"Those kinds of things don't happen here" should no longer be part of the rural mindset.

By Jim Shepherd

I miss America.

Seriously.

If you ask me what I miss most, I'll probably tell you I miss youth. But it's not the youth that I miss, it's the attitude that existed when I was younger.

Growing up in the middle of the past century - at the end of the last millennium (gosh, I do feel old now), it was perfectly acceptable to leave your doors unlocked, the keys in your ignition, and your mower in your front yard.

Today, police don't even leave their cruisers unlocked when they get out to work a traffic accident. Times have changed - drastically.

But the 2008 crime statistics released by the FBI have put a somewhat more rosy face on what is really not a great situation. Crime is down in big cities, but it's up in small towns.

The Port Clinton News-Herald is reporting on a mother-daughter partnership that offers all-female gun education courses, as well as National Rifle Association-certified concealed carry courses.

Joy and Faith Ferkel have instructed more than 75 men and women, who are now better prepared to defend themselves and their families. They say most of the female students have taken advantage of all-women classes.