The Futility of Shoe Laces

There are few activities that mark the emergence for a child from preschool into grade school like learning how to tie your shoes.  It means that you have acquired the complex dexterity and ability to remember instructions needed to achieve a task that will allow you to independently put on your shoes.  Velcro has stifled the need to learn this skill by putting of for many years.  Why should a child have to learn this skill when they have already achieved this independence since they are were 2.   Because I hate tying my shoes only to have them come undone, and because I have many small children that all wear velcro shoes that don't need to be retied, I have thought through the futility of laces. 
Has technology not come far enough in shoe and velcro design that we all can't wear velcro shoes?  I believe laces have hung on so long because adults don't want to be associated with the velcro of their youth.  It is like saying to a kid, not only can they not have a drink or drive a car or vote, they also can't tie their own shoes.  I advocate for a lace free movement when it comes to athletic shoes.  Many dress shoes have already turned into fancy slippers.  Athletic shoes need to be more secure than a slipper, but surely a velcro strap can accomplish this task.   Let's send the shoelace companies to the  same pages in history as milk men, buggy whip manufacturers, and ice plants.