Are you trying to convince me that the area around GT is safe, or are you making arguments that could be made to rural recruit's parents? I am not worried about being at GT, or in Midtown. I know plenty of rural people who do not like being around Atlanta. An argument like that would be taken as "big city person" snark, and they would not listen to another word you said.
Like I said before, it isn't about facts, it is about perception. There are people in rural areas who have to drive 10 miles or more to get to the nearest grocery store. The GT campus itself is going to appear to be overly built up and crowded to some of those people.
There are advantages and disadvantages to urban areas. There are advantages and disadvantages to suburban areas. There are advantages and disadvantages to rural areas. In recruiting, teams are going to stress the advantages of their area and stress the disadvantages of the areas of other schools. There are a lot of advantages at GT. You can walk across the 5th Street Bridge and interview/intern/meet with several fortune 500 companies. To alleviate the concerns of a rural parent it would be better to discuss things such as: It is a safe walk (especially in a group) to Broadway plays. It is a safe walk to safe public transportation to get to concerts/sporting events. Athletic training/workouts/etc would be on campus and in groups.
One additional thing I'll point out. Kids who grew up in rural areas do need some acclimation to living in an urban area. I remember my first week in Smith, they circulated a flyer that warned against walking to concerts at the Omni. I think it read more like -- Do Not Under Any Circumstance walk through the Techwood housing projects to get to the Omni. It suggested driving, a cab, or walking to the North Avenue MARTA station. The entire area around GT is much safer now than it was back then. New GT students shouldn't be afraid of being in Atlanta. However, they should be made aware of and learn location and situation awareness needed in an urban area.
I would 100% say you absolutely misread what I was saying.
My comment was in response to your comment about distance. I was not disagreeing with you. Realistically, a long way is better described by how long it takes to get where you want to go instead of how far in distance it really is. In a city (like Atlanta or Chicago), 10 miles is a long way away because it takes a long time (like 45 minutes) to get there. In the country, it's not so far (as you stated, sometimes the nearest store is 10 miles away). My parents live in rural Alabama, town population 73, so I understand Country/Rural. I also understand people's aversion to Atlanta. But, in general, my experience is that aversion is based on driving in Atlanta traffic, not once people get to where they're going..
My previous point, which I understand you disagree with (but I still think you're wrong), is that "rural" people's perceptions tend to change when they get on the Tech campus. In my experience, that is true. When I was at Tech (a long, long time ago, before Techwood Homes and Carver and all were moved to Clayton County for the Olympics) I was a GT Ambassador and did 8-10 tours a week for prospective students and their families (depending on the time of year). The number one thing I heard from parents (way back then) was "wow! you'd never know you're in Atlanta if you couldn't see the skyline. It feels like its own little world." The perception that it was an urban campus and therefore inherently dangerous changed. First-hand experience with exactly what I said. Now, today the areas around Tech are a whole lot safer than they were when I was at Tech. It's not unsafe to walk back from MBS to Tech's campus in the evening.
In the end, as you said, it's perception. My experiences tell me something different than your experiences tell you. I'm not trying to convince you you're wrong, just providing my viewpoint.