This is a post about fear.
It seems lately every news item on TV, every blog post I read, even recent conversations with friends are couched with a sense of fear and imminent danger. It's enough to make me scream.
There was plenty of manufactured fear surrounding Tropical Storm Hanna in these parts. Dire forecasts predicted winds in excess of 60 miles per hour, and flooding rains of 6 inches or more. You would think we were done for.
But she came and went leaving us a few inches of rain, a few broken branches and, for Casa Spartacus, garbage cans blown across our yard. That's it.
Then there's the fear surrounding the election. Whether your persuasion swings Democrat or Republican, it's amazing at how much fear plays into their Presidential campaigns. Lately, it's focused on Amendment XXV of the Constitution, which outlines our nation's Presidential succession plan. Apparently, people think Obama has made a good VP choice and McCain a bad one, because no feels they'll last a full term in office, if elected.
But are we overstating this fear? Like the weather forecasts here in the New York area, are we engaged in a form of hyperbole that is not necessarily meant to warn anyone of impending danger, but to lure us into buying more newspapers or repeating a message so that those events we fear become foregone conclusions?
Certainly, those fears are founded in fact.
Hanna could have stayed off shore, strengthened over the Atlantic to become a hurricane again, and flattened houses along the South shore of Long Island where I live. We haven't had a hurricane here since Gloria struck in 1985, but the memories of that storm and this one still linger.
An Obama assassination could set off unrest in this country the likes of which will make the Rodney King riots, or even the riots following the murder of Martin Luther King, Jr., look like mild disturbances of the peace. Biden would be a capable replacement, but I'd hate to be in his shoes the day he becomes President should Obama be killed in office.
McCain's death, should he die in office, could give us yet another clueless, corrupt and hypocritcal former-Republican governor who most guys would not only want to have a beer with, but would want to fuck once the beer bong went empty and a moose is shot dead. I say "could" because Palin may also go the route of Senator Eagleton.
Truth is, we can make all the dire predictions we want, but won't know a thing until the event we fear actually happens. Hanna turned out to be no big deal, and I'll bet we'll get along just fine regardless of whether we elect and kill the young black guy or the old white guy.
We will endure. We will cope. We will make due until that inevitable moment we fear most comes to pass. It has been our fate since the day we were born.
We will die.
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Over the years teaching at La Scuola d’Italia NY, I have learned that
children are not just students; they are careful observers of the world,
full of q...
6 months ago
Interesting post.
ReplyDeleteI tend to see fear as totally neutral - neither good nor bad. It is was one does with it, or how we let it impact us.
There is lots of good fear - if you are standing in the middle of the street and you hear a loud noise, look to your left and see the M26 bus about to flatten your feet, your heart leaps and hopefully your feet with it.
There is a lot of bad fear and that fear tends to deal with feelings that are harder to identify and cope with.
People -myself included at times, let that get the better of themselves. This morning I got up at 4.30 (don't ask-ok i was going to the gym at 5) and I didn't even look over to see Mark when the alarm went off, I hopped out of bed. When I was in the bathroom I was sure I heard the gargage door (which we have had lots of problems with) going up or down.
I felt fear.
I came downstairs - you've been here - so you know what it looks like - and I heard someone doing something to the lock on our front door and pushing the door.
The burst of fear I felt was over the top. I was shaking and quaking and I ran upstairs to get Mark.
Only he was not in the bed.
Long story slightly shorter, is that he got called out to shoot a story in the middle of the night and the door from the gargage inot the house was stuck, so he had to use the front door.
My fear was irrational.
On the other hand, he does believe me now that the locks on the front door stick and need to be replaced.
That was a long winded tale, but it took awhile for me to calm down.
Fear is always with us. What we choose to do with it and how we let us impact it, is another matter.
Sometimes we do have to jump though and take action,that is all I am saying... in response to fear, not in fear.
Thanks for the thought provoking post.
Fran, thanks for the thought provoking response. You made my point. I guess what I was trying to state here is that we need not always be so reactive to our fears, or better still, be ruled by them. Listen, if I heard a noise like what you did this morning and my dog didn't bark, I'm down headed down the stairs to defend what's upstairs, letting Skippy know to call 911. Sometimes, an immediate response is warranted; sometimes not. I guess I was only dealing with the "not" side of the equation.
ReplyDeleteSarah Palin is warrranted in my opinion. Just about to write about that and came over here so I could link to this post.
ReplyDeletethe media counts on us fearing what will happen. If we are afraid, we will tune in to the news more or buy more papers and magazines. Case in point is Rick this weekend. He was so fearful of the impending tropical storm he heard and read so much about that he kept tuning in to the weather channel. He was so afraid that the tree in our backyard was going to fall. The media is banking on people fearing the unknown
ReplyDeleteFran, indeed Sarah Palin is warranted. Link away sister and thanks in advance.
ReplyDeleteSkippy, you know like I do that fear sells. Let's remember though that Rick is a kid who's still developing a capacity to control his fears. On the other hand, adults who blindly respond/react to advertising and marketing couched as fear are but sheep in the meadow.
Flight or fight is a hard-wired response to immediate threat - one that can't be easily overridden although I've read of a few saints who've managed. Oh how I'd love to be one of them or even know one.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, I think you're absolutely right about fear being used as a tool to control people whether to sell newspapers, duct tape (remember that?) or wars of aggression. Last year we watch a downloaded BBC documentary called 'The Power of Nightmares' or 'The Rise of the Politics of Fear'. Each episode is an hour long but if you only have time for one the last is best.
In a very real sense we all have our heads in the tiger's mouth. We're here in the world and have been given a lot to show us how little is needed to be content
and how much could be given away. We should not be putting our heads in the mouths of paper tigers.
Nice post, Spartacus.
I'm hearing some pretty irrational fears on both sides of the aisle, not much different than any other election year. The Dems are shouting from the roof tops, "McCain will die and Sarah Palin will forget to feed her baby because she'll be too busy in the Oval Office!" The Republicans are screaming, "Gays are going to take over the country and teach your children to be gay just like them!"
ReplyDeleteYup, we all die, and if these people with their irrational fears don't get it in check,they're going to bite the dust a little earlier because of all the stress they put themselves under.
Que Sierra Sierra and all that. ;-)
Remember the lesson from "Bowling for Columbine." Michael Moore assumed, at first, that part of the reason for gun violence was the sheer numbers of guns, but then he looked at Canada that had a higher number per capita. It was the media that was the problem and the local news focus on "it leads if it bleeds." The media have made us irrational with fear. It sells. Yet another reason to kill cable and ditch the tv. It's not that hard. I've been tv free for over four years.
ReplyDeleteSusan - your comment only underscores the incompleteness of this post. Indeed, our fears are realized in many ways, some naturally and some artificially. I only covered the artificial kind because our local news outlets treated it as if it were end times, which, I might add, seems to be echoed in campaigns of both major parties' Presidential candidates. Thanks for the tip on those PBS documentaries. I will check them out sometime this week.
ReplyDeleteMary Ellen - I wish it were just about the irrational screeds of left and right are that simple. Truth is, the possibility of a Palin Administration scares the shit out of me as much as an Obama assassination. However, since neither event has happened, I will not stress about it. However, I will also work my ass of to ensure that they don't.
PiNYC - I do remember the scene in the movie and the conclusion that Moore came to. But I believe complicity for fear-mongering lies with both media who sells it and the public who buys it. I think that's your point and I admire your stance.
HPL said the oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and he was right.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid that all the predictions I make, sports or not, won't come true, then I'll owe people a few Lincolns.
Look! A gay turrist!
The fascination with and almost joy in fear has become out of control since 9/11
ReplyDeleteI think isolation and ignorance feed fear. Before 9/11 Americans felt pretty cushy safe - certainly compared to the rest of the world. After 9/11 our lack of understanding of, experience with, tolerance for the rest of the world came shining through and Bush and Co. seized that moment. In addition to seeling papers and creating more 24 hour "news" networks fear controls.
HP Lovecraft is right fear is the oldest emotion, but FDR also said that "we have nothing to fear, but fear itself." What's sad is that the same tactics that brought us Nazi Germany are now being used to bring us McCain/Palin... Country First. USA: Love it or Leave it.
ReplyDeleteDianne - yet another reason why my post is incomplete. Americans do get stoked by fear, trying to create a world of no risk; a world where fear does not exist. It's asinine. And you're right... Bush & Co. know that most Americans are ruled by their fears, and they do all they can to stoke it.
I must admit that I wouldn't mind watching Comedy Central and BBC America some evenings, but my mental health is better now that I got rid of cable and tv. Just a survival mechanism.
ReplyDeleteFear comes from lack of information. The more informed a person is, the less likely they are to be afraid. If we look at facts, and make choices based on those facts, we make sound and reasonable choices.
ReplyDeleteBut in an age of low-information-voters, people consistently vote against their own best interests because the language has been twisted to evoke fear.
Fear is a great paralyzer. When we are deeply afraid, we become numb, unable to think, act, or choose.
Good post, Spartz.
SPARTACUS: Look up the actuarial tables. Even McCain is a pretty solid favorite to make it through his eight years as president alive, assuming he doesn't retire at some point. I'd lay pretty much any price against Obama being killed in office.
ReplyDeleteNow, as to whether your country will get along fine with either McCain or Obama is another question entirely. The relationship of the United States with the rest of the world is so strained that diplomacy will have to be managed very carefully to avoid an American economic collapse. If Obama loses, there will be problems which neither McCain nor Palin are equipped to address.
The Republicans have SOLD THE UNITED STATES LOCK STOCK AND BARREL in various proporations to about 45 countries, all but about 6of which they've completely alienated. I would say that's a way more relevant thing to worry about than whether there will be rioting in the US if Obama loses.
I'm not worried because no matter what the US would LIKE to do to any other nation, they do not have the ability to do it. The 4th Fleet was reactivated a few months ago and Russia just sat and waited and when it was time to act they acted. Now, what can McCain do down here?
What down here can do to McCain (or to Obama if he takes his instructions from Rev Rick Warren) would not be real fun for you guys. But this is really not even your fight, Spartacus. Obama's going to walk away with New York's electoral votes.
The days of the American Empire are certainly over. The days of "greatest country on Earth" are certainly over. The question now is American survival as a strong republic which is a good world citizen. All I hear is "La Pesadilla Americana" because opportunities up there are few and dwindling and the entrepreneurial culture is so stymied.
Thanks Diva... Fear is generated by a lack of information because it's the tendency of people to fill that void with their own conclusions. These conclusions generally skew towards the worst case fears, which feeds that monster called "misinformation", which, in turn, creates greater fear.
ReplyDeleteKelso - que pasa, mi hermano. Leave it to you to leave a long and informative reply. I hear what you're saying about the actuarial tables, but those only provide the numerical probabilities, and speak nothing to the machinations of the hearts and minds of the undecided white voter. As I write this, those who are leaning towards voting in the McCain/Palin ticket are voting for Palin. Moreover, those same voters simply cannot countenance a black POTUS.
I feel what you're saying about the challenges facing the next POTUS, particularly on the international economic front. In the parlance of the streets we once ran, we Americans owe lots of people lots of money and it won't be long before some comes looking to pop a cap in us if we don't pay something. I'm just sayin...mano.
I don't know if I agree with you about the meaning of fear. I do agree however that the politicians prey on our fears to influence our decisions. Personally I believe that fear is a natural reaction that sounds our internal alarm. Fear will make you STOP, take notice, question, proceed with caution, and investigate that which gives you apprehension.
ReplyDeleteI am afraid of broccoli. I think broccoli is irrational. My mother tried to brainwash me into believing that ALL green veggies were good.
ReplyDeleteMother does not know best.
Mother McCain is kinda like rotten broccoli. It wasn't good fresh, and it is not good old and soggy.
That broccoli is some scary shit, okjimm. Thanks for reminding me.
ReplyDeleteSis, I don't think we disagree much on fear at all. But you and I both know the effects that manufactured fear can have on people and a society in general. Like okjimm's broccoli, sometimes those fears are founded in fact and played like a cheap violin.
ReplyDeletePiNYC - Far be it from me to forget to respond to your comments. My apologies. Again, I admire your ability to keep television out of your home, if only because there's just no way I can with the kids and all. Like you, I would not miss much by not watching TV, but I'm a sucker for a good movie on HBO or Showtime.
ReplyDelete