I have heard the predictable slew of insults, threats, epithets, and curses. Underneath all these, I hear their fear. They don’t want to hurt me, though I may serve as a stand-in for a man who they do want to hurt. They want to scare me because fear is the only way they have learned to feel powerful. Thomm Quackenbush
About This Quote

In the note, writer George Saunders refers to a crime scene where a man who had been shot dead was found to have a letter in his pocket. In the letter, the shooter explained how he had been unable to kill his target because the victim, a powerful man, had been able to scare him with words instead of actions. The shooter explained how he had been terrified by the victim’s words. Saunders explains how words can terrify us in much the same way that physical violence can.

In the case of the shooter, he was so scared that he could not kill his target. He felt powerless and terrified by his victim’s words. In our modern society, this is a common occurrence.

Criminals are afraid of being sentenced to jail terms and being separated from their loved ones while victims are afraid of being harmed or killed by others.

Source: Juvenile Justice: A Reference Handbook, 2Nd Edition: A Reference Handbook

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