Rising ConFusion

SFF is built on a foundation of cautionary tales, dark stories depicting dark futures meant to explore and discourage ill-advised courses of action. But as we move forward, more and more of these same stories have been embraced by the public in a way that casts aside the original warning. Mad Max and the Fallout video games tell us the post-atomic apocalypse landscape will not only be survivable but full of sexy leather. Cyberpunk has lost the horror of capitalist oligarchies and mega-corps in favor of a cool vibe and great music. Even the Handmaid's Tale has been embraced by some fundamentalist groups as 'a good idea.' What can we do when our attempts to warn people may be instead giving them ideas? Do creators have an obligation to prevent the normalization of dangerous ideas or would this self-censoring just make the problem much worse?