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Crichton Highlights Society's State Of Fear Crichton's State of Fear takes the reader on a worldwide adventure that entertains as much as it informs, which is to say a great deal. It has an interesting story, plot twists, and surprises around every corner. Of course, much of the talk surrounding the book has been on the book's questioning of global warming. The science that the book presents makes sense, but if you approach this book while you focus on the specific topic of global warming, you'll miss out on the real message: the State of Fear. The novel features a world in which major environmentalist groups advance their agendas by secretly causing and enhancing natural disasters. Not secret enough, however, as an environmental philanthropist discovers the plot. He assembles a team, including his lawyer, his beautiful personal assistant, and a pair of law enforcement agents who are coincidentally environmental science experts (one of the two extremely so, to the point where he is an expert about everything; this is probably the cheesiest of the few faults of this book). But the philanthropist crashes his car over a cliff, and the rest of the team must assemble clues and race against the clock to prevent a series of terrible unnatural disasters. I have to say that I thought people would die when they actually survived, that they would live when they actually perished, and that the end would turn out quite different that what Crichton dreamed up. The science is well explained so as to enhance the story rather than detract from it. The short chapters make it easy to read in several sittings, but the gripping plot makes it hard to put down. The popular excitement surrounding State of Fear focuses not on the story but mostly on science and politics. In the beginning, most of Crichton's characters believe that global warming is a proven fact, that humans cause it, and that humans can fix it. (By the way, Crichton has addressed this theme before. Jurassic Park's John Hammond was rebuked by Ian Malcolm: "You egomaniacal idiot...do you have any idea what you are talking about? You think you can destroy the planet?") By and by, most of the main characters live through life-changing experiences, and they learn, through both scientific evidence and personal experience, the fact that global warming is an unproven but developing theory, much like global cooling was 30 years ago. Critics make the mistake of assaulting Crichton's environmental beliefs, when in reality Crichton himself states (Author's Message) that global warming is possible and deserves scientific research. I agree with Crichton, because so far there is no proof one way or the other. However, agreeing or disagreeing with Crichton on global warming is the wrong way to critique State of Fear. The real message of the novel is the State of Fear in our society, as explained by an eccentric professor midway through the novel. Those who wish to control society, including governments, corporations, and environmentalists, must create and encourage fear and then convince society that they are the answer. The book's illustration is that environmentalists falsify natural disasters in order to instill fear of corporations, fear of conservative government, and fear of American society as it exists. But the illustration can be applied broadly: governments encourage fear of their opponents, real and political, and corporations encourage fear of liberal government and of environmentalists. So what is the final point? Crichton's central message, and I agree, is that we should be careful about what we fear, because many issues that inspire fear are calculated to control us. It's not to say there is nothing to fear. But it is to say that there is very little that merits fear, as compared to the deluge of things that society trains us to fear. Although State of Fear concentrates on the fear that the environmental movement seeks to create, Crichton makes clear that false fear comes from various sources. The story is exciting, and it implicitly makes an important warning: don't change the world if you're not sure the world needs changing.