The Empty

Well, the Department of Homeland Security has done it again. They've tried to make us feel as insecure as possible.  I know I am few days behind on bitching about this, but I saved it to a draft, I got busy with other stuff - you know the drill.  Wil Wheaton has a great blog entry on this and it brought back the ring of truth I heard in Michael Moore's movie Bowling for Columbine.  I'm sure that 'die-heard conservatives' have tuned out already, but the point of the movie was the culture of fear that the US media (and government) breeds.  Of course, people eat it up with a spoon.  What is more exciting and believable than someone telling you about something to be afraid of?  Would you rather hear news about Bhutan's new constitution or about how someone's baby got eaten by coyotes?

I can't stand to watch TV news, myself.  I don't actually watch that much TV anymore at all.  That's one of the perks of having two small kids - I stay busy :).  I don't miss the 10 second news blurbs about what I have in my very own kitchen that might be killing me.  Tune in at 9 to find out!

The problem is that the more fear people get, the more they seem to crave it.  If one network news team changed focus to actually report things that mattered instead of the stories with the most 'fear factor,' who would watch?  People want to hear about the next thing they should be afraid of and to be kept apprised of the things they are already afraid of.  I think people have actually started to think that their neighborhoods are more dangerous than they actually are.  Not that there aren't some dangerous neighborhoods out there...

Any of you have the answer to breaking the Culture of fear?