In the depths of the Great Depression, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in his induction speech: “This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper…. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror….”

In the depth of the depression, Franklin Roosevelt assured the nation, we have nothing to fear but fear, itself

At the depth of the depression, FDR said, “the only thing to fear is fear, itself.”

Initial fears about the spread of COVID-19 were justified. When you suddenly have thousands of people dying from a new virus with no known vaccine, it’s natural to panic. Therefore, the alarm system galvanized us into action here in the USA. We’ve identified the coronavirus, and the CDC is doing everything possible to stop it from spreading here.

But the media has done everything in its power to politicize the virus, and stir up unwarranted panic. There are about 38,000 deaths per year from automobile accidents. Does that mean we should stop buying cars? If we gave in to that type of panic, it would turn the world as we know it upside down. Goods and services wouldn’t be delivered. Millions of people would lose their jobs in the auto related industries. No one could drive to work.

Heart disease and stroke are leading causes of death. Why aren’t we worried about obesity, and the over consumption of red meats as a risk factor ? Shall we shut down McDonalds, Steak N Shake and all the restaurants that serve unhealthy meals loaded with saturated fat? If not, why? Because it doesn’t make sense. We know we may or may not get these diseases, so we put that fear out of our minds and go on..

If we let panic rule our lives, most of us would become agoraphobics. We wouldn’t step out our door for fear of air pollution, getting a contagious disease, having a car accident and all of the other tragedies that result from every day interactions with our fellow human beings.

My children are more worried about me than I am. They point out that I’m in the vulnerable age group—over 65—most apt to die from covid-19. They don’t realize how many adversities I’ve faced–managed to survive- over the years. Yes, I might get the coronavirus. I could also have a heart attack, or be diagnosed with cancer. While we’re taking common sense precautions—avoiding crowds, hand washing, etc.–my husband and I won’t give in to panic. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.

In my home town, I’m acquainted with a diverse group of people. Because of our respective careers , my husband and I know folks from every race, religion, and socio-economic background. If I were to sit down with some of them and ask, “what is our foreign policy?” I don’t think anyone would give me the same answer.

Some professors, politicians, and military could probably voice a well informed opinion. But even in this college town, those people are few and far between.

When FDR signed a declarration of war against Japan, everyone understood USA foreign policy — Everyone in the USA understood our foreign policy when FDR declared war against Japan in 1941..

When I was a child, the USA foreign policy was pretty clear. We were fighting Germany and Japan. The Germans hated the Jews, and the Japanese hated us. If we didn’t enter the war, they would take over our country , kill our priests, and make us do horrible things to our fellow human beings.

A few years after WWII ended in 1945, almost every young man I knew was drafted and sent to Korea. Again, we had a pretty clear foreign policy: Fighting communism.

Then we entered the long, agonizing war in Vietnam. Our sons, brothers, husbands and fathers were drafted to continue the fight against Marxist communism. Most of us protested. However, the politicians convinced us that if our guys didn’t fight and die in Southeast Asia, we’d soon be ruled by the communists. We lost that war, but saved our democracy.

The State department says their foreign policy goals are to preserve national security, promote world peace, promote democratic values, work with our allies to solve international problems. and further cooperative foreign trade,

But how is the average American supposed to figure out what the United States is up to all over the world? The cold war is supposedly over, but we’re impeaching a president because he held up aid to a corrupt Ukraine in their fight against Russia. Does that make sense? If that’s what we’re doing, it looks like the cold war is really a hot war.

Supposedly, we’re not at war with anyone in the Middle East. But if you were alive on 9/11, it felt pretty much like Pearl Harbor to those of us who were around both times. We actually were at war after 9/11, but it was never declared.

If you were alive during the Pearl Harbor attack, 9/11 seemed like we were at war again — No one questioned our foreign policy when FDR declared war against Japan

We’ve been sending our troops all over the Middle East for years, even though we don’t need their oil any more We’ve got all the oil we need right here in the good old USA . Also, we have wind farms and other forms of cleaner energy. But the politicians give us the same old excuse they did about communism. They tell us we’re fighting terrorism there so we don’t have to fight it here.

Why are we trying to maintain toxic relationships with countries who hate us? Any therapist would tell us that’s crazy. Our foreign policy is incoherent to the average person who goes to work every day, worries about paying their mortgage, and educating their children.

People cared more about our foreign policy when men were being drafted against their will. Now that the US military is an all volunteer service, no one feels as strongly as they once did. And more importantly, our foreign policy doesn’t influence their vote nearly as much as the cost of health care, prescription drugs, and the unemployment rate.

What is our foreign policy? Does anyone really know?

Tag: Franklin Delano Roosevelt

FEAR ITSELF IS ONLY THING TO FEAR

In the depths of the Great Depression, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said in his induction speech: “This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper…. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror….”

If we let panic rule our lives, most of us would become agoraphobics. We wouldn’t step out our door for fear of air pollution, getting a contagious disease, having a car accident and all of the other tragedies that result from every day interactions with our fellow human beings.

WHAT IS OUR FOREIGN POLICY?

The State department says their foreign policy goals are to preserve national security, promote world peace, promote democratic values, work with our allies to solve international problems. and further cooperative foreign trade,

Supposedly, we’re not at war with anyone in the Middle East. But if you were alive on 9/11, it felt pretty much like Pearl Harbor to those of us who were around both times. We actually were at war after 9/11, but it was never declared.