Fight? Or Flight?
By CHRISTOPHER MANION
“I have been condemned to fear for the whole of my life” Soviet defector Anatoly Kuznetsov told The New York Times a half-century ago. “From the age of five, I have been living in a state of fear . . . this is not just my personal lot; it is the fate of all who are born in this Russian land. . . . All of them — those who command and those who are regimented. Those who punish and those who are punished are afraid. Because they are afraid of each other. And those who fear most of all are the dictators themselves” (The New York Times, August 17, 1969).
Scripture tells us that God did not create man to live in a constant state of fear.
“Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).
“Be not afraid” — these are the words of the Archangel Gabriel to Mary; of Jesus to the apostles in the stormy sea; and of Mary to the children at Fatima.
God tells us not to fear because He knows how easily we can fall under its spell. One of the most primitive reflexes of the brain’s limbic system is “fight or flight.” The unknown surprises us. Fear envelops us. A rush of adrenaline prepares us as we make our split-second decision. Confront the threat, or flee? Our very life depends on those few seconds.
Or not. In the current unpleasantness, for instance, that split-second has stretched to become weeks. It might go on for months. Meanwhile, we ponder. An opportunity for contemplation has been imposed upon us by an unseen force. What is the threat? What should we fear? Are we fighting? Or fleeing?
The Wuhan Virus can kill us. So we flee it. We wash our hands, wave from a distance, don a mask. Are we smiling? Who knows? We’re masqueraded in a permanent Halloween. Doctor’s orders. Expert’s orders. Governor’s orders.
They order and we obey. Which means that the threat to the physical health of a small number has eclipsed a larger threat to a much greater number — and threatens permanently to infect all of us.
Fear As A Power Factor
As Kuznetsov observes, we are afraid of each other — or at least we should be, according to the “authorities.” But, as he also testifies, there are some who long to command, and fear is their weapon of choice. After all, you don’t have to be a Soviet commissar to lust after power. Didn’t Augustine tell us that the City of Man, commanded by Satan, was driven by the libido dominandi?
Well, the power-hungry aren’t all in Russia, either. Right here at home there are plenty of folks who are just itching to run other people’s lives. Right now, some of them are using the Wuhan Virus and its cloud of our unknowing to run an experiment — not an effort to find a cure, but an effort to keep us sick — all of us.
Consider the budding tyrant’s methods. First, he reminds us: “Be afraid! You might die!”
Fair enough. But good priests want to offer the sacraments to a sick and suffering faithful. They aren’t afraid of dying.
Enter the second method. “Shame on them! They might kill somebody!”
No martyrs need apply.
Fear and shame, shame and fear. Kuznetsov’s wannabe commissars are watching us laboratory mice (for they see us thus) closely. How far can they go?
As their experiment plays out, the power-mongers are pleasantly surprised. Some even gloat. Behold! We’re not fighting. We’re not even resisting.
We’ve surrendered. And they know it.
But wait — they’re from the government. Aren’t they here to help?
Let’s face it: There do exist men who are more interested in maximizing their power than in helping others. These men will avail themselves of every opportunity to gain and keep power.
But they can’t be blunt and honestly tell us, “I want power, obey me!” Even now, that won’t work. As Socrates taught us, they have to persuade the public — the very public they wish to oppress. So they consult Machiavelli. And suddenly the new policies that will consolidate their power are “for our own good.”
Resist? Wait, they tell us we might die. Do they really care? Of course not. Abortion is “essential,” remember?
Simply put, a lot of actors do not have as their highest priority the protection of the innocent and the health of the threatened. These guys come from mindsets that have killed millions without losing any sleep at night, and the entire world right now is up for grabs.
That’s their playbook.
Astride The Widening Divide
Inundated by data, models, and endless chatter, the landscape changes constantly. No matter. The distemper of the times refuses to budge. For all the unknowns, we know, and what we know does not please us.
It’s still “us” and “them.”
In coming days we will distrust authority more than ever. From the media to the experts to the politicians to the bishops to the notion of “authority” itself, we will take a rain check. Not that power won’t continue to assert itself — it always does. But now we know why.
Months ago, thousands of Virginians rallied, confident that our allies in law enforcement would defy a sadistic blackface governor’s unconstitutional order to seize our guns.
No longer. Too many videos of police chasing down lone joggers, arresting stray pedestrians, harassing churchgoers, and handcuffing sidewalk pro-life prayer warriors have saturated our screens. The message: “We’re just following orders.”
“It’s for your own good.”
Of course, that’s what the Soviets told Alexander Kuznetsov. He wasn’t convinced.
The Virus And Beyond
This time warp seems to wear on like an induced coma. When we wake up, some things will abide, some won’t. The Church, the economy, our work, education, even our community life will be challenged.
And there’s politics. Our lives have been politicized as never before. Saturated. For the moment, millions are paralyzed in fear — ours and theirs. The Kuznetsov Effect might be only temporary, but it is real. And it is unhealthy.
We now have “experts” telling us that we can’t go back to work, or to church, or out to lunch until we have met their demands. How to comply? They will test us, and give us a permit to leave home.
Put it in our wallet? But how will strangers on the street know not to fear us? Better to wear it like a badge. But badges can be forged. Best to put it on a computer chip, manufactured by the dependable Bill Gates, to insert just above the wrist on our right forearm. That’s the ticket!
And without it, we can’t leave home.
The Communist Party of China has inaugurated a state-of-the-art Social Credit System. Everyone is monitored in word and deed — and increasingly, in thought. This system has great appeal among those who would be our masters. The unruly Deplorables must be brought to heel. And fear seems to be working quite well…for now.
But for how long? Kuznetsov, again: “You know, your masters fear you more than you fear them.”
Really?
Well, what are we waiting for?
