannot lose. A child is that valuable.
So, some of what we recall may be selective memory and survivorship bias.
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