Leash Life

When I was 5, my mom bought me a soccer ball. I used to go outside to the small soccer field and kick the ball from one side of the field to the other. Then I met some other kids, and we started making up teams. My parents could watch us from the living room window, but they didn't do that often. Later, when I started going to school, I never came home after school. When school was over, we'd put our schoolbags by the goal posts, and play soccer until it got too dark to see the ball.
Which is why this thread (from 4chan, I believe), got my attention.
The story, to sum up, is that a guy let his 9-year-old kid play outside unsupervised. At first, one mom shows up at the guy's door to see what the problem is. Then, when she's told there's no problem, she comes back with a posse of other moms. They're holding the kid and refuse to let him go back into the house, because he obviously suffers from neglect. The father then calls the police, and the moms get arrested.
I wouldn't trust too much of the stuff that comes from 4chan, but whether it's real or not, I think we can agree it isn't that far-fetched.
I feel my kids are too young to be outside without supervision, but what happens when they're nine? I'd like to think I'll act like the 4chan dad, but maybe I'll be afraid? Maybe I'm anti-leash, pro-independence only in theory? Maybe I'll be the one complaining about unsupervised kids and neglectful parents? And what about my girl? If I let my boy play outside by himself, do I do the same with his sister? Or do I follow the current universal thinking: that safe space to wander exists only for males?

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