Today's MOZEN: Fear and Loathing in America Strikes Again!

F LoBuono

Maybe it's me. In fact, I'm sure that it is. But, I still just don't get it. I have a good life. I am not rich or famous but I do OK. I own my own house. And, it's a pretty big house, too. I have a beautiful apartment.I eat well. I have a decent vehicle - old with plenty of mileage, but reliable - like its owner. I am in good health. I have steady work and make a good living. And, most importantly, I feel FREE. I travel pretty much unfettered. I say and write whatever suits me, unafraid of censorship or retribution. Life in America is still pretty damned good.

At least it is for me.

Yet, there are many with circumstances similar to mine who feel in peril. They see villains lurking at the highest level of government (including the President) whose only goal is to pass legislation to screw them. Their personal liberties are seen to be in serious jeopardy. It's a mindset that takes hold and never lets go. To use the term popularized by Dr. Gonzo himself, Hunter S. Thompson, they suffer from a paranoia that he called Fear and Loathing*. They fear and loath what they don't understand or agree with. They fret that the Country is on the road to ruin. Here are some of the possible reasons.

First, there is a totally irrational fear that the government is coming for their guns. ANY regulation of a weapon is seen as an infringement of personal liberty, one that will lead to tyranny.

Well, no matter how you interpret the 2nd Amendment, NO ONE is coming to take your guns! Yes, most Americans would like to see reasonable gun control (ALL opposed by the NRA) but also realize that when it comes to guns, that genie is out of the bottle. And, it ain't goin' back. Your guns will NOT be taken. No jack booted thugs are coming to your door to haul you off to some gulag after they've confiscated your guns. There is absolutely no evidence that this is happening. And, it simply never will. To think otherwise IS paranoia.

Then, there is the notion that the FACT the world's environment is changing, and not for the better, is nothing more than a plot by the government to control BIG BUSINESS and raise taxes. As I write this post, leaders from all of the world are meeting in Paris to discuss what most of them believe to be one of the most pressing problems of our time - global climate change. It has become OBVIOUS, and is supported by an overwhelming amount of scientific data, that the world's climate is changing in such a way as to put life on earth in peril. Yet, there are those who deny this science. Again, they see it as another way to for the government to put its hand in their pockets by diverting money away from Big Business and towards a global solution to the problem. However, without fresh air to breath or clean water to drink no amount of BUSINESS will be able to save us.

So, damn it, no one is taking your GUNS or your fair share of MONEY!

We could go on with the paranoid fear and loathing - e.g.The Syrian refugees. Despite the fact that most terrorist acts committed in this Country are perpetrated by native born Americans, those suffering with this condition see a terrorist lurking behind every Syrian widow and orphan. Their paranoia blinds them and prevents them from seeing the reality that inhibiting their entry is not only un-American, it plays right into the hands of the enemy we seek to destroy - ISIS.

They want government our of their lives - except when it suits them. For example, the issue of a women's choice and abortion: those who fear and loath don't want the government regulating business, guns, the economy, or the environment. These are seen as intrusions into personal liberties. Then, these same people would deny a woman the right to choose what is best for her own body by having the government regulate it. Well, you CAN'T have it both ways!

Why is this happening? Obviously, there are many reasons.

Dissatisfaction with the status quo is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I often encourage it. However, this is more than dissatisfaction - it is a type of paranoia that it is being fed by two major entities - Fox News and the entire field of GOP Presidential Candidates. Fox News regularly airs reports denying (or at least refuting) the facts of climate change. They regularly feed paranoid fears of race wars and of the government's desire to keep them from protecting themselves by taking their guns. They stoke the flames of hatred by falsely reporting bogus stories like the recent one claiming Planned Parenthood was illegally selling body parts taken from aborted fetuses. And, virtually EVERY ONE of the GOP candidates has fallen in line by taking these inflammatory and false reports and adding them to their platforms. The current leader, Donald Trump, is particularly egregious in feeding that paranoia by using provocative rhetoric and exaggerated, if not blatantly false, language during his stump speeches.

Look, this is still a free Country. And, I guess that's kind of my point. It IS free and it's going to stay that way. We can STILL make choices. Feeding into the fear and loathing that creates paranoia is not a choice I wish to make. Vigilance is good and necessary. Paranoia is fearful and counterproductive.

Which will it be?

* first used by Friedrich Neitzsche