Fear and The Cruising Sailor

[slomotion]

When we were cruising (1999-2002) we were sometimes acutely aware that one of the things we had left behind was a climate/culture of fear. When the market crashed in 2000, we were in the Bahamas. I had cashed in all our stock funds 6 months before because I didn’t want to be bothered following and worrying about the stock market - er, I mean, because I am an investment genius. On September 11th we were in Cariacou. It wasn’t that we felt totally immune or divorced from events "back home" - far from it. It was just a sense that we weren’t really all in the same boat anymore. We were literally in a different boat, and the closest we came to real fear was confined to the trepidation involved in entering an unfamiliar anchorage.

[maxingout]

Originally Posted by Intentional Drifter

Hi, Dave --

An interesting and important topic. Just a quick editing thing, though: It was FDR that said, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself" during his first inauguration, in 1933.

ID

Thanks for the fact checking. I just finished making the change on my website.

[Minggat]

What a great thread. Thought provoking and much more than that, empowering. Thank you.

Originally Posted by DennisM

It's the same way they sell religion, Doc.

This is unfortunate. I do tire of religion bashing. Religion has been defined as "a way of life". It does not have to be one of those fear based organizations that we know that religion basher refer to. It is unlikely that anyone has enough exposure to all religions to make such a statement.

We all make judgment calls. We need to. I can only hope to temper my judgments with wisdom and intelligence. Not fear, nor prejudice or malice or arrogance or any number of human weakness available to me.

I used the word empowering because I admit to having allowed fear to play such a big part of my decision making process in so many instances. Not to beat myself up. Some people have used the word "gutsey' in describing me. I simply like the challenge of weeding out the fear in my future decisions. Particularly when it come to my sailing decisions in this case.

We are all in different places and stages. Tolerance can be pretty helpful.

[Palarran]

Originally Posted by Minggat

I admit to having allowed fear to play such a big part of my decision making process in so many instances. Not to beat myself up. Some people have used the word "gutsey' in describing me. I simply like the challenge of weeding out the fear in my future decisions.

Me too. Fear management takes practice. The discriptive "gutsey" can change to "stupid" pretty quickly, can't it?

[jpemb7]

At the expense of stating the obvious, ignorance is the breeding ground of fear. If you look at any situation but in particular, some views on pirates, storms, customs procedures etc people start to speculate imaginatively when they simply don't know or don't want to know. As soon as you demystify something it looses its power. I've been dying to quote (badly)Donald Rumfeld, ex U.S secretary of defense.
There are knowns and unknowns. There are known unknowns and unknown unknowns.
Demystify that !

Jim

[Roaring Girl]

There have been many studies on the way fear is used and promoted by the media and both visible and invisible rulers to manipulate behaviour. There have been some very interesting studies on how the use of surveillance technology (CCTV) etc has created a very divisive society because it creates outsiders (eg young people wearing hoded tops) whoa re to be feared. For an accessible account, contrasting the US and UK approaches to public space, fear and housing, see Anna Minton's recently published 'Ground Control'. She cites quite a lot of more up-to-date audience research material that Crichton.

Personally, I generally manage fear by adopting the view that fear is not a reason (to hate/run/shoot/hide ....).

And I suspect that many cruisers are just as susceptible to the fear stories - hence the piracy rumour mill (which doesn't mean there aren't real problems off E Africa!) Dare I say that I think fear motivates some of those discussions about carrying firearms and putting electric fences on your guard rails?

OK - I'm running now!

[John A]

Now that you've all scared the hell out of me.
What's the solution?

[Roaring Girl]

Originally Posted by anjou

in Sardinia I noticed a cultural difference in the pace of life and peoples expectations in general.
No signs of alcohol abuse there or the constant media focus on 'celebrity', - just two of the main problems I see society having trouble with in the UK.

Maybe its the influence of media because its the portal for this bombardment of fear and daily crap.

IMHO Italy (at least on the mainland) is way more celebrity obsessed than the UK - and far more demeaning of women in the way that celebrity is promoted and presented in the mass media. It's just that not reading Italian can spare you (or at least me!) from the headlines.

But the celebrity/showgirl culture a deliberate result of the way the media is managed by its majority owner, and completely unregulated by the state. (Oh, yes of course, that majority owner is Il Presidente, which is part of the problem.)

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by jpemb7

I've been dying to quote (badly)Donald Rumfeld, ex U.S secretary of defense.
There are knowns and unknowns. There are known unknowns and unknown unknowns.
Demystify that !

Jim

"Reports that say that something hasn't happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns -- the ones we don't know we don't know."

Classic!

TaoJones

[conachair]

Nothing new.
Leo Strauss - SourceWatch

[Blue Stocking]

Originally Posted by Canibul

Oh, I heard the part about "seek medical assistance if you have an erection lasting more than four hours".

Hey, that is PURE fear based marketing.

From my perspective, if I have erections lasting more than four hours....I need an agent. Not a doctor.

--or call all your mates, and brag about it

[Tellie]

Yes this is an interesting discussion. What I'd like to hear from people is what they have personally done in their lives to reject the fear that is peddled to the masses. It's one thing to say you are not afraid, quite another to take the steps that go against the societal grain to show it.

[Minggat]

Originally Posted by rigamarole

Me too. Fear management takes practice. The discriptive "gutsey" can change to "stupid" pretty quickly, can't it?

Your accuracy got a good chuckel out of me.
Well.. it's funny now. I won't be so funny the next time I run up against it.

[why me?]

Great thread Maxingout.

It took me a while to realise that one of the things I liked about being at sea was the cultural change. There is a self honesty which I believe includes that management of risk element you mention. If you have the confidence to do the job I think that fear is brought to that condition you refer to.. " I'm simply using my God-given common sense." And I would add knowledge of your environment. You know what to expect from reasoning and observation.

The Australian government has been catching on to the fear thing. The changes to yacht entry's was sold as a anti-terroism thing. Caught a lot of people unaware. Quarantine used fear of "bio-fouling" to instigate a protocol that costs us a lot of money and accomplishes nothing.

And using email, manipulation by fear is a daily occcurance. Some bogus email forwarded telling you there is a virus going around.. Stupid nonsense of course.

People that fail the fear/common sense thing don't last long at sea but they happen often enough for me to have a few tales about the incredible dramas I've had to help the dummies out of. And don't expect any thank you's.

[Christian Van H]

Seeing as how this is a cruiser's forum, just the fact that someone has taken the leap into the cruisers way of life must say something about their ability to handle fear. This lifestyle isn't something most just fall into. It takes planning, dedication, and the courage to take the road less traveled. Not to give a group hug or anything, but I just cant see a way of life more satisfying.