The problem isn't fear. The problem is irrational, disingenuous, performative fear.
When LeBron James says black people are being hunted whenever they step out of their homes, he is contributing to an irrational fear of police - a fear that does not align with either statistical data or observable reality.
When a transgender person says that refusing to use his preferred pronouns or denying him entry to the girl's locker room is tantamount to genocide, he is contributing to an irrational fear of his cultural/political enemies.
When a Democrat politician says that a band of unarmed boomers running around the capitol for a few hours while security stands down is an insurrection, and that such terrorism demands action against their political opponents, then that democrat is creating an irrational fear.
But a lot of fear is entirely rational.
The fear that governments are using covid-19 to bypass our rights and secure powers that they will never relinquish? That fear is based in observable reality.
The fear that mass immigration of peoples with higher birthrates, and who do not assimilate, will result in the inevitable transformation of your nation into a fundamentally different one? That fear is based in observable reality.
The fear that your race is under attack by elites using your skin color as a proxy for the middle class they hate, and that a plurality of people from other racial and ethnic groups are happily piling on? Yeah, you can just Google "white people" to get your answer there.
Demonizing fear is stupid. Fear is important. But like any emotion, it can be faked, artificially manufactured, and turned to evil.
The problem isn't fear. The problem is irrational, disingenuous, performative fear.
When LeBron James says black people are being hunted whenever they step out of their homes, he is contributing to an irrational fear of police - a fear that does not align with either statistical data or observable reality.
When a transgender person says that refusing to use his preferred pronouns or denying him entry to the girl's locker room is tantamount to genocide, he is contributing to an irrational fear of his cultural/political enemies.
When a Democrat politician says that a band of unarmed boomers running around the capitol for a few hours while security stands down is an insurrection, and that such terrorism demands action against their political opponents, then that democrat is creating an irrational fear.
But a lot of fear is entirely rational.
The fear that governments are using covid-19 to bypass our rights and secure powers that they will never relinquish? That fear is based in observable reality.
The fear that mass immigration of peoples with higher birthrates, and who do not assimilate, will result in the inevitable transformation of your nation into a fundamentally different one? That fear is based in observable reality.
The fear that your race is under attack by elites using your skin color as a proxy for the middle class they hate, and that a plurality of people from other racial and ethnic groups are happily piling on? Yeah, you can just Google "white people" to get your answer there.
Demonizing fear is stupid. Fear is important. But like any emotion, it can be faked, artificially manufactured, and turned to evil.