The truth is that there is crime in the world.  Not everybody earns their way in life -- some people prefer just taking the rewards of others.  We are flooded with violent images in our media and teaching self-restraint and personal responsibility isn't a hot topic.  So yes, there is a level of crime that any society can expect to have to live with.

But progress can and is being made.  Not only in Yakima, but around the country. The FBI says violent crime fell by 4.4 percent in the U.S. last year to 1.16 million incidents, the lowest level since 1978.That's the lowest in 36 years!

All types of violent crimes dropped, with rape down 6.3 percent, murder and non-negligent manslaughter down 4.4 percent and robbery down 2.8 percent. The violent crime rate of 367.9 crimes for every 100,000 people is a 5.1 percent decline since 2012, and continues its trend of having fallen every year since at least 1994.

We still need to take reasonable precautions, we need to be aware of our surroundings ,but we also need to be aware of the reality of crime's decline in the country. Just a thought: The U.S. takes some liberal heat for having the most people locked up in the world.  Maybe -- just maybe -- putting those people behind bars is what lowers the crime rate and has made the rest of us a little safer.

Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
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