Myth? "People Fear What They Don't Understand"

[Hunterkirk]

I think it is a myth that people buy in to that not understanding something or someone means you are more likely to fear it.

I believe that many times, if not most times, fear comes from understanding something or someone. It think this myth spawned from the idea that one can talk ones way out of every problem.

 

[ehehe]

It's just an aphorism. Of course it isn't always true, but I can't think of an overwhelming number of instances where it isn't. Most of the justifications people come up with for their fears are wildly speculative. Not all clowns are serial killers, etc. It's cool if you're afraid of heights or something, but I don't think most fears are like that.

 

[Hunterkirk]

It's just an aphorism. Of course it isn't always true, but I can't think of an overwhelming number of instances where it isn't. Most of the justifications people come up with for their fears are wildly speculative. Not all clowns are serial killers, etc. It's cool if you're afraid of heights or something, but I don't think most fears are like that.

I don't know.

People fear nuclear weapons, guns, Nazi's, KKK, and countless other things that we know alot about. I still tend to think people, more so in the west, are more likely to give groups that little are known about more credit then they likely derserve.

 

[DailyBlessings]

I always felt there was a flaw in the argument that religion was created out of a fear of the unknown, or of death- such a fear is actually a better explanation for the development of science as a cultural entity, than religion, and I don't think it is a universal perception. The here and now can be very threatening, no matter how well you know it. Why are we afraid of Nazis? I don't think it is because they are completely foreign to us, though it may immediately seem that way. The reason Hitler's Germany is a frightening concept, is that the people who supported it were not that different from us. We fear in others, the same things we fear in ourselves.

 

[Foolish_Fool]

There are rational fears and irrational fears.

Rational fears are ones which you can systematically prove and have a good reason for. IE snakes. It's rational to be afraid of something that can harm you. However, not all snakes are harmful, but it's a good idea to treat them as such.

An irrational fear can have two reasons.

1- Just plain ol' paranoia. I, for instance, am afraid of bugs. I don't know why. Even a harmless lady bug will make me jump if it gets on me. I know it won't hurt me, but that won't stop me from ripping off my shirt and beating it on the ground if one gets in there.

2- Irrational fear based upon misunderstanding and misinformation. Take minorities for example. Jews, Muslims, homosexuals, etc etc etc... Even white people where they are a minority. Various societies have held irrational fears about minorities over the ages because they based their fears upon misunderstandings and outright lies. One simply needs to read any thread on this forum about muslims or homosexuals to see this in action.

 

[Hunterkirk]

There are rational fears and irrational fears.

Rational fears are ones which you can systematically prove and have a good reason for. IE snakes. It's rational to be afraid of something that can harm you. However, not all snakes are harmful, but it's a good idea to treat them as such.

An irrational fear can have two reasons.

1- Just plain ol' paranoia. I, for instance, am afraid of bugs. I don't know why. Even a harmless lady bug will make me jump if it gets on me. I know it won't hurt me, but that won't stop me from ripping off my shirt and beating it on the ground if one gets in there.

2- Irrational fear based upon misunderstanding and misinformation. Take minorities for example. Jews, Muslims, homosexuals, etc etc etc... Even white people where they are a minority. Various societies have held irrational fears about minorities over the ages because they based their fears upon misunderstandings and outright lies. One simply needs to read any thread on this forum about muslims or homosexuals to see this in action.

Irrational fears may or may not be irrational.

Many times the concerns of the groups with the fear is founded on how it will effect them and their beliefs and not on the existance of the other groups.

Let us take the KKK for example. The Fear you see time and again in their meetings is the fear that the white race will disappear due to interbreeding and cultural abandonment. Well in some ways their fears were indeed not Irrational. The White "race" is shrinking in the USA and interbreeding is one reason behind it, the other being that they are not breeding enough in the first place. Is that a big deal? Well if you are focused on preserving the white race it is, if you see race as simply a man made construct and of no importance then it isn't, nor would preserving the Black Culture be important to you or any other race for that matter.

Like wise we could look at the Nazi's and their central fear was that they as a culture (the German Race) would be destroyed due to interactions with other races. Well germans as a people have indeed been blended in to Europe and as a culture they are becoming less and less distinct. The NAACP is fear damage to the black culture or race in the USA. Athiest fear religion influancing them or their children. Religious people fear society influancing them or their children. Democrats fear Republicans and Republicans Fear Democrats. Homosexuals fear the Christian Right influance and the Christian Right fear the Homosexuals influance. On and On.

But in all the above cases none of it is irrational.

 

[ExistencePrecedesEssence]

Irrational fears may or may not be irrational.

Many times the concerns of the groups with the fear is founded on how it will effect them and their beliefs and not on the existance of the other groups.The White "race" is shrinking in the USA and interbreeding is one reason behind it, the other being that they are not

Let us take the KKK for example. The Fear you see time and again in their meetings is the fear that the white race will disappear due to interbreeding and cultural abandonment. Well in some ways their fears were indeed not Irrational. breeding enough in the first place. Is that a big deal? Well if you are focused on preserving the white race it is, if you see race as simply a man made construct and of no importance then it isn't, nor would preserving the Black Culture be important to you or any other race for that matter.

Like wise we could look at the Nazi's and their central fear was that they as a culture (the German Race) would be destroyed due to interactions with other races. Well germans as a people have indeed been blended in to Europe and as a culture they are becoming less and less distinct. The NNACP is fear damage to the black culture or race in the USA. Athiest fear religion influancing them or their children. Religious people fear society influancing them or their children. Democrats fear Republicans and Republicans Fear Democrats. Homosexuals fear the Christian Right influance and the Christian Right fear the Homosexuals influance. On and On.

But in all the above cases none of it is irrational.

Irrational fears are exactly what the context of the phrase concieves...irrational. We dont act on rational thought out of a first glance perspectives sometimes, we may act purely on our emotional context without fully knowing the affect the certain things we are despairing over are actually in rational and thinking perspective dangerous, because we dont logically analyze some things off of first perceptions....Not all spiders are bad but i still despise them...based on my irrational emotional feeling towards them....When i see a spider i immediatly get anxiety even if i knew that species of spider was non-venemous and unharmful to me, i still to my emotional level...despise spiders.

 

[Hunterkirk]

Irrational fears are exactly what the context of the phrase concieves...irrational. We dont act on rational thought out of a first glance perspectives sometimes, we may act purely on our emotional context without fully knowing the affect the certain things we are despairing over are actually in rational and thinking perspective dangerous, because we dont logically analyze some things off of first perceptions....Not all spiders are bad but i still despise them...based on my irrational emotional feeling towards them....When i see a spider i immediatly get anxiety even if i knew that species of spider was non-venemous and unharmful to me, i still to my emotional level...despise spiders.

But the issue isn't rational or irrational it is understanding and if understanding produces fear or not.

When faced with the unknown you have two responses, one to seek to know more about it (rational) two to openly reject it (irrational). Having learned more about it and what it wants you again have two responses.. One to accept it and two reject it. At this point either can be rational or not depending on what is important to you.

My premise here is that understanding something is more likely to result in conflict then not understanding something. As when you don't understand something it is easy to assume the best of it. When you do understand something that option is no longer present.

 

[ExistencePrecedesEssence]

Theres a nothingness of choice. You can for instance have a rational thought about it and still act irrationally...such as when you are shooting someone you know your job is to kill the person...but your senses get in the way at taking a human life.

 

[L4T3R4LUS]

I think it is a myth that people buy in to that not understanding something or someone means you are more likely to fear it.

I believe that many times, if not most times, fear comes from understanding something or someone. It think this myth spawned from the idea that one can talk ones way out of every problem.

People don't understand God, so they fear him. Saying we are sinners and Jesus is going to burn us in hell for sinning. This is far from the truth, that the fear that was instilled by the testament God was merely to allow men to encounter good rather than fall to evil. But to fear the repercussions of justice is another matter. One cannot go around killing and raping and not fear God; for the retribution that God may ensue. But the people that tend to fear God the most are those who have encountered good, knowing that we sometimes make mistakes--that God to them is a wrathful God--that punishes us for any impurity.

Committing sin is knowingly committing evil, choosing evil over good; but most of us do not have a conception of sin.

The fear of God is a misunderstanding or a look at the unknown. What is good? What is evil? Only we can judge for ourselves what is good and what is evil. To believe that every whim or bad thought will lead to burning in hell is the fear of God at work. But people tend to overlook their hearts, to see how they will act and react during any given situation, will tell you if you should fear God or not. Afterall, it is what is within our hearts that we shall be judged by, accordingly.

 

[us38]

One cannot go around killing and raping and not fear God; for the retribution that God may ensue.

Sure you can. One cannot fear what one does not believe exists.

 

[MorkandMindy]

I don't know.

People fear nuclear weapons, guns, Nazi's, KKK, and countless other things that we know alot about. I still tend to think people, more so in the west, are more likely to give groups that little are known about more credit then they likely derserve.

There is the evolution factor.

People fear things that over the past umpteen thousand years have killed us. Creepy crawly things may resemble scorpions, we fear them because some are venomous enough to kill us or our offspring (which in evolution is also bad). Fear of spiders which move a lot like scorpions is evolutionary, don't know where this thing about 'rational' comes in.

Nasty people are to be feared.

Our fears are out of date.

This penetrated even into your up to date list. I note in even your list of things we should be afraid of you omitted the main ones, getting depressed, over eating, lack of fun and exercise, getting hit by a car, man-made viruses, running out of oil, wife divorcing you, kids going to prison, daughter going sterile from VD.