"Jerry Kraus" yahoo.com> wrote in message:

There is a mechanism for resolving that, it's called reality. Any given
perceived threat may, or may not become reality. I perceive that fire may
be a threat to my home, so I buy insurance for my contingency plan. I also
buy smoke detectors and teach my kids how to escape in the event of fire. I
have planned and prepared for a 'what if' that may never happen. Now, there
is a short term economic disadvantage to preparing and planning because it
costs a significant amount of money. However, if a fire destroys my home
and all of its contents, I can get it replaced and I have not lost what I
have worked for. On the other hand, I could be a skeptic and believe that
my home will never burn down. In all likelyhood it never will and I've
saved a lot of money. I'm not a skeptic though, I believe in managing risk
and preparing for the 'what ifs'.