Editorial January 16, 1943 Issue

Security-Conscious

Peter V. Ross

It is quite striking how people in recent years have turned conversation toward things mental. They speak, for instance, of the public being air-minded, money-minded, politically-minded, clothes-conscious, society-conscious, and security-conscious.

There is enough going on these days to make people danger-conscious if not alert to the consequences of random thinking. Thus, with the best of intentions, much is being taught as to how to proceed in times of personal injury. No one needs to be reminded that with attention fastened on insecurity, insecurity is likely to be introduced into his experience. Excessive thought about casualties, how to ward against them or how to care for the injured, may well make the public accident-conscious, and thereby multiply those mishaps which everybody desires to be minimized. "For the thing which I greatly feared," writes Job out of the wisdom of the ages, "is come upon me."

There is a nice line of distinction in this field of analysis. We must not, on the one hand, be indifferent to the hazards of highways, for example, nor can we, on the other hand, be indifferent as to what course to take in the event of misadventure. Yet we cannot, with impunity, fill our consciousness with pictures of disaster.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Editorial

The Starting Point