One thing which really frustrates and surprises me is that techology should be helping to free children, not constraining them. Parents universally have cell p

One thing which really frustrates and surprises me is that techology should be helping to free children, not constraining them. Parents universally have cell phones and many kids do as well these days. These should be a huge enabler for freedom—if something happens while you're roaming or home alone, you can easily call a parent. It seems unequivocally safer to leave children alone today than it was 20-30 years ago. This isn't even including the fact that crime rates are substantially lower today. It's really hard to find any empirical justification for the tide of over-protective parenting.