I demand that you go read Michael Crichton's presentation on fear and complexity.
In fact, we need to recognize that this kind of human response is well-documented. Authoritatively telling people they are going to die can in itself be fatal.
You may know that Australian aborigines fear a curse called “pointing the bone.” A shaman shakes a bone at a person, and sings a song, and soon after, the person dies. This is a specific example of a phenomenon generally referred to as “hex death”—a person is cursed by an authority figure, and then dies. According to medical studies, the person generally dies of dehydration, implying they just give up. But the progression is very erratic, and shock symptoms may play a part, suggesting adrenal effects of fright and hopelessness.
Yet this deadly curse is nothing but information. And it can be undone with information.
A friend of mine was an intern at Bellvue Hospital in New York. A 28-year old man from Aruba said he was going to die, because he had been cursed. He was admitted for psychiatric evaluation and found to be normal, but his health steadily declined. My friend was able to rehydrate him, balance his electrolytes, and give him nutrients, but nevertheless the man worsened, insisting that he was cursed and there was nothing that could prevent his death. My friend realized that the patient would, in fact, soon die. The situation was desperate. Finally he told the patient that he, the doctor, was going to invoke his own powerful medicine to undo the curse, and his medicine was more powerful than any other. He got together with the house staff, bought some headdresses and rattles, and danced around the patient in the middle of the night, chanting what they hoped would be effective-sounding phrases. The patient showed no reaction, but next day he began to improve. The man went home a few days later. My friend literally saved his life.
He goes on to explain how the irrational, paralyzing fears that the left foists upon civilization -- such as global warming, oil depletion, overpopulation, &c. -- have real costs and do far more harm than good.
Blissful ignorance has real costs, too.. and often does far more harm than good.
I wouldn't say the Left "foists upon civilization" anything resembling a "paralyzing fear".. but I would say they're making sure we don't completely ignore the issues.. and there's nothing wrong with that.
Republican fear mongering usually has to do with foreign threats of harming our interests, our allies, or our taking our citizens lives, domestic
threaats from criminals, or economic threats from incrasing taxes, unfair foreign competition, or too much government regulation. All of the Republican fear angles have historic examples. The Democrats use of environmental and resource depletion don't have historical examples.
RK: Many of those are overblown by Republicans just as many are overblown by Democrats.
In fact, by an amazing coincidence, Republicans overblow their fears to exactly the same extent as Democrats. Once again, everything is equal to everything else.
BB: Don't put words in my mouth. I didn't say they're overblown exactly the same amount.. I said they overblow their fears too.. often for political gain. The Democrats do it too.
I'm sorry, but the Republican party's shit certainly does stink as much as the Democratic party's shit.