Fear Used By Organizations

Corporations, governments, and religions, can play positive roles in our society. However, depending on the organization’s leadership, they all utilize fear in some form - either with the subtlety of their whip, or with the violence in their tone of voice.

Corporations and Fear

Some corporations use fear as a tool for keeping productivity up, losses down, and order within the ranks. Many unions, who are supposed to represent employees, use fear to keep workers grateful for the status quo.

Many companies tell their employees that the company is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, and can’t afford to improve working conditions. The same companies will threaten layoffs, and base closures, in an effort to frighten employees into accepting the wages and benefits they currently have.

In most cases, the information given to the employees is factual, but unscrupulous management teams still exist in America. They “bend the facts”, and use adversarial management tactics to keep their employees in a constant state of unrest. Some corporations actually run classes to teach their managers how to keep employees on their toes.

The result is the same. The employees, and their families, are kept in a constant state of concern.

If you work for a company that uses these fear tactics, you are best to completely ignore the rumor mill, and the water

cooler sessions. Worrying won’t do you any good. Remember - it’s just a job, and you are not your job. You can find another one.

Government and Fear

Governments will use fear to garner support for their policies and agendas. One of the oldest recorded governments on earth is the Althingi (established in Iceland around 930 by Viking-era settlers). The Althingi used fear as a way to control the people they were supposed to serve, and this practice is still used today.

When it comes to communist, totalitarian, and fascist regimes, fear is the basis on which society is managed and controlled. From the top levels of power, down to the peddlers in the street, fear is a tangible reality you can almost taste. In other words, you better to step around it, or you’ll get hurt.

“Fear is the foundation of most governments.”
- John Adams

The use of fear by democratic governments is usually subtle, but if you look close enough, it’s transparent. People living in free nations still succumb to fear tactics, and vote accordingly, but the fear mongering is often disguised as “news of the day”.

At the risk of sounding like a paranoid, conspiracy nut, here is a clear example: Early in the 21 century, President George Bush Jr., and his advisers, used fear tactics to convince Americans (and their allies) that invading Iraq was paramount. George Bush Jr., via the United States intelligence community, told the world Iraq had “weapons of mass destruction” (WMDs), and that the free world was at serious risk.

Using flawed (possibly manipulated) information, over zealous officials spread the word of fear to the American public. The voters in the United States responded by supporting the invasion of Iraq. There was never any weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq. Not even evidence of WMDs being made, stored, or destroyed.

It’s important not to let the rhetoric of governments disturb your practical peace. Read the section below called, “The fear merchants”, to understand how the free press is often manipulated by governments to spread a fearful message. If you stop watching, listening, and reading the news, you’ll reduce the stress in your life. I guarantee it. Start by turning off your televisions for a couple of days. You can also try watching light comedy.

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