Fear is absolutely the motivation behind many of actions and is a good thing to acknowledge. We can overcome it only when we think deep about ourselves and put the effort in.
I think feeling powerful is a great way to fight back against the fear. The guys at the gym and the range during their free time may be on to something there, whether they admit it or not.
As the ole saying goes knowledge is power, perhaps the folk in the libraries and philosophy sites have more in common with the prior than appearances would say.