“Which is more real?  The world you can touch, or THE WORLD YOU ARE RESPONDING TO?”

     Talk about your family issues.  Anthony Perkins in “Psycho” is definitely a person with a problem staying calm around his mother.  In fact, his Emotional Guidance System rules his behavior so thoroughly when he’s around his mother, he becomes his mother.  The view his mother’s subjective view, based on her fears, has become his view.  When he has thoughts unacceptable to his mother’s view of him as an innocent little boy, he punishes himself. 

      And, there was that unpleasantry in the shower.  Janet Leigh screaming, her bloody hands streaking down the tiles.  Actually, his mother (who was dead and drying in the main house) slashed up the beautiful blonde.  She was just trying to help.  Just trying to keep her/his view of the world steady. 

     Isn’t this what all of us are trying to do when we tell people the way they see the world, the way they do things is wrong.  We’re only trying to help.  Right?  Actually, like Anthony, what we’re doing is trying to calm our own anxiety.  When someone presents a view that doesn’t fit our picture of the “way things are” our anxiety goes up and we go into a defensive mode trying to get comfortable by convincing the other to change. 

      Hopefully, we stick to arguing, dismissing, or avoiding rather than murder.  But murders happen everyday between family members unable to accept disagreements in world view.  If I can bully you into agreeing, then you have to go.  For those folks, the cut-off method may be the best they can do to manage anxiety.