Mass Hysteria

Mass hysteria is sometimes used by skeptics to explain belief in paranormal phenomenon. Here is an article that discusses the phenomenon. (The article uses an example from the current political situation in the US. I hope people don't think I am trying to sneak in a political discussion ... I have tried to explain the relevance above ... and I have not quoted anything relating to politics below):

http://blog.dilbert.com/post/16429762860...ria-bubble

SCOTT ADAMS' BLOG

How To Know You’re In a Mass Hysteria Bubble

Posted August 17th, 2017 @ 12:36pm
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A mass hysteria happens when the public gets a wrong idea about something that has strong emotional content and it triggers cognitive dissonance that is often supported by confirmation bias. In other words, people spontaneously hallucinate a whole new (and usually crazy-sounding) reality and believe they see plenty of evidence for it. The Salem Witch Trials are the best-known example of mass hysteria.
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If you’re in the mass hysteria, recognizing you have all the symptoms of hysteria won’t help you be aware you are in it.
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But if you are not experiencing mass hysteria, you might be totally confused by the actions of the people who are. ... You can’t tell if they are stupid, unscrupulous, ignorant, mentally ill, emotionally unstable or what.
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One sign of a good mass hysteria is that it sounds bonkers to anyone who is not experiencing it.
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But when you start seeing ad hominem attacks that offer no reasons at all, that might be a sign that people in the mass hysteria bubble don’t understand what is wrong with your point of view except that it sounds more sensible than their own.
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The mass hysteria signals I described here are not settled science, or anything like it. This is only my take on the topic, based on personal observation and years of experience with hypnosis and other forms of persuasion.

"But when you start seeing ad hominem attacks that offer no reasons at all, that might be a sign that people in the mass hysteria bubble don’t understand what is wrong with your point of view except that it sounds more sensible than their own."

I think this symptom is often exhibited by pseudo skeptics and it indicates materialism is a form of mass hysteria.

Mysterious Universe has an article (rather tongue-in-cheek) about an outbreak of fainting, and also shouting and swearing, in a Colombian school:
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2018/04/ex...an-school/

Mysterious Universe has an article (rather tongue-in-cheek) about an outbreak of fainting, and also shouting and swearing, in a Colombian school:
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2018/04/ex...an-school/

The line below in the article:

She was shouting and started swearing, saying: “I will kill them”.

seemed to have echoes of a similar occurrence related to the aftermath of the tsunami in Japan:

he began snarling, "You must die. You must die. Everyone must die. Everything must die and be lost."

Above quote from Ghosts of the Tsunami: Death and Life in Japan’s Disaster Zone by Richard Lloyd Parry.
https://longreads.com/2017/10/24/the-gho...e-tsunami/

Mass hysteria is sometimes used by skeptics to explain belief in paranormal phenomenon. Here is an article that discusses the phenomenon. (The article uses an example from the current political situation in the US. I hope people don't think I am trying to sneak in a political discussion ... I have tried to explain the relevance above ... and I have not quoted anything relating to politics below):

http://blog.dilbert.com/post/16429762860...ria-bubble


"But when you start seeing ad hominem attacks that offer no reasons at all, that might be a sign that people in the mass hysteria bubble don’t understand what is wrong with your point of view except that it sounds more sensible than their own."

I think this symptom is often exhibited by pseudo skeptics and it indicates materialism is a form of mass hysteria.

Seems much more suited as a description of the blind faith, sheeple viewers of fox news than anyone else. I always suspected that unapologetic Trump supporters were living in some kind bubble, and this article has helped me to see that that bubble is best described as mass hysteria. Thanks, Jim!