gephyrophobia

I had no idea this was so common. On my trip we went to the UP in Michigan via the Mackinac Bridge. For those that are unfamiliar, its a massive suspension bridge across the straits connecting Lake Michigan with Lake Huron. It's fairly tall (~200 ft over the water) and its really long (5 miles). And for most of the time you the driver are in a car on what is basically a grate laying over the bridge surface, with a wicked fast cross breeze to boot. So for me, lots of fun things to observe. I'm told however that there are people who will get into your car to drive you across. Now I have no real objection to this if it relates to being able to do more sightseeing, but it actually correlates to people freaking out while driving across it. As this might tend to result in someone stopping in the midst of a busy roadway and thus freaking out more people, this is perhaps a wise and prudent decision on the part of Mdot or whoever called this shot.

But seriously people. How many unreasonable fears do we need to have? Is it reasonable to be somewhat frightened at a high height, or of a carnivorous fish, or a cyclonic tower of wind and debris? Sure. Do these things kill or cause harm frequently. Not at all. Sharks are so unlikely to kill or even maim a person that you're better off being afraid of terrorists. And that's a pretty extreme claim. I'm not here to make light of our ridiculous behavior. It just needs to be put back into perspective when we are bombarded over the next few days with images of a massive bridge failure in Minnesota. (Keep in mind I went over the Mackinac bridge the day after this happened, so naturally I must be tempting fate). We cannot develop these unreasonable fears and let them govern us without seeking a solution to this problem. What we are presented with instead by our servants in the media is a paranoid vision of our impending doom. Now if that psychic cat that kills old people is sitting on a bridge, maybe I'll wait. But otherwise, move on to another story please. Tragedy makes for good plays or movies, but its not newsworthy. Accidents of this sort happen. We learn what we can (if there is anything to learn), mourn the dead and help the injured and suffering, and then move on. That's life.