Book description
We are the safest humans who ever lived - the statistics prove it.
And yet the media tells a different story with its warnings and scare
stories. How is it possible that anxiety has become the stuff of daily life?
In this ground-breaking, compulsively readable book, Dan Gardner
shows how our flawed strategies for perceiving risk influence our
lives, often with unforeseen and sometimes-tragic consequences. He
throws light on our paranoia about everything from paedophiles to
terrorism and reveals how the most significant threats are actually
the mundane risks to which we pay little attention.
Speaking to psychologists and scientists, as well as looking at the
influence of the media and politicians, Gardner uncovers one of the
central puzzles of our time: why are the safest people in history
living in a culture of fear?
Dan Gardner is a columnist and senior writer for the
Ottawa Citizen
. Trained in history and law, Gardner worked in politics as a senior
policy adviser before turning to journalism. His writing has received
numerous awards, including the National Newspaper Award and Amnesty
International's Media Award. He lives in Ottawa with his wife and two
children.
