In response to David Kurten: How the Left have driven up the knife crime epidemic, Hank Rearden wrote:
Correlation isn’t causation, fine, but quite often it is. I’ve seen a variety of stats from various Western countries and they all strongly correlate, fathers who are present reduce crime.
In my own experience, I coach mostly boys in cricket aged 9-13 and their need to be told what to do by another male is almost palpable. It seems to me that the importance of an older male instructing them, and giving them an avenue to burn off the excess energy, is a societal safety valve.