Word: hysteria
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...singularly captured public attention (over 100 books have been written about the Ripper, more than the combined total written about American presidents), the formation remains staggeringly and exceptionally mediocre. Right down the center, the film is middling; From Hell doesn’t present the intrigue or the hysteria surrounding the killings with any emotive force, nor does it probe the murderer’s sociopath psyche in any telling detail. It’s a thriller that rarely excites, a mystery that doesn’t intrigue and since we know already that Jack is the culprit, the tale...
...follow the recommendations of the U.S. Postal Service in weeding out suspicious packages and in making accommodations for its employees, such as offering gloves and other means of protection against biological contamination. However, it is also wise not to redirect University mail elsewhere. Doing so would only encourage the hysteria that has already sprouted around mail services. Although caution certainly seems prudent during this current national crisis, Harvard has done well to resist the temptation to take this caution to extremes...
Firearms and airplanes are a dangerous mix. Even the best-trained professionals can miss their targets, and a well-intentioned shot aimed at a hijacker might easily find an innocent passenger instead. Just imagine a firefight on a crowded passenger jet. A few shots ring out and hysteria sets in. It would be close to impossible to take out a hijacker without at least the risk of a few civilian deaths...
Where we can agree with Rice is that the American media does have a special responsibility in this crisis. Their sensationalistic, O.J.-Simpson-like coverage is not appropriate for today’s situation. That type of reporting could, indeed, threaten the nation’s security by provoking hysteria or hatred. The wall-to-wall coverage of Osama bin Laden is neither productive nor, after a certain saturation point, informative...
...hardly the most dignified aspect of human behavior, but spreading rumors and hoaxes and sowing conspiracy theories are common responses to calamity. When Hurricane Andrew hit Miami in 1992, there were tales of stockpiled bodies hidden by the government to prevent public hysteria. After the Challenger explosion, people swore they had seen crew members leave the space shuttle before takeoff. We are currently seized by the same phenomenon but of an unprecedented order of magnitude. "People are looking for certainty, and they don't care where they get it," says Gary Fine, a sociology professor at Northwestern University who specializes...