Fear itself is the problem
A survey by the Laguna Beach Unified School District titled “The
How I See Things Survey” found mostly positive emotions among second-
through 11th-grade students. But it also found that 37% of Laguna’s
elementary and middle school boys don’t feel safe.
Afraid? This survey screams for another study. What are these boys
afraid of? Bullies? Bad grades? Violence? Oh, please don’t let it be
violence. It’s bad enough that kids in bad neighborhoods feel wary
walking home from school, but kids from Laguna should have some
comfort in their surroundings.
It seems to be another example of how fear has infiltrated
everyday lives regardless of reality. Parents are supposed to warn
their kids. They’re supposed to tell of stranger danger and of not
answering the door when you’re alone. They’re supposed to run fire
drills and demand seat belt usage. But have we gone too far? With
news shows and newspapers focusing on shootings, fatal collisions and
kidnappings, it’s no wonder adults and kids are terrified.
But logically, most of us know that there’s a great difference
between the percentage of time these stories are on TV and the
percentage of persons they actually happen to.
Take precaution, lock your door, tell the kids not to talk to
strangers without mom or dad around and buckle up and then forget
about it. Unrealistic anxiety can be debilitating and diminish life’s
joys. Don’t watch the stories about another shooting mangled car or
house fire. Yes, you might be able to garner a few tips about fire
safety, but generally, if you’re paying attention, you already know
to keep batteries in your fire detectors and have a planned escape
route. Unless it’s your job to prevent these tragedies, it doesn’t do
any good to fill your mind with all the horrible things that can
happen.
Perhaps if enough people stop watching, news programs will be
forced to run more relevant stories -- even the “boring” ones about
local ordinances and special events.
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