Best of Blog: Do we really care about children?

Excepts from Strong Towns Blog by Charles Marohn
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I had a city council member last week say that people did not want walkable neighborhoods because they were afraid of child abductions, that people prefer the "safety" of their cars. Sad to say, but I think he is right, despite being completely ignorant of the facts. In a single year, the U.S. has around 7,000 children die in auto accidents (many, many more injured severely) but only around 100 children kidnapped.
We love our cars but, like all one-way relationships, our obsession has made us completely irrational.
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After perinatal conditions, which are problems that occur near or in the immediate months after childbirth, the leading cause of death amongst children ages 0 to 19 is auto accidents. For accidental causes of mortality, there is no close second. Even drowning, which we are militant about here in terms of baths, pools and time at the lake, is just a fraction of auto accidents. Imagine two 9/11 attacks each year that killed just kids and you still would not have the number of child fatalities America has each year from auto accidents.
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… but what I am doing putting them in a car so often?
The answer is that I am an American, so I drive everywhere. In my town I really don’t have an alternative. Even the people who live in the traditional neighborhoods have to drive out to the edge of town to get groceries (don’t worry, the city has spent millions making that trip fast and easy). But is this really acceptable?
If we are serious about wanting what is best for kids, shouldn’t we be doing everything we can to reduce the number of auto trips people are required to take each day?
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The best thing we can do for the safety of our children is to get them out of the car by building mixed-use, walkable neighborhoods.
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https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2011/12/13/best-of-blog-do-we-really-care-about-children.htmloldId.20111228232241144