Paranoia

I believe that man’s greatest enemy must be fear. Nothing like fear can bring even the strongest of men to his knees. Fear grips us with a strength beyond comprehension.  If we are so aware of this power, then why do we allow our fears to rear their heads?

Think of all the examples of how people use fear throughout our society:

• Governments and tyrannies use fear to control their people and other governments.

• Parents and teachers use fear to scare children into submission and make them act in certain ways.

• Crimes are committed every day based on fear and intimidation.

• Many religions use fear to direct and control their followers.

• Businesses and bosses use fear to keep employees quite and obedient.

The examples are endless, but the most powerful and most important fear is the one which lives with inside each of us. The fear we have of ourselves failing, or succeeding, or of others not approving of our behavior or beliefs.

Imagine the things you could accomplish, or already could have accomplished, were it not for your fears…

A few things I might have done or would do are:

• To dance with reckless abandon whenever I get the urge. )

• Pursued a career in international journalism and worked on the front lines of reporting.

• Moved to New York City.

• Go on to law school and work for the Innocence Project.

It’s not to say that these are regrets or even things that I cannot still do. But I think it is important to acknowledge fears, or things we have not done out of fear,  so they do not become regrets and we learn from those experiences to avoid repeating them.

When your greatest foe discovers your greatest fear, you are defeated.

There is such an element of fear in our society that I could write three posts a day and never cover it all. Why are we afraid? What aren’t we afraid of?

Every day the news tells us about the crime in our communities; the kidnappings, the murders, the accidents, and everything in between. Many Americans only get their news from TV. TV news is built for profit. Built for sensationalism because it sells. Would it really be as interesting if they reported that everything was good, and all those “rates” were dropping?

Well, for starters telling you that crime rates were dropping or leveling off would be speaking the truth. Since the 1980’s, violent crime rates have consistently gone down or remained the same, even when population growth is taken into consideration. Have a look for yourself – Go to www.census.gov, and search on crime rates. It’s all there. The facts.

There are not predators on every corner waiting to steal your child, but you wouldn’t know that if you watch your local nightly news or the ever-sensational Nancy Grace. They would have you believe that your child must be kept under lock and key where you can see them 24 hours a day.

Some think that driving down a specific street means certain death by random gunfire. The majority of shootings occur between people who know each other. Contrary to popular belief, there are not people just waiting on street corners to shoot at passers by.

Those are just the crimes. Our fears run deep. From different cultures and beliefs to medical advancements and technology, I’ll make an attempt to make you think about your fears and those around you. Are they valid? Are they created by sensationalism? What facts support or discredit your fears?

In other words, do they hold a bit of sanity or are they pure insanity?