The illusion of safety can lead to reckless behavior.
\nThese fascinating insights are part of \"Foolproof - Why Safety\nCan Be Dangerous and How Danger Makes Us Safe\", the recently\npublished book by Greg Ip, chief economics commentator at The Wall\nStreet Journal.
\n\"Life is about risk,\" Greg tells us in this episode of \"How Do\nWe Fix It?\" When we believe the world is safe, it affects our\nbehavior. \"Many positive things happen from taking risks and we\nshould not let the pendulum swing all the way to the other side -\ntrying to eliminate all risks from our lives.\"
\nOur collective aim to make life safer comes into conflict with\nthe equally strong desire to make things bigger and more\ncomplicated. It is in our nature to safeguard our world - and yet\nsometimes, more often than we realize, protections end up being the\nthings that threaten our safety and well-being.
\nAccidents will always happen, says Greg. Among the solutions he\ncalls for are safe spaces: allowing banks to fail without taking\ndown the entire financial system and creating flood plains that all\nrivers and coastal waters to rise without creating havoc in nearby\ncommunities.
\nGreg argues for a balance between independence, risk and safety.\nRegulate too much and we reduce the opportunities for innovation\nand create a sense of potential complacency. \"Black swan\" events\nare inevitable. Our systems of governance and rule-making should\nrecognize that we cannot plan for every eventuality.
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