Be careful what you wish for. Humans are made out of biases. We enjoy roller-coasters because of the "irrational" fear they give us. We enjoy watching zombie movies because zombies are scary, when actually they are fictional entities, which, if they existed, would be less dangerous than a lot of "normal" humans or many real diseases.
Watching movies or riding roller-coasters could be seen as "irrational" in and of itself, just like playing the lottery. But what is left of human values if you get rid of all this?
Okay, so for several years, I've been doing a fairly good job of excising out most of my irrational beliefs and fears.
The one that remains, however, is my fear of bugs and spiders. I'll SCREAM if I see one, dead or alive. And if there's one in my food, then I'm going to throw the entire plate out.
Is it common for LWers to have irrational reactions to bugs and spiders?
I know that there is "desensitization therapy", as highlighted by a Scientific American Frontiers episode a decade ago (where gradual exposure to the stimulus - a spider) - can desensitize a person with arachnophobia over time. But this can really only happen in controlled settings. In uncontrolled settings, such interaction can give you nightmares.