Gun Problem is a Fear Problem: Charleston Tragedy

Some two and 1/2 yrs ago I did some writing and took some political actions re: the Fearlessness Movement, my critique of fear management/education and my critique of the culture of fear in America... and especially critique of the way the mass murders in USA are regularly made meaning as a "gun problem" (pro or con)... the nice simple binary. I have selected some of that writing (and a link to an article) I wrote here: http://csiie.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=37 (on Dec. 26, 2012, post-Sandy Hook tragedy)...

Now we have the 21 yr. old rebel at Charleston, S.C. killing 9 black people who were praying in their Methodist church.... it is not a gun problem, is what I wrote to the Pres. and VP of the USA in 2012... it is a Fear Problem we have... and the guns only "feed" to the fear... and create more... what curriculum is adequate to the task of the 21st century and these ongoing mass murders (or acts of 'terrorism')... etc.? And with the help of a colleague I was inspired to write a letter and send a copy of my book to the Pres. and VP at the time (neither replied)... the ongoing, silence, and denial-- 'fear' itself (i.e., fearism-t) is well in place with even our best leaders who are too afraid to really encounter the issue of source--- fear itself, by any other name.... It will repeat... these tragedies... until we find a better way to make meaning of them and thus be able to intelligently, from a place of true fearlessness design a different society....

I'm very interested in this strategy (not uncommon at times in our societies): Forgive and Love (above all else)... as a moral virtue... I call it the "love teachings" (based on the premise "love is the answer")... I have my doubts about its long-term capabilities to deal with the worst of what we have to deal with on this planet-- i.e., the 'Fear' Project...

Barbara has been relaying some of the news of Pres. Obama giving a eulogy in Charleston, and the clergy in the region deciding to "forgive and love" and to choose "love not hate" in their strategy to communicate with the mass murderer (racist) who entered their church and blew 9 people away while they prayed as good Christians. I am not following the details but thought to comment on this in that I think it is a good move generally to not create more fear and hatred in a community and not take the punitive route alone to deal with transgressors like this young man on a rage murder and suicide attempt-- yet, it is still too bad to hear (even Black religious folks) still considering love and hate as opposites-- so many wise leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., said directly the only opposite of love is fear. Anyways, it all reminded me of a significant mission dream I had on Jan. 20/15 while starting off this recent sabbatical journey to Canada with Barbara [this was also a dream some couple of days after starting up the FMning]:

"I dreamt of walking with Barbara in a city, somewhat familiar to us, where I led and tooker her back to 'home' but tat the same time I could see an alternative way to getting back. She'd also been on this path, but at the moment she wasn't remembering it. She let me lead. I was aware it would lead beyond and away from some of the more toxic and dangerous territories on the planet. We came into some buildings and a mall-like structure and lots of people and she made choices to separate, by 'accident'--and, I still knew somehow she would show up and with various passing by and seeing her not really knowing which way to go--I gathered her up from her scatteredness and we went on, as I communicated to her that she had rather neurotically gone back n' forth over the same territory 4 times. [the dream goes on and I am teaching many people, loving the authentic dialogue and exchanges; and I had an intense situation of conflict with one of the participants and it seemed to work out] So, then at this point of tension between me and this man I saw a darker Middle-Eastern man show up at the window outside the room we were all in--and he held up a sign that said "Shambhala" on one side and then he turned it over, and it said, "Love is the answer" or something very similar as an intervention we were to listen to and enact as a group. And so it was immediately read by me as there is an alternative to the more confrontational way of being with each other and being on this path. I was immediately then to say to everyone, "But this is not the path I teach. I teach fearlessness." I made it very clear to the group and the to the guy in the window without any speech or trying to convince."

After writing down this dream in the middle of the night in my journal, I wrote in the margins: "I wonder what kind of conversation would ensue if this man had come into the group or if I would have invited him?

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R.Michael Fisher June 27, 2015 at 1:26pm

I'm very interested in this strategy (not uncommon at times in our societies): Forgive and Love (above all else)... as a moral virtue... I call it the "love teachings" (based on the premise "love is the answer")... I have my doubts about its long-term capabilities to deal with the worst of what we have to deal with on this planet-- i.e., the 'Fear' Project...

Barbara has been relaying some of the news of Pres. Obama giving a eulogy in Charleston, and the clergy in the region deciding to "forgive and love" and to choose "love not hate" in their strategy to communicate with the mass murderer (racist) who entered their church and blew 9 people away while they prayed as good Christians. I am not following the details but thought to comment on this in that I think it is a good move generally to not create more fear and hatred in a community and not take the punitive route alone to deal with transgressors like this young man on a rage murder and suicide attempt-- yet, it is still too bad to hear (even Black religious folks) still considering love and hate as opposites-- so many wise leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., said directly the only opposite of love is fear. Anyways, it all reminded me of a significant mission dream I had on Jan. 20/15 while starting off this recent sabbatical journey to Canada with Barbara [this was also a dream some couple of days after starting up the FMning]:

"I dreamt of walking with Barbara in a city, somewhat familiar to us, where I led and tooker her back to 'home' but tat the same time I could see an alternative way to getting back. She'd also been on this path, but at the moment she wasn't remembering it. She let me lead. I was aware it would lead beyond and away from some of the more toxic and dangerous territories on the planet. We came into some buildings and a mall-like structure and lots of people and she made choices to separate, by 'accident'--and, I still knew somehow she would show up and with various passing by and seeing her not really knowing which way to go--I gathered her up from her scatteredness and we went on, as I communicated to her that she had rather neurotically gone back n' forth over the same territory 4 times. [the dream goes on and I am teaching many people, loving the authentic dialogue and exchanges; and I had an intense situation of conflict with one of the participants and it seemed to work out] So, then at this point of tension between me and this man I saw a darker Middle-Eastern man show up at the window outside the room we were all in--and he held up a sign that said "Shambhala" on one side and then he turned it over, and it said, "Love is the answer" or something very similar as an intervention we were to listen to and enact as a group. And so it was immediately read by me as there is an alternative to the more confrontational way of being with each other and being on this path. I was immediately then to say to everyone, "But this is not the path I teach. I teach fearlessness." I made it very clear to the group and the to the guy in the window without any speech or trying to convince."

After writing down this dream in the middle of the night in my journal, I wrote in the margins: "I wonder what kind of conversation would ensue if this man had come into the group or if I would have invited him?

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