Overreaction
Monday, 4 May 2009
Notice any overreaction in the news lately? Well, of course you do. But I mean more than normal. Here are some examples of overreaction in the news this week:
- Egypt orders slaughter of all its (300,000) swine (Google News article removed)
- 130,000 Texas students missing school because of Swine Flu
- Swine Flu now known as H1N1, so economy won’t collapse
That last one is my favorite. Didn’t we already see something like that happen?
What causes overreaction? Same thing as underreaction: hesitation. Whether we hesitate that we don’t know something, or we’re waiting for someone else to act first, our reaction will inevitably be off-balance.
Overreaction is just as bad as underreaction (see Hurricane Katrina). It puts extra stress on people, which no one needs. Lesson here? Do what you learned in school: study what you know. Listen to your peers. Surround yourself with those who disagree with you. And, most importantly, just act.
Want more?
Newer: Online reputation management vs. pruning
Older: Photo: Seven deadly sins
For one-on-one conversation, e-mail thoughts to tyler@thetylerhayes.com.
For group conversation, post thoughts below.
[...] Identity theft – we hear about one person getting their identity stolen, and we get anxious, nervous, and fearful. Naturally, our sympathetic nervous system “fight-or-flight” response kicks in. One million years of evolution designed this system as a response to truly dangerous stimuli: predators & enemies. Unfortunately, modern humans have less need for this response. Of course, rationally, identity theft has been a problem much longer than the Internet has existed. The MSM’s overreaction, mixed with our natural psychological response to potential danger, causes us to overreact. [...]