Irrational Fear
Irrational fears seem to drive the uninformed these days. Two weeks ago I was at a suburban house party (174 Street and Cinnamon Circle) and I heard a mother say to another guest that "I will not let my daughter go to 90th and Maple street" where her boyfriend lives because the area is to dangerous. I just about fell off my chair. I hope I didn't roll my eyes in an uncontrolled response. I find it hilarious what these suburbanites view as "dangerous". The "danger zone" is in what urban planners would call the First Ring of Omaha suburban neighborhoods built in the 1970's. An area best described as modest sized 3 bedroom homes (from an era before everyone wanted a McMansion), leafy streets, two cars in every garage and a chicken in every pot.
In Sunday's newspaper a mother ranted on about her irrational fear of homeless people in downtown Omaha. (She is also most likely fearful of Mexicans and black people). She claimed to be incapable of going downtown any more because the homeless had taken over the Park and Main Library. I go to the Central Park and the Main Library often and yes there are homeless there. The homeless I have seen in the Library are reading or researching quietly. At the same children are reading, studying and getting on the computers in the same heavily used Library. The homeless people I see in the park are sleeping under a tree or sitting or sitting and visiting with other homeless people. Hardly the threatening kind of situation painted in the letter in the paper. She also ranted on about her tax dollars paying to maintain the park she could not use. I feel sorry for people like this suburbanite woman and I know our city is full of them.
Today the Omaha paper's headline reports "Few Terror Connections Proved". As it appears of the 35 cases against "Terrorist" in Iowa in the last two years, not one person was actually charged with being a terrorist. So how can the US Dept of Justice claim this and why would they make such a claim? Could it be to whip up some more irrational fear in voters concerning terrorism?
Why do we live in an age of such irrational fear?
In Sunday's newspaper a mother ranted on about her irrational fear of homeless people in downtown Omaha. (She is also most likely fearful of Mexicans and black people). She claimed to be incapable of going downtown any more because the homeless had taken over the Park and Main Library. I go to the Central Park and the Main Library often and yes there are homeless there. The homeless I have seen in the Library are reading or researching quietly. At the same children are reading, studying and getting on the computers in the same heavily used Library. The homeless people I see in the park are sleeping under a tree or sitting or sitting and visiting with other homeless people. Hardly the threatening kind of situation painted in the letter in the paper. She also ranted on about her tax dollars paying to maintain the park she could not use. I feel sorry for people like this suburbanite woman and I know our city is full of them.
Today the Omaha paper's headline reports "Few Terror Connections Proved". As it appears of the 35 cases against "Terrorist" in Iowa in the last two years, not one person was actually charged with being a terrorist. So how can the US Dept of Justice claim this and why would they make such a claim? Could it be to whip up some more irrational fear in voters concerning terrorism?
Why do we live in an age of such irrational fear?
posted by MTOguy at 4:27 AM
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