It’s just another example of how we’re mislead by “what we know that ain’t so.”

A month ago the nation was riveted to the 15 deaths in a Littleton, Colorado, high school. All schools, including ours, heightened security. As we should.

But if we really care about children’s safety, in-school homicide is the least of our worries.

There will be more young people die from homicide today – and tomorrow, and the next day, an average of 22 every day this year – than were killed in Columbine High School April 20th. It’s a rate five times higher than that for the next largest 25 countries combined!

And it’s not just teens. Homicide is the third leading cause of injury death among children under 10. For those under 5, about half come from blows – presumably not drive-by beatings. There are three million reported incidents of child abuse – up 45 percent from 1987. Over 1000 die from abuse and neglect; most are under 5.

By any measure (people affected, medical consequences, economic loss) alcohol is our number one hard drug. It’s involved in 40-60 percent of violence and crime – including child abuse. Yet we panic at a puff of marijuana and wink at youngsters’ binge drinking.

When pregnant women drink they risk a baby with “fetal alcohol syndrome” – the leading environmental cause of mental retardation. As many as one-fourth of young girls are sexually abused – most in the home.

We say we “care about kids,” but the statistics prove otherwise. Rates of firearm-related deaths -- homicides and suicides -- are 12 times higher in the U.S. than in the next 25 countries combined. There are an additional 25,000 kids under 20 wounded by guns.

Suicide is the third leading cause of death among 15-19 year olds. Our rate is double that of the next 25 countries combined. The rate increased 35 percent during the 1980s. “Family discord” is the reported reason 60 percent of the time.

The U.S. leads the industrialized world in childhood death rates – primarily because of unintentional injuries and violence.

Of the 40,000 deaths of 10-24 year olds, 75 percent are preventable (car crashes, homicide, suicide, injuries).

The leading cause of death for children under 10? Motor vehicle crashes. They weren’t driving, we were. And 70 percent of those under 5 didn’t have a safety belt or child seat at the time.

Nearly 16 million injured children are taken to hospital emergency rooms each year – mostly for sports injuries and falls. Some 600,000 are hospitalized; 6000 under age 10 die.

Bicycle injuries put 450,000 children in emergency rooms; 384 of them die. Helmets reduce head injuries by 80 percent, but only 15 percent of kids wear them. If they did about 150 would still be alive.

Three-fourths of burn deaths are kids under 10. Those under 5 are especially vulnerable to fires in homes. Functioning smoke alarms would save the lives of half of them.

We’re still dealing with the lead exposure (paint, dust, soil) that causes serious cognitive, learning and behavioral problems in children.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report what we all know: “Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of disability and death, killing more than 400,000 Americans each year at an annual cost of $50 billion in direct medical costs.”

Some 3000 kids start smoking every day. What the industry calls the “replacement smokers” for those it kills.

In the 1940s virtually no students held jobs. Today one-third do. The highest rate of any affluent nation. Kids who need 9 hours sleep often get 7. Their fatigue increases the risk of injury while working or commuting – and certainly impairs learning. Probably 150,000 14-17 year olds suffer work injuries. Of work-related deaths, 41 percent involved violations of the child labor laws.

Nearly 100,000 children have been orphaned due to AIDS. Nearly one million U.S. adults are HIV infected; 350,000 have died. Over 85 percent of the most common infectious diseases are sexually transmitted. U.S. rates of gonorrhea are 50-100 times Sweden’s.

If your sense of human family extends beyond the city limits, there are 10 million children under 5 who die every year for the lack of something we take for granted: pure drinking water, and sanitary facilities.

Want a safe place for your kids? Put them in school.

Nicholas Johnson is a member of the Iowa City Community School Board.