The article talks about "the values and ­structures and injustices," but I think what's really behind the author's sentiment is, to put it in Judeo-Christian terms, man being driven from the Garden of Eden. I say this because, as the author notes, "demonic possession" has been around for a long time. Call it what you will, but it's found across cultures and across time. I think what he's talking about is fundamentally human.

In the past, and to put things in more secular terms, I've made two jokes on the subject. The first is: Evolution operates as if the work is being done by government contractors chosen because they've put in the lowest bid. The second is: Our brains are wired like the lights in a Christmas tree.

So, imagine Christmas tree lights being strung up by government contractors!

What I'm getting at is that we don't have the "luxury" of the animals, who simply go about their lives more or less moment by moment, dealing with the immediate. We're self-aware, socially aware, and most importantly temporally aware. Because of these things, we have conquered the world. The downside is that's all work done by the lowest bid has allowed for. Our brains work according to spec — and nothing more. Now and then, some of us simply crack from the strain. That's the bug.

What I'm saying is that to think hysteria — or, again, whatever you want to call it — isn't real is simple hubris. All of human history makes mention of it.