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Exactly. The rise of safetyism and managed childhoods leaves kids with a strong death urge with no outlet for it. You can't just go out and drag race with your buddies or jump into a quarry or get into a fight. Your day is scheduled and managed and supervised. Even if you want to get into a pseudo-risky sport like skateboarding, rather than juvenile delinquents chased by cops through city streets, today's skaters are dropped off, helmets and elbow pads firmly fastened, from fleets of Toyota Siennas, at the local skate park. They've been co opted by the system.
The rate of high school students who have been in a physical fight in the past year has dropped from 42% in 1980 to 19% today. The rate of high school students who drink, do illicit drugs, go to parties, drive drunk, hell who drive at all, have all cratered in that time period. In 1985 teenagers made up 15% of all motorcycle riders, now it's less than 2%, and I'd bet half of those ride with their dad. We know that kids spend more time at home, less time out with friends, and immensely less time unsupervised by adults than they did decades ago. It would be incredible to claim that kids today were more likely to engage in dangerous hobbies, given that the most dangerous ones (fighting, drinking, drugs, parties, driving) are all definitely on the decline.
I'll spot you gang membership, the point I'm getting at there is the idea that for the middle class white American youth the opportunity to get into some trouble used to be around in their own community; now the middle class white American youth lives a life so managed and scheduled that the opportunity to get into some trouble is farther away.
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