Let us not be manipulated by fear
Fear defined: “an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger.”
We’re bombarded constantly by corporations, political parties, and other organization warning us of eminent danger, trying to create fear of being assaulted by one group, deprived of our jobs by another group, becoming sick with some syndrome or disease, being overweight, underweight, or unstylish, being invaded by foreigners, traumatized for being “different.”
Why do they want us to feel fear and build walls between us? So that we’ll look to them to relieve the perceived danger through their pill, their services, removing their enemy, voting for their candidate. We are being manipulated for their gain, willingly yielding our intellect and power.
Fear can motivate us to change for the better or protect us from doing something risky. But fear that generalizes, alienates and is based on emotion rather than fact can result in irrational, and/ violent behaviors. Most religious texts including the Koran, Bible and Torah discourage us from this fear and encourage us to trust in God or love.
Let us be moved by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s words to a world threatened by a horrific power: “The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.”
Laurie Tidyman-Jones, Fresno
This story was originally published July 28, 2016 at 3:08 PM with the headline "Let us not be manipulated by fear."