Fear, as I see it, has been a major component in my ability to survive. Yet I have always felt a need to justify that fear by proving myself rightness in having adhered to it.
My fears are never too irrational when I’m in defense mode. Defense, after all, must be shown to have just cause for my attention to fear and to my success in survival.
I’d rather justify my fears than believe I have no need of them. By admitting that I could’ve misunderstood a situation, is cause in itself to have to venture into a less familiar way of thinking – one than requires deeper thought for understanding. Besides, it just seems like less effort – easier and more convenient to believe I am a victim of change.
Justifying gives me a kind of “get out of jail free card” for dependent, fear-based rationale. Reason doesn’t need to argue with the unreasonable. I may feel guilty about this kind of lying, yet I feel I have to answer to my ego, which uses justification to replace the rigidity of logic that answers only to itself.
If my ego tells me I have to explain my thinking, it’s usually to someone I perceive as more powerful and maybe a threat to me.
I (JUST-IF-I) – Just if I can’t believe, Just if I can’t be believed.
Being safe from harm is an instinctual concern – so much so that I feel compelled to call upon the authority I hope will protect my interests. I seek to save myself from dangers through avoidance or attack. “Better safe than sorry.”
Fear is at the foundation of so many of life’s everyday decisions. Justifying my fears has just seemed right to me. I know fear has become my lifestyle when –
- I justify obedience to laws I don’t agree with.
- I justify being compliant to social standards I don’t believe in.
- I justify the behaviors of others when I think they support my beliefs.
- I justify my behaviors when I think I’m right.
The persistent defense of fear can develop into a belief in the necessity for it. This kind of critical thinking error leads to creating an ever-growing misunderstanding of why I think I need it. My need for security grows as my investment in protection increases. My need for protection grows as my need for security increases. It’s another instance of circular thinking – based in fear.
I support my justifications for physical violence when I feel threatened – threatening physical harm as a defense that justifies my fear of it. The more I give place to fear, the stronger my allegiance to it, and the more I give place to it. Around and around and around we go!
I fear, therefore I justify. I justify, therefore I fear.
