Fear Psychosis and the Cult of Safety - Why are People so Afraid? 

Support our work and access 64 videos available only to Members! - academyofideas.com/members The best way to stay up to date with all our content - academyofideas.com/newsletter/

people actually trust the government still and it's mind blowing to me.

I prefer dangerous freedom over safe enslavement

The best way to control people is to keep them in constant fear. It never was about safety. it's always been about power.

It’s no mistake that society has become this way. It’s by design.

I love this fantastic quote by Sabine Hossenfelder: "Science does not say that you shouldn't pee on high voltage electrical lines; it says that urine is an excellent conductor." 😆

What I find even worse than fear is pretending to be in fear to virtue signal or to play the part because the act of it is fashionable or trendy.

Today I fear insanity most. The lunatics really are running the asylum.

Perfect. I'd add one more thing: we are being distracted with false, inevitable or benign dangers while those in power create utterly avoidable threats.

"There are more things likely to frighten us than there are to crush us; we suffer more in imagination than in reality." - Seneca, Roman Stoic and Jurist

“All tyrannies operate through fear. Throughout history, the men and women who have advanced the cause of freedom are those who were not afraid.” ― Marty Rubin

Never be afraid to stand up or die for your principles. By the way, we are all mortal - we will all die one way or another. So do not live in fear. Be proud of who you are and what makes you a wonderful human being

I was born in the early 60s and grew up prior to all this fear taking hold. I walked to junior high school and high school every day, two miles away. On some Saturdays I would take the bus into Boston, from the suburbs, from age 12 onwards. At some point, the notion of that became quite terrifying to our society, and parents would get in trouble for letting their kids walk to a nearby convenience store. I am so very thankful of when I grew up and so very sad for the children who came after me, who never experienced such freedom.

I think there is something to be had from running into the darkness knowing you are afraid of the dark. Bravery isnt the lack of fear. This builds value and character

People in the history of the world have never had their fear so quickly transmitted as in this age of the Internet.

This so hits the nail on the head and describes what has bothered me at the core about these so called modern times. Death & slavery comes in many guises and in our present world it comes in the guise of "safety".

I believe it starts when we are young. There are two types of children: one, who is afraid to cross the street, and the other who is not. The first is afraid, for he sees fast cars and knows that at any moment he could be hit and killed and he feels powerless, does not trust himself, and is unsure. The other also knows he could be hit and killed, but instead he sees the gaps in the cars, can judge how fast the cars are going, and also knows how fast he can walk and knows he can run if he has to. Party he wishes to test his skill and bravery, but really he just measures the danger in reality, devises a plan to safely cross the road and trusts in his own power to do it. Both of these children grow up, but one will always be afraid and want someone, like the government or someone more powerful to take control and tell him when it is safe to cross the road. The other trusts in his own knowledge and skill, and feels confident that he is ready to meet most reasonable dangers and in fact, even rebels slightly as being told exactly when and how to cross any road. That's really about it, they just get older.

Fear is created to hold back the masses from reaching their fullest potential.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety". (Benjamin Franklin)

I’m 35. From what I understand, college aged kids in the 60s wanted freedom from the government to do whatever they wanted, provided they weren’t hurting anyone else. These days it’s the opposite. Everyone wants to be taken care of and give up their freedoms as payment. That shit scares me.

I was raised in a high control religious group. Fear is a core tool of control in that group, as it is in society at large. I left in my teens. The key to being able to leave? Learning to control my fear. It’s been a great gift to myself throughout my life, being able to control my fear.

"The Science is Settled" is a phrase that has crept in unnoticed in recent times-surely if science won't accept or even consider any alternative viewpoints or theories,then it's not actually science any longer surely?It's faith

All fear is not the same. Rational fear makes us safer. The ability to distinguish between rational fear and irrational fear should be addressed in such a lecture.

As a young man I risked everything and fished in the Bering Sea. I'm so grateful to my younger self that I took on the challenge. Although I got seriously injured by a massive wave that washed me around the deck and ended my career, I would never trade the experience for anything. I'm stronger than almost all my fellow men mentally as a result of my sacrifice. It was never about money. I wanted to do what was considered by most to be impossible and approach it with fervor. And I excelled at it by becoming the deck boss on the greatest cod catching vessel the world has ever seen. You can't buy that title. It is simply earned through determination, learned skill and character. Go crush life friends. You got this.

Hope and optimism never stopped anything. Ignorance is the problem

The human condition *is* inherently unsafe. But the rational, sane, adult solution is to be aware of the risks, be able to tell a higher-risk situation from a lower-risk one, and take reasonable measures to mitigate the risks. I once saw a documentary on crop dusting: the guys who fly small planes low over fields to spray fertilizer on crops. The producer interviewed one of the pilots, and asked him how he dealt with the stress that must come as a result of all the risks inherent in the work: dodging barns, power lines, etc. I'll never forget his answer: "You just have to find a way to deal with the fact that crop dusting will never be a safe occupation as long as you have to drive to the airport." Here was a guy who is fully aware of relative risk. In the air, he is confident in his skills and his airplane. On the road, he has to deal with all the unpredictable actions of bad drivers, one of which could kill him any day. The same is true of all of us who use the public roads. But, as the video points out, there's money to be made in encouraging the basest instincts of humanity.

I’ve noticed an interesting thing after living abroad for many years. The most fearful people are those that live in one of the safest countries in the world, the us. Not sure if it comes from within or from without (more likely), but it’s definitely there. No one ever said “be safe” to each other when I was young or even 20 years ago. I still don’t understand that salutation, I always want to ask “be safe from what exactly…?” We have some us tv channels via Apple TV, and the other day we just fell on the floor laughing about the ads they run, a family clutching each other in fear, thanking the Weather Channel for keeping theirs families safe. Other than tornadoes in states where they have them and hurricanes in states where they have them no one ever feared the weather before, now someone wants you to be afraid, very afraid.

The phase "Stay Safe" helps perpetuates the fear of living. I dislike like that sentiment to my core . I have caught myself saying it as a sign of concern and caring many times. IMO It's a weaking of commom sense and the joy of living and learning.

The last two years have really shown me how easy it is to make most people afraid. If you make someone afraid you can make them give up their most basic beliefs and they will do anything you tell them to lower the risk.

I am sixty two, I'm on a road trip on my own, partly wild camping, I face all sorts of dangers and it's brilliant, I am living, I am making memories. I feel so sorry for these scared weak man child's that have no life beyond the internet and the fear mongering indoctrination that tries to pass as education, if I die I die, but I I die having lived and felt the exhilaration cheating death and with no regrets. Never wore a mask never isolated, those that did are so going to regret it, but it will be too late.

Brilliant! Safetyism is a phenomenon that has been growing in strength for the last 30 years. If you grew up anytime before the 90’s, you will know this is true. (And this is not a good thing!)

I agree that I am grown enough to decide which risks are worth it. When society constantly demands " safety ", it's really about fear and control.

Fear is a choice. Danger is real.

I ignore all big cooperative media. Be that 'news', radio or a-social media. I denounced my tv 10 years ago. My life song 'The working hour' by Tears for Fears contains the lines: 'And fear is such a vicious thing, it wraps me up in chains...Find out what this fear is about.' And those lines will forever ring in my head. So with that in mind I try to be positive, hopefull and respectfull yet realistic. I just do what I want to do, with respect and without offending anybody. I always say that I fear nothing and go thd full 200% for something that I'm certain or exited about. I can be skeptic, but I respect your standpoint and if I critisize, I do it by asking and philosophising. Not attacking. In the meantime I make sure I have my bills covered and remain respectfull. Yeah, it's risky to do what you want to do and not see any obstackle in your way, but the reward is so overwhelming and fulfulling that I wouldn't trade it for anything. Just don't forget to be a decent human being.

The Age of Fear! Sadly, I have family in that cult. I do not seeing them ever turning around. Evil feeds on fear, and it is thriving!

To overcome fear is akin to overcome control from others.

During the bs lockdowns and quarantine, I went out everyday. I did something. Walk in a park, get a drive thru meal, work on my hobbies and passions or meet up with those I hadn’t seen in some time. I even flew to Texas for a vacation in September 2020. I wasn’t allowed to come back to work for almost 11 months. All because of someone else’s fear.

When I pondered what life was about at age 29, i said to myself it can't just be work a job and retire and then spend a little time with your family and die. Perhaps risk is what is missing.

From a September 23, 2009 Psychology Today article titled *The Most Powerful Motivator:* Nothing makes us more uncomfortable than fear. And we have so many fears: fear of pain, disease, injury, failure, not being accepted, missing an opportunity, and being scammed, to name a few. Fear invokes the flight or fight system, and our first reaction is often to flee back to our comfort zone. If we don’t know the way back, we are likely to follow whoever shows us a path. Marketers use fear as a motivator as often as they can. They present a scenario they hope will invoke our sense of fear. Then they show us a solution - a path back to our comfort zone - that entails using their product or service. Fear is used to sell almost everything: cars, tires, and life insurance are classics. But clever marketers also use it to sell breakfast cereal and deodorant. As a result, we purchase all sorts of things that a generation ago were considered unnecessary: antibacterial soap, alarm systems, vitamins. The list goes on and on.

I fear ageing. I fear not becoming what I always envisioned myself to be at a young age. But now I've come to realise that if it takes time, let it be that way, because giving up is a guaranteed loss.

Yes, cult of safety, it’s the main reason parenting is such a mess in western culture. We have a full-on youth mental health crisis erupting across the western world. It started in earnest in 2013, as shown in the brilliant research by Twenge/Haidt. The main factors behind the crisis are the parental culture of coddling and the rise of social media. And with the pandemic policies re: youth that most western cultures adopted, we made things so much worse. I work as a mental health therapist at a kid’s hospital in Canada and I’ve been in the field for nearly 20 years. This is unlike anything I’ve seen. Mental health concerns are way up for all ages, but particularly for youth and they are particularly vulnerable. The main increase we’ve seen are in admissions for suicide attempts, overdoses, eating disorders and psychosis. Older people typically write off the youth mental health crisis and say that kids are just more dramatic these days, more comfortable talking about mental health. Both are true to an extent but do not explain the huge increases. Trust me, these kids are not faking suicide attempts, overdoses or severe eating disorders. The parenting culture of coddling is deeply enmeshed with this cult of safety, basically an outgrowth of it. Kid’s are prevented from facing and resolving their own interpersonal issues, or from building independence or competence. Coddling is ostensibly well meaning and more often seen in city/suburb dwelling parents, particularly those who are well-heeled, well educated and who identify on the left politically. Notice how it was mainstream news (basically dominated by the political left) that pushed endless fear-mongering onto parents, who then project it onto their kids. And the fear-mongering prompted adults to be more in favour of long school closures, also prompting some parents to hysterically demand their under 5 year old kids be vaccinated. This culture of coddling gains much more support on the left, and in places like schools and universities. For our kids, they have little chance to escape this anxiety. It didn’t have to be like this. Nordic countries, whom leftists typically will fall over themselves in praising re: their public health policies, went a very different direction. They did not close schools for long, nor unduly prevent kids from socializing, playing sports, etc. And these Nordic countries have not seen the same types of surges in youth mental health admissions that we see in the west. I would argue that Nordic countries have a much more healthy relationship with fear and risk, and likely have more recent cultural memories of significant hardship in their societies. I’m not at all optimistic that we in the west well even begin having coherent conversations about this issue. The way that schools/teachers and parents are only becoming more divided, with SJW type teachers insisting that the big issues are that queer kids are being oppressed or “the patriarchy”. The teachers and education system, in general, seem more comfortable getting behind these pet-issues because it validated their ideology and gives them personal validation (seemingly the main motivation for teachers, if one has been on tik tok lately). I think the big thing is that people have a sense how deep these issues really are but are not comfortable going there. One thing is eminently clear: our youth deserve so much better.

"My problem is I don't have enough problems" Pedantic fear is a luxury of developed Western culture

People are so scared of dying they have stopped living.

Having the Courage and the Wisdom to face the Known and the Unknown Risks takes control away from those who would forcibly use fear to control your life.

This has to be THE most amazing and spot on dissertation on our current state of affairs. I’ve sent this to a dozen or more people to hear. Well done!!

"Faith is holding onto uncertainties with passionate conviction." -Soren Kierkegaard

I remember in March of 2020 when everyone who could were staying home and finally people started going out for walks and crossing the street when there were oncoming people approaching, I knew something had psychologically changed deep down in people. The constant talk of we are all going to die if we catch this unknown virus that was thought to be animal born(?). The very wrong models of potential death that the governments of the world showed everyone. It started the fear psychosis and it sadly turned alot of humans against other humans.

i was raised on fear by my fear-obsessed dad...it's taken me until my 30s to actively break free of that fear. Even so i still see my fear and risk-aversion creep into my daily life and prevent me from trying things, out of habit. The worst things a parent can do is to cripple their children with fear. Fear of failure, of living life...

For anyone watching I was terrified of the world because of a traumatic childhood until I went into the army at 24 years old that changed everything for me I came out confident and sure that I was capable something to think about kids

Thank you for another episode of sanity. My experience has been that living without fear is the greatest freedom of body and mind and leads to a richer experience of life and is therefore a worthwhile aspiration. The saturation of fear in mainstream media and our culture as a whole is therefore very telling. Thanks for eloquently pointing this out!

Thanks for never quitting guys. The content you provide remains unsurpassed.

thumbs up X1000. best description of what we're living through. surprised YT hasn't pulled this one down yet.

Fear is both emotional and rational. A friend sailed alone around the world in a small wooden sloop before days of GPS.

Remain calm When there is chaos All around An anxious heart Will weigh you down All this is temporary When your mind is sound Don't give in To unhealthy fear Discern all That you see and hear All is not always The way it appears Know that you Have been given a mind To think for yourself You are the one looking Only you know What you need to find Be strong Show your courage Don't give in When you are discouraged Show no fear Even when you are afraid Never give up Even when you are dismayed All this will pass All this will fade The panic is real But only man made

Living in fear is manifesting destiny of the very things one fears the most. The whole world is crashing all around us, fully caused by Technocrats making a huge production out of society's greatest fears and cashing in on it.

We have nothing to fear but fear itself.

Women by nature tend to seek safety and as women have become an ever increasing (to being the major) force in our public space, we have even greater emphasis on safety. Fear is also easy to sell and the media has been selling that with no consideration toward the societal or individual well being.

Fear is almost fashionable these days it's crazy even if you claim to have hope and share positivity in my opinion peace and love need to be reminded to people everywhere of how important they are🙏✌️❤️

The most useful literary advice I’ve ever received , I honestly believe the vast majority of people could benefit from today. Often the thing to do in the face of hardship is to grab your damn towel and DON’T PANIC

To fear not put on your suit of salvation and go forward. God bless you and your families Aloha and amen

Years ago, a few years after 911, I asked my students if they had to choose between being safe and being free which would they choose. The vote, to my shock, was almost evenly split!!! Overwhelming!

"Yea,though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,I will fear no evil.For thou art with me.Thy rod and thy staff,they comfort me."

You don't need to be brave to have courage. You just have to try. Thank you for posting another excellent video. Fear is the issue of our time. I think about this period in human history as the age of emotional manipulation. Fear prevents growth. The desperate need for certainty and safety not only turns one into a slave, but it also robs one of opportunities to build confidence and trust through trial and error, and "accidental" discoveries. Embodying courage and curiosity helps one to discover new worlds and the depths of oneself. It helps one to realize the miraculous power and freedom that one already possesses. If one is willing to leave the perception of safety.

Going through the pandemic was weird. You forget some people are so afraid of death

There is nothing to fear but fear itself. Like a cornered wild animal, fearful people are dangerous.

“Society is splitting in two. People who are driven by FEAR who want to be RULED over, and people who are driven by LOVE and want to be FREE.”

Thank you for this. 100% how I feel. I work in a bank and all I see day in and day out FEAR FEAR FEAR! I have a co-worker from Australia who lives in fear 24/7 and is COMPLETELY INCAPABLE of making a decision on his own. He is used to living in a society where he is told what to do from the womb to death and is lost in a free society. His asks my manager what to do all the time because he is too afraid to make a decision on his own and use his OWN discretion. This whole pandemic has changed how I understand certain societies.

I like it when people think they are free from fear because they are doing the normal thing with a big smile on their face.

I always think of the book Dune and how the most feared and dangerous troops were taken from people who are living in the most horrible conditions. Developing the human spirit is like forging a sword, only when it is pounded , beaten, cooked in fire, and finally quenched in a process that will shatter an improperly prepared blade. To hide from all danger just leaves one weak and unable to cope.

I'm so f%cking sick of the word safe

Could there be a link between the cult of safety and the increase in people with mental health issues? The number of people who look to authority now to keep them safe is just crazy to me and shows that no matter how 'safe' society is, there needs to be a way for people to take responsibility for the situations that one may find themselves in.

It does my heart so good that someone else has not only actually noticed this but is commenting on it. There seem to be so many people who are so blindly inured in their little everyday lives, that as soon as Mummy/Daddy Government says "be afraid", they immediately obey. Selling us all down the river as a result.

I have lived fearfully in the past but I decided to stop. Since then I’ve had some amazing experiences that I’d otherwise have missed out on. ❤

'There is no hope unmingled with fear, and no fear unmingled with hope.' - Spinoza The Greeks thought hope was an evil. They put it in pandora's box with all the other evils.

"No passion so effectively robs the mind of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear." ~ Edmund Burke "The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to safety) by menacing it with and endless series of hobgoblins most of them imaginary." ~ H.L. Menchen "Fear is the foundation of all governments." ~ John Adams

This is such a great channel. Liberty is essential, the government is not

These videos are just so spot on, and so desperately needed. Thank you.

It’s been so hard to process the last 2 years. I feel like I threw those years of my life away in some ways. I barely left home and refused to see my family for so long. I got the vaccine because I thought things would change and this was the solution. I don’t know what to do anymore. I have no faith in this society. I don’t want a career or to participate in this madness. All I want is to buy land with a small home and focus on my husband and starting a family. This society is deteriorating day by day but I don’t think it was ever good. I only want to be involved with my local community and my loved ones.

This discussion is entirely necessary. Fear weakens and enslaves . Thank you for this message.

Thank you for creating this video, I work for a large international company in the states, and have seen this culture of fear growing over the years. These days every meeting is started with a safety moment. And everybody is encouraged to share a safety moment. As such we strain to find new and more unusual risks to worry about each and every day. Some people seem to enjoy them, as if they are saving people from harm. But I find them insulting as they assume I have no sense. Also, I do not go to work for a sermon

Fear comes from a lack of trust of those in control. If you don't trust those in control you'll live in fear, just the way those in control planed it...

Despite what those in power want us to believe, the ability of mankind to overcome nature and adapt to his surroundings is at an all time high. Those in power will always resort to fearmongering in order to justify their own existence, without the consent of the masses the current political system becomes impotent and will cease to exist. The best we can do is live our life to the fullest, unlock and activate our hidden potentials while still being aware of the possible life-endangering risks that are part of the process called living. Living in constant fear is not living, it's merely existing.

The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown H.P. Lovecraft

I don't like people who tell me how to live. I hate people that get in my way. I'm sick of these control safety freaks

So true You have just elaborated so well what I and everyone with some conscience and wisdom intact been experiencing but can't describe to anyone. This video spoke of my and so many others heart and thoughts . Well done ...so well made video !!! 👍👍👍❤❤❤

This video should viewed everyone! I really liked the statement "the science says..." as the modern day equivalent of "God says...". People have a need to be afraid. I'll be damned if I know why!

The opposite of fear is not courage but action.

If we stay inside all day fearing what could happen we never see our potential. What we're capable of. This spirals us into depression and more fear. These are what is causing the epidemic of mental health, which is really just an epidemic of anxiety and depression.

This was so well done !! Thank you!!! I'll share with as many as who will listen !!!🤩👌🙏

When I accepted the fact that I will die someday the fear disapperead. All this nonsense going on in society means nothing. I am happy though. Just to experience this world is amazing 😀👍

"Deep down, all neuroses can be traced back from a lack of courage" Ernest Becker

Easily the most enlightening video I’ve watch this year. Well done.

These videos are one of the most beautiful things I have stumbled upon on the internet. Thank you!

"Death is not sad; the sad thing is that most people don't really live at all." Dan Millman

I see this fear mongering all the time, from RU-vid videos where we are told that the countryside is extremely dangerous containing all the deadly poisonous plants out to get us, to the safety leaflets included with electrical items which are obviously written by someone terrified of electricity to the point where it sounds as if the item is so defective that it hasn't passed the standards test. As someone growing up in the countryside we children used to play by the river and swing over it on a tyre tied to rope or run across the weir, or in woods where there were dark and deep abandoned mill ponds with steep brick built sides making it almost impossible to get out if someone fell in. The thing is, no-one fell in the ponds and the worse thing that happened to me was to get a smack from my mum because I slipped on the weir and got my dress wet, lol. We all knew not to eat anything that wasn't a blackberry and being rural kiddies knew the names of plants and their properties anyway. But these days children have to wear hard hats and vis jackets just to do some gardening, and god forbid that they should ever do some real science at school with bunsen burners and chemical experiments. It's made people fearful of doing activities which should not only be of great pleasure but of a learning experience and personal growth too.

You 100% express what I came to conclude in the past 10 years.

I've always loved this channel, this is even more reason why I should.

I have just finished a career in occupational health and safety. After 25 years as a senior manager on construction sites, projects up to $1.2b, I quit and bought a fish and chip shop. My profession had abandoned sensible risk management and employed something between commercial imperative negligence and extreme motherhood micro management. Safety was not about assessing risks and employing controls, it was about looking like you were, while bogging down workers with pointless red tape. Our obsession with virtue signalling has even crossed into genuine workplace safety. We now worry more about wearing a paper mask to stop the sniffles than we do about wearing a harness to avoid falling off a roof.

Belief in a higher power has fallen in the face of humanism. To have faith abundant simply in the flawed nature of humanity is not only counter-intuitive, but also counter to individual human experience.

Nothing can stop you as an individual from being courageous, even if people around you aren’t, it’s a very empowering feeling and worth being aware of.