DANGER
Some years ago I read a scientific treatise stating that we have a genetic trigger withing us that alerts us to danger. This made sense. When we roamed the savannah, danger, immediate and unforgiving danger, lurked everywhere. After the old and weak, the overly complacent probably found themselves eaten next. One might even say stress was good. Maybe it still is, within certain boundaries.
The piece, more interestingly, stated that the genomic trigger still activates when all seems safe and calm. Perhaps it is there to tell us that seeming safety is the most prevalent forecaster of danger. In other words, when all seems safe and secure, that's the time to be most alert. Ever know any of these feelings?
- Something just didn't seem right.
- I had this feeling something was wrong.
- It was too quiet.
- Some sixth sense told me to be careful.
- I felt as if someone was watching me.
- What had I done to make everyone suddenly start acting so nice toward me?
Perhaps we shouldn't be so critical of a little stress in our lives. I say, "a little" for when genetic triggers suffer negative mutations, chaos can result. Responses can seize and direct us when there are no modern-day lions and tigers in the vicinity. What is even more alarming is that scheming people and institutions can use these triggers to generate responses, to accomplish their own ends, within those willing to listen without reasoning. Whether danger exists or not, we mentally stand ready to take action.
When that goes to an extreme, we don't simply plan a safer route through life, we climb onto a building and start shooting people.
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