Lies, chances and fear
Another entry. Another political entry. If you're not interested in politics, please move on.
Yes, I should start using tags. I don't. I'm lazy.
This time it's about the fear craze. Today, we're afraid of everything and anything. Terror, avian flu, immigrants, crime, hell, pick something and run with it. And why? Because we see it on TV, because we're told that "this or that" will happen, or at least might, and that we should "prepare" for it.
We're told to fear because fear is one of the most powerful emotions (right next to greed). Fear makes us gullible, malleable and easy to convince. We don't like it, and we want that fixed.
I don't want to say there is no threat of terror, no avian flu, no crime. What I say is that it's blown way out of proportion to make us do what is wanted from us. It's some sort of negative motivation. We're afraid of terror, so we hand over what's left of our liberties to be protected.
Protected from what, exactly? Yes, 9/11 was a big terror attack. 3000something people died. Since 2001/09/11, a multiple of that died in traffic. Do we fear cars now? Same for cancer. Where's the cry for a cure?
But what bothers me most is the creation of the most absurd scenarios to prove something unpopular "has" to be done. Yes, if all those coincidences come together, what is proposed would actually "save" us. But the chance for that is so insignificantly small that it would be more sensible to pass a law that everyone has to wear construction hard hats all the time because it's way more likely that some brick falls down from a roof.
Avian flu is a perfect example. Yes, people died. Yes, you can die too. Your CHANCE to die (provided you have a chance to get it) is SO small, though, that it doesn't matter.
Some anti-terror laws come right behind it. Yes, they "protect" against the scenario. But the CHANCE that this exact scenario comes along is SO small that it would be more sensible to keep your liberties and live dangerous.
Are we so dumb? Can't we see that yes, a threat scenario exists, but the CHANCE that it hits is so insignificantly small that it doesn't matter AT ALL? You're more likely to die in a freak accident than by a terrorist attack!
Besides, why no statistics? Not even a forged one? We had a lot of very questionable laws passed since 9/11, why can't we see what good they did? Show me some kind of evidence that those laws actually stopped a SINGLE terrorist attack! So far, all I see is that our governments take away our liberties and in return we get NOTHING at all.
So, people, please, don't buy into the craze. Think of the last line of the US Anthem and go with it. And kick those in the nuts that want to take it from you.
Yes, I should start using tags. I don't. I'm lazy.
This time it's about the fear craze. Today, we're afraid of everything and anything. Terror, avian flu, immigrants, crime, hell, pick something and run with it. And why? Because we see it on TV, because we're told that "this or that" will happen, or at least might, and that we should "prepare" for it.
We're told to fear because fear is one of the most powerful emotions (right next to greed). Fear makes us gullible, malleable and easy to convince. We don't like it, and we want that fixed.
I don't want to say there is no threat of terror, no avian flu, no crime. What I say is that it's blown way out of proportion to make us do what is wanted from us. It's some sort of negative motivation. We're afraid of terror, so we hand over what's left of our liberties to be protected.
Protected from what, exactly? Yes, 9/11 was a big terror attack. 3000something people died. Since 2001/09/11, a multiple of that died in traffic. Do we fear cars now? Same for cancer. Where's the cry for a cure?
But what bothers me most is the creation of the most absurd scenarios to prove something unpopular "has" to be done. Yes, if all those coincidences come together, what is proposed would actually "save" us. But the chance for that is so insignificantly small that it would be more sensible to pass a law that everyone has to wear construction hard hats all the time because it's way more likely that some brick falls down from a roof.
Avian flu is a perfect example. Yes, people died. Yes, you can die too. Your CHANCE to die (provided you have a chance to get it) is SO small, though, that it doesn't matter.
Some anti-terror laws come right behind it. Yes, they "protect" against the scenario. But the CHANCE that this exact scenario comes along is SO small that it would be more sensible to keep your liberties and live dangerous.
Are we so dumb? Can't we see that yes, a threat scenario exists, but the CHANCE that it hits is so insignificantly small that it doesn't matter AT ALL? You're more likely to die in a freak accident than by a terrorist attack!
Besides, why no statistics? Not even a forged one? We had a lot of very questionable laws passed since 9/11, why can't we see what good they did? Show me some kind of evidence that those laws actually stopped a SINGLE terrorist attack! So far, all I see is that our governments take away our liberties and in return we get NOTHING at all.
So, people, please, don't buy into the craze. Think of the last line of the US Anthem and go with it. And kick those in the nuts that want to take it from you.