I think the world has gotten better. Whereas slavery was once a state-sponsored institution, it's now a serious crime. Whereas discrimination against people based on the color of their skin was once the law of the land, it's now a crime in most of the western world. In the US, the rate of serious crime (assault, rape, robbery, and murder) is the lowest its been since 1963 and still declining. Whereas once there was genuine and justified fear of human extinction through mutually assured destruction, the cold war is over and children no longer do air raid drills or even know what an air raid siren sounds like or where their nearest fallout shelter is. Democracy is replacing dictatorships in the middle east, the Soviet Union no longer rules with an iron fist, and the term "banana republic" is more recognizable as a clothing brand than a description of the dictatorships that dotted Latin America. I see countless reasons to consider today far better than yesterday. Take your half empty glass, I'll have mine half full. There's never been a better time to raise children.