Catastrophe overload? Read philosophers and poetry instead of headlines

For almost two years now, Americans have been confronted daily by ominous tidings. We are living through stressful times. Reading the news feels awful; ignoring it doesn’t feel right either.

• Rachel Hadas
• The Conversation

Psychologist Terri Apter recently wrote about the “phenomenon in human behavior sometimes described as ‘the hive switch,’ where “catastrophic events eliminate selfishness, conflict and competitiveness, rendering humans as…

But if hurricanes, earthquakes or volcanoes trigger the hive switch, does this principle hold for man-made catastrophes?

What about the…

• Catastrophe overload…