I think I have the neo-cons figured out.

I don't think they are trying to use fear to influence the masses. I think that they are actually afraid, and they actually take their fear seriously. It's like a borderline paranoia that needs an enemy to give form to their free-floating fear. Once the cold war ended they needed to find another enemy to explain their fear.

I think that when they try to inspire fear in others they are genuinely motivated by the belief that their fear is rational and justified and I honestly don't think they understand why everyone else does not feel their fear. They are earnestly trying to "educate" us so that we will share their paranoia and share their "rational" actions to combat the perceived sources of that paranoia.

They are at a loss to understand us because they are not capable of understanding a person whose life is not dominated by constant fear. Perhaps modern medical science will some day find a cure for what ails the neo-con. In the meantime, maybe just understanding the depth of their fear and pain will help us know how to deal with them.

...and are just trying to find a scapegoat?

Or are they legitimately scared that unless we ensure America's access to oil, the chinese are gonna get us?

Among my family and firends are a handful of far right-wingers. They have more locks on their door and more guns in their closet than my mentally normal friends. Where my liberal friends will leave the doors and windows open on a warm summer day my ultra-right-wing friends keep all their doors closed and locked at all times. Where my liberal friends enjoy meeting new people my neo-con friends are alsways suspicious of strangers and their fear is palpable.

They are right wing because they are afraid of everything and they find comfort from that fear in their extremist political philosophy. Certainty, even a false sense of certainty, banishes fear. Being comfortable with uncertainty is something I observe only among my liberal friends.

I have also noticed this!

I have friends that live and work in Manhattan and DC. It seems to me that if anyone would be worried about terrorism, it would be them, since those cities have been the targets and probably would be in the future too. But I haven't heard them talk about it much at all. None of them are very political and do not listen much to the news.

The ones that I know that seem obssessed about it and supported the war are suburban Republicans even though it seems statistically that they would have a very tiny chance of being affected by a terrorist attack. But if you point this out to them, they don't listen. They are hanging on the fear-mongerers' every word. They also listen to every story about kidnappings, school shootings, sharks etc. When I watched "Bowling for Columbine," it made a lot of sense when I think of these people.

I thought before that they were rational people and true conservatives (that I disagreed with, but understood where they were coming from), but they say radical things all the time now, about war and about giving up rights and so on. Some of them don't seem to have any concept of history or what this country was founded for anymore. I guess they have been successfully propagandized.

Why is every other DU thread about "FEAR"?

But I think it is an excellent topic to discuss...

Every other thread is about fear. "Who do the Republicans fear?" "I am full of fear about the state of the nation". Fear fear fear fear.

:scared:

I've alway's had a fear that the economy would tank. we would be at war and Natzi's would run the government.

Maybe its our human brains on overdrive?

I fear being poor- but this is because I grew up poor and my grandmother lived through the depression and stocked her cupboards with canned goods. But is this healthy? Do I want to inflict this fear on others?

than rich & fat and unhappy and scared to death someone is gonna rob you?

...it's been proven over and over again. That's what their color-coded system is all about. That's why they trot Cheney out now and then to renew the fear and keep people afraid of the very people and nations on the PNAC hit list.

... they are not trying to create fear in us, they are only trying to share their own fear with us, and prompt us to feel their fear. Their fear is tangible and they don't understand out lack of fear because that fear is the most dominent emotion in their lives.

...it's obvious they're trying to provoke FEAR. Whether they feel that fear themselves is secondary to the issue. And really...they don't give a crap about 'our' lack of fear. That MOST Americans have been cowed by fear is good enough for them.

- The use of FEAR to control the masses is one of the oldest polticial tactics...and they use it well.

but what I'm getting at is that they use fear because they feel fear. Fear control their own lives and they use it to attempt to control our lives. At the bottom of all their methods and motives is the fact that they are afraid, very afraid. And when the Soviet Union went away they immediately started searching for another way to justify the fear they constantly feel. They have a psychological need to be able to point at something objective and say "this is what I fear." Otherwise their fear is too difuse to be managable.

Yes, they DO want us to fear because they want us to share the fear they already feel. They playground bully is a bully because he is afraid, and his bullying heads off that fear and gives him the illusion of strength. Bush is not a strong leader, but he has mastered the illusion of strength because he is, at the core of his being, deeply afraid.

I have noted here many times that their sole motivating factor is fear.

Fear of foreigners.
Fear of different races.
Fear of different sexual orientations.
Fear of diversity.
Fear of alternate political realities.
Fear of Communism.
Fear of WMD.
Fear of losing their job.
Fear of terrorism.
...and so on...

FEAR! FEAR!

When there was a poll on CEO's of major Fortune 500 corps,
the things that they were most concerned about were:

1)Government Regulation
2)Terrorism

Since Bush and Co fit into that category easily, I could understand what you said. It is suprising that the concerns of the shareholders or unethical corporate conduct isn't even high up on the list.

caused as much death,chaos,and destruction over the last 25 years in South America,Iran,Iraq,Panama,Indonesia,Cambodia,Vietnam and so on that is a tremendous amount of negative karma.

Like the Mafia don always looking over his shoulder, so do this corrupt band of misfits.

the Liberal alternative, as spoken by one of it's greatest leaders.

Consider the difference between a wheel-chair bound FDR saying this and what comes out of the white house these days.

Proves the point.

if only as a symptom of the way their mind is screwed up.

Ie i'd say their greed stems from fear to not have enough 'stuff' (wealth).

But it seems obvious they do deliberately use fear to control the masses. "evildoers", "mushroom cloud", "single day of horror" - those messages from the government are melodramatic to say the least.


PNAC-ers/neocons are known followers of political thinkers Machiavelli and Leo Strauss (though many would argue they are not really thinkers/philosophers) -

"Those who are fit to rule are those who realize there is no morality and that there is only one natural right, the right of the superior to rule over the inferior".

"A political order can be stable only if it is united by an external threat, if no external threat exists, then one has to be manufactured."

"Perpetual deception of the citizens by those in power is critical because they need to be led, and they need strong rulers to tell them what's good for them."

"Peace leads to decadence. Perpetual war, not perpetual peace is what Straussians believe in."

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EE09Ak01.html
http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?030512fa_fact
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312217838/qid%3D961192609/sr%3D1-3/103-6779631-3720631
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EC20Ak07.html
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EE09Ak01.html
http://www.larouchepub.com/other/2003/3011profile_strauss.html
http://www.larouchepub.com/pr/site_packages/2003/leo_strauss/3015secret_kingdom_ap_.html
http://www.larouchepub.com/pr/site_packages/2003/leo_strauss/3015ignoble_liars_js_.html
http://home.earthlink.net/~karljahn/Strauss.htm
http://www.straussian.org/

I think you've summed it up succinctly. I've been trying to figure out the most adamant B* supporters in my family for some time now and I think you've hit the nail on the head several times very nicely.

There is no communicating with these people on a rational level. It was driving me nuts, but I now realize why this impasse exists and can recognize the signs and symptoms from long ago.

If you mean the neo-con followers, in other words, the RW, Christian Coalition, Bush-is-God, dittoheads, then you're right. They are really consumed by fear. And I agree that we will not be able to get through to them unless we understand and confront those fears.

But if you mean the neo-con leaders, then I have to disagree. Those guys at the top are using fear to keep their followers in line - and not by accident. This is a strategy learned by studying with Leo Strauss. Many of the neo-cons, including Paul Wolfowitz, William Kristol, Richard Perle, Alan Keyes, William Bennett, Gary Schmitt (founder of PNAC) and Abram Shulsky (runs the OSP at the Pentagon) are Straussian students.

Leo Strauss was a philosopher who espoused "universal fascism". He believed society was divided into an elite who should lead and the masses who should follow. He taught that the masses should be kept in line through deception, use of religion and agressive nationalism. Strauss wrote, "Because mankind is intrinsically wicked, he has to be governed. Such governance can only be established, however, when men are united – and they can only be united against other people."

When you understand more about Strauss you see his fingerprints all over what is going on in this country right now. Here are some links to more info on Straussian teachings.

Leo Strauss' Philosophy of Deception

http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=15935


Neocons Dance a Strauss Waltz

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/EE09Ak01.html


Leo Strauss, Conservative Mastermind

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=1233


The Strategist and the Philosopher

http://truthout.org/docs_03/042003H.shtml


The Philosopher

http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/131/focus/The_Philosopher+.shtml


Philosopher's Ideas Nurture U.S. President's Warrior Class

http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/columnists/story.asp?id=5D1C6095-82D2-4240-B136-758A552B5F91

BTW, Michael Moore's movie "Bowling for Columbine" and book "Dude, Where's My Country?" both deal with the issue of fear in American very well.

http://mentalhelp.net/psyhelp/chap7/chap7l.htm

1. Rigid, unthinking adherence to conventional, middle-class ideas of right and wrong. The distinction has to be made between (a) incorporating universal values and (b) having blind allegiance to traditional social-political-religious customs or organizations. Examples: an egalitarian person who truly values one-person-one-vote, equal rights, equal opportunities, and freedom of speech will support a democracy, not a dictatorship. A person who says, "I love my country--right or wrong" or "America--love it or leave it" may be a flag-waving, patriotic speech-making politician who is secretly an antidemocratic authoritarian (similar in some ways to Hitler). For the authoritarian the values of respecting and caring for others are not as important as being a "good German" or a "good American" or a "good Catholic" or a "good Baptist."

Important values to an authoritarian are obedience, cleanliness, success, inhibition or denial of emotions (especially anger and even love), firm discipline, honoring parents and leaders, and abhorring all immoral sexual feelings. This was the German character. Authoritarian parents tend to produce dominated children who become authoritarian parents. Egalitarians produce egalitarians.

2. Respect for and submission to authority--parents, teachers, religion, bosses, or any leader. This includes a desire for a strong leader and for followers to revere the leader, following him (seldom her) blindly. It was believed by the psychoanalytic writers of The Authoritarian Personality that recognizing one's hostile feelings towards an authority was so frightening that the authoritarian personality was compelled to be submissive. There is an emphasis on following rules and regulations, on law and order. Everyone has a proper role to play, including gender role.

3. They take their anger out on someone safe. In an authoritarian environment (family, religion, school, peer group, government), the compliant, subservient, unquestioning follower stores up unexpressed anger at the authority. The hostility can't be expressed towards the authority, however, so it is displaced to an outsider who is different--a scapegoat. Unconsciously, the authoritarian says, "I don't hate my father; I hate Jews (or blacks or unions or management or ambitious women or Communists or people on welfare)." The "good cause" to which one is dedicated often dictates who to hate, who to be prejudice against.

4. They can't trust people. They believe "people who are different are no good." If we believe others are as bad or worse than we are, we feel less guilt: "Everybody looks out for #1" or "Everybody would cheat if they had a chance." Such a negative view of people leads to the conclusion that harsh laws and a strong police or army are necessary. Also, it leads people to foolishly believe that humans would "go wild" and be totally immoral if they lost their religion.

5. Because they feel weak, authoritarian personalities believe it is important to have a powerful leader and to be part of a powerful group. Thus, they relish being in the "strongest nation on earth," the "master race," the "world-wide communist movement," "the wealthiest nation," the "best corporation," the "best part of town," the "best-looking crowd," the "best team," etc. The successful, the powerful, the leaders are to be held in awe. And the authoritarian says, "when I get power, I want to be held in awe too. I'll expect respect, just like I demand it from my children."

6. Over-simplified thinking. If our great leaders and our enormous government tells us what to do, if our God and our religion directs our lives, then we don't have to take responsibility for thinking or deciding. We just do what we are told. And, in general, we, "the masses," are given simple explanations and told the solutions are simple by authoritarian leaders. Examples: "The source of the trouble is lenient parents (or schools or laws)," "God is on our side," "Get rid of the Jews (or Capitalists or Communists or blacks or Arabs)." For the authoritarian if things aren't simple, they are unknowable, e.g. he/she endorses the statement, "science has its place, but there are many important things that can never possibly be understood by the human mind."

7. Guard against dangerous ideas. Since the authoritarian already has a handle on the truth, he/she opposes new ideas, unconventional solutions, creative imaginations. They believe an original thinker is dangerous; he/she will think differently. It's considered good to be suspicious of psychologists, writers, and artists who probe your mind and feelings--such people are scary. Governments who observe subversives are OK, though. Indeed, censorship of the media may become necessary, especially if the media becomes critical of our leaders or sexually provocative. A businessperson produces needed products; an intellectual is a threat.

8. I'm pure, others are evil. The authoritarian represses his/her aggressive and sexual feelings, then projects those traits on to stereotyped persons in the outgroup (see defense mechanisms in chapter 5). For example, it was Larry King's and other white men's dishonesty, laziness, hatred, and sexual urges that got projected to the black man (see quote above). The authoritarian, therefore, feels surrounded by people preoccupied with sex and/or violence. The psychoanalysts who wrote The Authoritarian Personality say the sexual fears come from an unresolved Oedipus or Electra Complex. The hostility comes from childhood (see #2 & #3 above) too and throughout their lives authoritarians expect criminal acts nearby and terrorists' attacks around the world. They become paranoid, believing many people want to hurt them (which justifies their aggression?).

9. Ethnocentrism: Everything of mine is better than yours--my country, my religion, my kind of people, my family, my self. Research has also shown the authoritarian is more prejudiced and more prone to punish people (including their own children) to get them to work harder or to do "right" (Byrne & Kelley, 1981).

They take alot of money from the military industrial complex. I think it is completely cynical.

...the doms and the subs. You'd be surprised how much fear is a part of the doms' philosophy for controlling the subs. There's a book about this, /Leo Strauss and the American Right/, which I know a lot of Straussians say is pretty exaggerated, but it basically makes the "control the masses with fear" point.