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I suspect you are incorrect. I think a lot of parents focus in on the sensational media reports of kidnappings and don't think about that street crossing. Aft
by timwiseman 17y ago
I suspect you are incorrect. I think a lot of parents focus in on the sensational media reports of kidnappings and don't think about that street crossing. After all, a child hit crossing the street probably will not make national news, and very few people have any real understanding of statistics or probability. They worry about the sensation rather than the real risk.
- mattmcknight 17y agoSome parents I have spoken with prefer the death due to head trauma over sexual torture. There's also the guilt factor. If something common happens to your kid, it's an 'accident'. If your kid gets kidnapped, people put more of the blame on you. I mean, I have lots of designs for safer transit, but it's a lot easier to keep the kid on a leash than change people to focus on the safety of automotive travel above the need for a status symbol. Why do only pros wear helmets?
- tptacek 17y agoWell, consider me a data point in the other direction, Tim. And everyone else on my block (it was block party night) --- we're all worried about cars. Sex maniacs not so much.
- timwiseman 17y agoI am a data point in the other direction myself, but while I have no statistics I strongly suspect we are in the minority, and people's behaviors tend to support that. Instead of doing things that would help reduce cars hitting pedestrians and traffic accidents in general(more sidewalks, longer yellow lights, more crosswalks, more traffic enforcement, more required training which includes focusing on sharing the road with non-cars....) many communities spend more time on things to prevent kidnappings which are already incredibly rare (the article goes into many examples.) And mattmcknight has an excellent point.