VIOLENCE AND CRIME: Americans believe crime is on the rise. But in the last decade, crime has gone down; homicide is down 5%; rape down 35%; robbery, 56%; and assault, 45%. Horrible things do happen, but they've always happened, and used to happen more often. BEST OF TIMES? Recently, President Obama said, "The world is less violent than it has ever been." He was mocked for saying this, and yet this statement is entirely true. Things are better. The violence today doesn't compare to the 1940s and ‘50s when millions were killed during World War II, the Korean War and in Communist China under Chairman Mao. THE GUN MYTH: Politicians and the media constantly scream about gun crime. But violent crime rates are down while the number of Americans who own permits to carry guns has tripled. BUREAUCRATS OVERREACT: A 7-year-old boy in Maryland was suspended this year for molding a Pop-Tart into the shape of a gun. In New Jersey, another student was suspended for twirling a pencil... HOLLYWOOD HYPOCRITES: Actors like Matt Damon and Sylvester Stallone push gun control, but they keep making movies filled with gun use. MY TAKE: The world hasn't gotten meaner. Terrorism is a threat, but less of one than the hot and cold wars of my youth. The air and water are cleaner, and crime is down over the past 25 years. We libertarians complain about today's politicians destroying our freedom and our future. And they do, with their taxes and suffocating rules and overspending. But in spite of that, the free market has managed to make more or most of our lives less mean. Also, if you are black or gay or a woman, America is much less mean than it was. But fearful people often accept, and even welcome, repression that comes along with politicians' promise to protect us. But we don't need more protection. The world is less mean now.