My parents both survived siblings and were, as a result, somewhat overprotective. (I never had a bicycle. Dad though they were dangerous.)

When I was 12, Mom read a story about a girl who was raped and murdered by someone who knew she walked to and from school the same way every day. Mom told me about it, then told me to vary my route to and from school every day, so it wouldn't happen to me.

Oh, my dad, who wouldn't let me have a bike, drove an MG midget. The thing was a rolling deth trap, with no seatbelts, nothing to stop it rolling over, and a tiny bench in the back as a third seat. I rode to New Jersey and back in that thing when I was 18 months old. Not to mention any number of trips to the zoo, Girl Scout meetings, rides to school etc. Dad never thought he was putting me at risk.

Danger is in the eye of the beholder.