Fear prevents us from facing our country's challenges

“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” Plato, Greek philosopher, 427 – 347 B.C.

“Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world.” Ralph Waldo Emerson, U.S. poet, essayist and lecturer, 1803-1882.

I never realized how fearful a culture we have become until I left for a while. To be sure, there are things to be afraid of in our country, especially on a personal level.

But for the most part, much of what we’re afraid of we shouldn’t be because they’re not rational fears and — worse — they’re fears tr...