Steve Chapman on a New Golden Age of Public Safety

The 1950s are often recalled as a golden age in American life—stable families, rising incomes, wholesome TV shows and low crime rates. Doesn't sound like 2011, does it? When it comes to crime, though, there is a striking similarity: We are, believe it or not, in a new golden age. Crime has never subsided as a topic for local news or prime-time detective shows. Anyone looking for reasons to fear going out of the house can find plenty. But the truth is, writes Steve Chapman, our streets are safer than they have been in a long time.