Why is our freakout mode skewed? Why does God make us this way?

[Trailblazer]

What behavior are you calling freaking out? My wife and I have ceased receiving visitors and ceased going out except to purchase essential provisions, and then, we wash our hands, wipe down everything including the cloth shopping bags we take, keys and my wallet, then throw our clothes in the hamper and shower.

I have not gone to those lengths but I am following the guidelines the governor of my state laid out.

We normally have no visitors so that is no big deal. I only go grocery shopping twice a week and I am in and out.

The governor issued a "shelter in place" order last Monday which means we are not supposed to leave our houses except for groceries or medical needs. As a state employee I had to start working from home yesterday. I am really fortunate I had that option. As you know, others are not so lucky and I feel for them.

We support virtually no businesses other than grocers, and then only twice a week, so we are contributing to their financial hardship. Is that freaking out?

We have no businesses open except grocery stores, gas stations, and drive through restaurants.

Sorry, but this is best for us and our community. Economics are not what is on our minds at this time.

Economics is on my mind because I have so many investments but I have ridden it out before and I will do it again.

My complaint is with those who aren't doing their part.

I agree, but there will always be those people who won't comply, unless they are forced to.

My U.S. state was one of the three hardest hit states, so maybe I should be frightened of getting the virus, but I am not afraid, maybe because I do not fear death like most people.

 

[Dawnofhope]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

The fight or flight response is very physiological and important for preparing us to fight or flee from a predator. It warns us of danger. God requires us to develop our rational capacities and respond ethically and morally to threats perceived or otherwise. The coronavirus is a threat and it does require a response both individually and collectively. If we rise above base instincts and make best use of our God given rational response then we align ourselves with God’s will. The ‘freak out’ response motivates us to be the best or worse we can be.

 

[ecco]

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

The differences are:
Covid-19 is more contagious
Covid-19 has a higher mortality rate.

How does the new coronavirus compare with the flu? | Live Science
The death rate from seasonal flu is typically around 0.1% in the U.S., according to The New York Times.

Though the death rate for COVID-19 is unclear, most research suggests it is higher than that of the seasonal flu.

In the study published Feb. 18 in the China CDC Weekly, researchers found a death rate from COVID-19 to be around 2.3% in mainland China. Another study of about 1,100 hospitalized patients in China, published Feb. 28 in the New England Journal of Medicine, found that the overall death rate was slightly lower, around 1.4%.

The authors estimated that, as of Feb. 11, the death rate from COVID-19 was as high as 12% in Wuhan
​

There is a big difference between 0.1% and 2% (1 in 1000 vs 20 in 1000)

The seasonal flu has not overwhelmed hospitals and outstripped the supply of protective gear.

 

[Jedster]

Well, maybe sugar is too big to fail. Our civilization, which is built on religion and money, sees the earth and the body as corporeal layers that the soul is due to merely shed. It ultimately doesn't give physical reality enough importance, in my view. My understanding is that we could actually build something closer to heaven right here, if we tried



In biblical civilization, ultimately I think that maybe populaces become disturbingly fascinated with pandemics, because this ties in with their idea of the eschaton, an event in which the deity supposedly washes away all the problems in the world. Ultimately the new virus won't do this, but maybe people like to act like it will. It will merely become like those other things you describe, and exchange its novelty to become just another form of common misery, especially if it circulates alongside other viruses every year. Or maybe even in less time than that if it mutates quick enough, I don't know, I'm not a virologist. In my view however, the real god is in nature, and barely anybody at all connects with it to try and understand what is really rational

Indeed so.
Maybe everyone should abandon their religions and give their love & respect to nature and the world we live in, rather than worshiping a god that 'is beyond our understanding'.

 

[amorphous_constellation]

Indeed so.
Maybe everyone should abandon their religions and give their love & respect to nature and the world we live in, rather than worshiping a god that 'is beyond our understanding'.

In my view, religion is supposed to seek the better part of its guidance from tangible phenomena, and to often be approached via such. Our religions have gone far down the opposite road, relying on faith, and still declaring causes to hinge on the intangible. At least in america, it can seem like this. But nature is mysterious enough, who is looking for the mind in the great thing from whence we arose? To live in balance with it, it does not seem to ask for faith as much as it asks for logical thought.

 

[dybmh]

Indeed so.
Maybe everyone should abandon their religions and give their love & respect to nature and the world we live in, rather than worshiping a god that 'is beyond our understanding'.

Well.... speaking for myself, I'm still appreciating not being a slave in Egypt... so, there's that...

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

1. People tend to overreact when confronted by a new threat.
2. I see no reason to believe that either the CDC or the WHO are "freaking out."
3. The "COVID-19 is not as bad as the common flue" mantra suggests a subtext which is grossly irresponsible.

 

[Jedster]

Well.... speaking for myself, I'm still appreciating not being a slave in Egypt... so, there's that...

Well, who made you a slave? (rhetorical question)

 

[Cooky]

The "COVID-19 is not as bad as the common flue" mantra suggests a subtext which is grossly irresponsible.

I've had coronaviruses in the past. I've always particularly hated that strain of virus. So the Novel Coronavirus is something I'm definitely concerned with. I fear it out of experience, and not because I'm told to. It's so much easier to transmit than the flu for some weird reason too.

 

[Augustus]

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu.

We understand the flu and have acquired a degree of immunity against it. Novel virus pandemics are completely different for this reason, and sooner or later one will kill hundreds of millions of people across the world.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu?

Every year. Millions of flu vaccinations.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

Keeping people alive. On average, it's better to overreact than underreact. Unfortunately we massively underreacted this time until the horse had bolted, in part because people will say "it's irrational, there is not enough evidence that we should act. What about the flu".


So what is called “evidence-based” methods have a dire track record and are pretty much evidence-free. This scientism also manifests itself in Boris Johnson’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings’s love of complexity and complex systems (our speciality) which he appears to apply incorrectly. And letting a segment of the population die for the sake of the economy is a false dichotomy – aside from the moral repugnance of the idea.

As we said, when one deals with deep uncertainty, both governance and precaution require us to hedge for the worst. While risk-taking is a business that is left to individuals, collective safety and systemic risk are the business of the state. Failing that mandate of prudence by gambling with the lives of citizens is a professional wrongdoing that extends beyond academic mistake; it is a violation of the ethics of governing.

The UK's coronavirus policy may sound scientific. It isn't | Nassim Nicholas Taleb and Yaneer Bar-Yam

 

[whirlingmerc]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

It is also skewed by what you put your hope and trust in. Hoping in God and take refuge in him brings peace.

If you put your hope in wrong things, God might just knock those wrong things over to show they are not worthy of taking his place in your heart.

 

[Windwalker]

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype?

Why, it's there every single flu season with all the campaigns, every single year, year after year, telling folks to please get their flu shots. If there are flu shot shortages, they give them to the elderly first. The news media talks about this every year. Have you been sleeping for the past however many decades?

 

[Samantha Rinne]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

This is why everyone ought to be required to take psychology in school. The better people understand the motivations of others, the better they understand (and can get under control) their own underlying motivations.

There are several reasons, but one of the major ones is that people do not understand orders of magnitude. That is to say, they often assume a one in 1000 chance is They have been conditioned to be worse about that by sensationalist news. "3 PEOPLE DIE IN A SHARK BITE THIS YEAR!" declared in blaring headlines is likely to freak people out. In the mean time, 800,000 people die of suicide every year. Nope, let's focus on sharkbites and ignore suicide risk.

Another reason is that people are afraid of the unknown. The Coronavirus is an exotic disease from China and information about it was slowly released to keep people in suspense, having been told everything from diarrhea to seizures to whatever. If people were told immediately "You will probably have these symptoms but not these symptoms" they could immediately say, "I don't think I have it." If people were told immediately what kills it, they would calm down (which makes newspapers guilty of deliberately stirring panic, and endangering lives).

While we're on topic of unknowns, the fact that the media rarely mentions any of the sufferers by name effectively feeds into a McCarthy era scare. If you don't remember history, this was where because nobody knew who was a communist in the US at that time, everyone suspected everyone of being one. Likewise, my mother found our that two people in my area might have it. No names are given, so she suspects everyone from the mailman to her neighbors to someone she passes on the street. Nice job guys, scaring an old woman.

In fact, even telling people that this is a mild disease backfires, as they immediately tell people "symptoms can hide" further fueling a sense of OMG, IT COULD BE ANYONE. Old friendships are crushed by paranoia, even in areas where there had been no known cases. And in instances where cases later turned out to be false alarms, the media very quietly admits it, and never apologizes for basically ruining lives. When there was a similar #MeToo panic, you know what happened? Those accused killed themselves.

He Was Accused Of Ignoring Women’s Accusations Of Rape And Wasn’t Allowed To Defend Himself. He Committed Suicide.

We need to stop with this. We need perspective. So please, PLEASE read this article.

Coronavirus Hysteria: The Need for Perspective

Some of this data is now dated. The US has more cases now. But the key facts should be noted.

The coronavirus is not as easily transmissible as people believe. One is at high-risk of contracting the virus only if one lives with someone who has it, is sneezed, coughed upon, or otherwise comes into immediate physical contact with an infected person. Also, the virus can be passed from one person to another if the two are about six feet away for approximately 15 minutes.

OMG, I passed someone on the street, I didn't shake hands, and I made sure to give them a dirty look and scowl at them. They said "Hi" to me. I need to go home and sterilize myself. Also, I need to have them arrrested for not observing social distance.

And since ethanol, hydrogen peroxide, or bleach is sufficient to disinfect surfaces contaminated by the virus, “we can kill it quite easily.”

OMG, we can kill it with common household cleaners! Let's ignore this and panic, panic, panic!
Let's have martial law!

The Coronavirus Is the Way to Martial Law and Total Control Over Populations - LewRockwell LewRockwell.com

To put it another way, even in China, the mortality rate of the coronavirus isn’t much more than 2 percent.

“The symptoms of the coronavirus and the flu are similar; fever, body aches, fatigue, loss of appetite, sinus and chest congestion, and in some cases, shortness of breath. For most people who get the flu or the coronavirus, the symptoms usually resolve within a week. The infirmed elderly and those who are debilitated health-wise, with severe lung, heart disease, or diabetes tend to be the individuals who experience serious problems when they contract the flu, or the coronavirus.”

Yet, crucially, Hotze adds:

“If you have these symptoms, then the odds of your having the coronavirus are slim and none. You have the flu until proven otherwise”

OMG, I have the coronavirus. I read that list of symptoms, and I've made no connection to the flu. I've totally got it.

Oh right, the last cause of this panic. Hypochondria.

Remember kids, if it sounds like hoofbeats, it is usually a horse. "But this is definitely a zebra..." not bloody likely. Horse.

Everyone in this forum is going to be bitten by a shark. Because we saw this picture.

 

[Windwalker]

There is a way out of this irrationality, but I don't see it becoming prevalent any time soon. That way out is giving up our myths, and relying on information; learning a bit of mathematics and probability; learning a bit of science; learning to stop and think about what we're believing before we light the torches and form an unruly mob.

But those are all hard work, and I'm afraid I don't see a lot of people, especially in the US and Afghanistan and Iran, doing it.

The only thing I'll add to that perfect post, is that we learn to see past our differences and see each other as human beings in different circumstances of life. When we learn to have equal compassion for all of each other, all of life, and all of our home the planet, then the light of reason will truly be effective towards change. It has to be guided by a change of heart.

 

[Etritonakin]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

We may have certain tendencies, but we are also responsible for choices. Unlike other species, we can understand things such as statistics, the way the body works, that viruses even exist -and make informed, conscious decisions.

We are not merely subject to evolution or involuntary, subconscious brain function.

We have a lot of information to process -too much, actually -and even when correctly processed, we still have to take risks.

The difference between cars and planes is that planes have a long way to drop. I think that's the main factor, there.
Would you rather be on the road with a steering wheel, brakes and options -or up in the air with someone else at the wheel which isn't even mechanically connected to anything?

Our mortality also comes into play psychologically.
They kept wanting to check my mom for various cancers they might attempt to cure, but her condition meant that any attempt would likely hasten her demise.
It's not as if any personal choice we make will lead -in and of itself -to immortality.

(Keeping the commandments is the best choice, overall -as it would create a wonderful world if all did so -which makes it a safe, correct choice for even non-believers, and is required by God to get a free hand up out of death.)

 

[MJ Bailey]

In response to op; Maybe people find it too hard to believe facts or just prefer to ignore them for their own convenience. We as a species were preprogrammed to evolve; it is how we use the knowledge gained from our evolution that counts. It can either be harmful or helpful, and this solely depends on the integrations of inventions and knowledge.

 

[loverofhumanity]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

I think all the freaking out is that it kills so quickly and there’s no vaccine so once you get it all you can do is hope and pray you don’t die.

it’s like getting a death sentence with no reprieve or course for appeal for having done no wrong. With the flue there’s a vaccine.

The ONLY known protection so far is to shut down the world and keep away from each other. In other words the only way to stop this virus currently is to shut down completely the world economy and lay off all workers worldwide.

So nations face complete bankruptcy or mass deaths like the Spanish flu. If they continued business as usual then likely a billion would die and that in itself would throw the world economy into a Great Depression.

So governments have chosen an organised scaled down version of shutting down everything hoping to restart it at a later date than go down the chaos and mayhem path of millions dying and not being able to restart the economy and being thrown catastrophically into a Great Depression.


I think world leaders have rationalised that it’s better to have an organised world recession than an impromptu world depression thrust on them.

The way it is now they’re protecting assets and businesses the best they can while trying to make sure food is on the table for all. The worst thing for everyone would be world anarchy resulting in a world war.


As long as it’s ‘managed’ and controlled to a degree then we will come out of it not too bad. But if mishandled, far lesser issues than this have caused world wars to break out to my knowledge. ’

 

[dfnj]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher.

I'm going to go with sex. Human beings are always in heat. This is because we visualize possible realities before they exist. Then, we act as if the visualization will definitely become a reality in the future. And sometimes based on how well act we are rewarded!

However, the power of visualization can sometimes be used to cultivate our fears, uncertainties, and doubts. But given the fact there are 7.5 billion people in the World something must be designed right!

 

[InChrist]

It has always struck me as odd the sorts of things we freak out over. For example, people worry about planes crashing, but drive in cars daily, and the odds of cars crashing and causing severe bodily damage and even death are so much higher. The cancer caused by smoking is so worrisome that smoking in most public places is outlawed, yet we routinely eat sugar, the main cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc., which result in more deaths than smoking (in fact heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US).

The current freak out is the coronavirus. I'm not saying it isn't a real threat or that we should take strict measures to control the pandemic.

But what concerns me is that no one freaks out over the flu. In the US this year so far (flu season ends in May) we have had 210,000 to 370,000 flu sufferers hospitalized (who knows how many have stayed home with the flu?). Deaths so far have been between somewhere around 20,000 and growing. It was only two years ago that in the 2017-2018 season, we had 810,000 hospitalizations and 61,000 deaths due to the virus.

So where is all the virus maintenance for the flu? Where is all the media hype? I think it is because, like cars and sugar, it is simply a fact of life that we all have always had with us as long as we can remember. It is not new and foreign.

For some reason we have evolved this way. IMHO God is responsible for our evolution. My question is ... WHY? What purpose does this irrational tendency serve?????

Oftentimes humans freaking out or experiencing fear may be irrational, but I think fear in general serves the purpose of being a wake up call or reminder that we are not invincible or in control. Usually it is the threat of harm, pain or death which triggers the most fear. As you pointed out though there are harmful things we become familiar with and used to, so they don’t seem as frightening. Then comes along something unfamiliar and dangerous as the covid-19 bringing a new wave of sickness and death, so fear rises again.
From my perspective, as fear reminds us of our vulnerability, it can for those willing to listen, point to God who is a Refuge in times of trouble. Throughout the scriptures we are reminded to take refuge in the shelter of the Almighty. Everyone dies in one way or another, so I find that trusting in God the Creator with the that eventually and how it happens brings great peace. That doesn’t mean to ignore taking wise measures for health and safety, but it does eliminate panic.

Throughout the scriptures there are so many places where people are told...do not fear and as a Christian one of the verses I find very encouraging is...
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7

 

[Samantha Rinne]

I'd also venture to say that something very disturbing is happening right now, and it's freaking people out way worse than mere numbers of dead. Something is happening to your time, and to your social relationships, and fairly soon people will have to make a choice, remain human or become... something else.

Let me explain. The traditional work week set up a sort of makeshift Sabbath, even if it was only a day that you get off, and not a true religious day. A person didn't work 24/7, nor did they rest 24/7 short of being in a coma. Now we have undifferentiated time, where most people are trying to cope with a complete lack of purpose, and days run together. This is primordial time being shoved down our throats, the time before such thing as a distinct week even was a thing. But this isn't all, past the concern of honoring the Sabbath (or even remembering ANY day), there's a real breakdown of what human intimacy means. This social distancing, as it is called, means that on a very basic level things like shaking hands, holding each other, hugging, and kissing are now taboo because ewww cooties. The number of deaths is not the real concern, it's that when this is all over, we might somehow be very different. How different? Well, yesterday I was watching a show (Fighter of the Destiny, it's a Chinese martial arts fantasy) and this girl made a pledge to a goddess which meant in exchange for the goddess's power, she would become the goddess and lose her humanity (they kept saying "memory" but she didn't really forget anyone), and she basically knew the people in her life but had a very indifferent view about ppl she had previously known and loved.