Attacking a Tiger: Emotional Plague Roars in Woods Scandal

I have been waiting for a particularly good, widely publicized, example of the emotional plague to begin writing in earnest on the subject. The ongoing events involving professional golfer and fallen media darling Tiger Woods furnishes many components of the plague, making it ideal for introducing this important topic.

The emotional plague may be Wilhelm Reich’s least emphasized and most misunderstood discovery. However, I hold it ranks (next to the discovery of orgone energy itself) as his most important. I say this because the plague permeates every aspect of armored human society and seeks out and destroys healthy ways of living. However, although the plague is ubiquitous, not every aspect of armored man’s conduct is driven by it. The plague is a very specific kind of damaged human functioning that, like the energy itself, can be identified and understood in a scientific way.


The complexity of the emotional plague cannot be overemphasized. No other subject in all of orgonomy can compare. The question I have been wrestling with is how to address the plague both fully and in a way that will be readily grasped by those with differing levels of experience with Reich’s ideas. The blog format isn’t really appropriate to address such an involved topic, and I am developing a complete course on the emotional plague that will eventually be offered on The Wilhelm Reich Center site, located at http://thewilhelmreichcenter.com.

Rather than approaching the plague in a textbook-like fashion, using a formal tone and presenting a plethora of orgonomic terms, definitions, and political analyses, the course will illustrate the plague largely through a series of vignettes. These will be relatively brief, graphic descriptions of accounts and episodes that will reveal the plague’s many faces. My goal is to help people of all backgrounds to recognize, understand, and most importantly, deal with the plague, especially when it effects their own lives. Nevertheless, I won’t ever entirely avoid the subject of the emotional plague on my blog, and today examine the Tiger Woods scandal.

Those watching the news over the past weeks could not have missed reports on Mr. Woods. Here are the facts briefly: In the early morning hours of November 27, Mr. Woods drove out of his Florida home, plowed into the hedges, jumped a curb, and smashed into a fire hydrant and then a neighbor’s tree. When police arrived, Mr. Woods was on the ground outside of his SUV. He was rushed to the hospital where he was treated and released. His wife told authorities she had used a golf club to break windows to free him. Highway patrol investigators attempted to interview him but he refused and was ultimately cited with careless driving and paid a small fine.

Instantly, the media was all over the story. There was much speculation as to what had really happened. The tabloid papers said the crash was the result of a quarrel between Mr. Woods and his beautiful young wife because of his extramarital affairs. Indeed, in days that followed the media began reporting on a number of alleged mistresses now coming forward, claiming they’ve had sexual relations with Mr. Woods. The gossip continues and the reports seem to worsen every day.

The emotional plague manifests in countless ways and under the most varied circumstances. The Tiger Woods incident is just one example of an emotional plague attack. My analysis of the assault on Mr. Woods follows, using a method I have devised for dissecting the plague.

In an emotional plague attack there are three key players. These are what I call (1) the target, (2) the direct attacker and (3) the self-righteous followers. The target is typically a single individual, well-defined group, institution, or idea that is the subject or focus of the attack. The direct attacker is the instigator of the attack. The self-righteous followers are two people, or two million, who get caught up in the excitement of the attack and join with the direct attacker, and each other, against the target.

Every emotional plague attack is unique. For this reason the target, direct attacker and self-righteous followers, while present without fail, will always be different. In a plague attack, there may be more than one way to accurately identify the players. For the purpose of analyzing the Tiger Woods incident in this blog, I have chosen to identify the players as follows:

Target:                             Tiger Woods

Direct attacker:                 The Media

Self-righteous followers:     The Public 

Here I have chosen to assign the role of direct attacker to the media as a whole. In other emotional plague attacks, the role of direct attacker can often be assigned to a specific individual. The self-righteous followers in this case are members of the general public who follow the lead of the media, and join in with the media and each other against the Mr. Woods. Included in this group is anyone who is listening with excitement and “genuine concern” to the gossip the media reports. They have become excited by the attacker and feel closely allied with others who have an interest in the scandal.

The direct attacker and followers always believe their opinions and actions are justified. A self-righteous, holier-than-thou feeling is always present in them when they join to tear down and attempt to destroy the target. They feel themselves to be morally superior, and from this elevated position they delight in watching the downfall of one who has been been held in such high esteem. (Note that the self-righteous followers have become infected by the attacker, and each other, hence Reich’s choice of the term “plague.”) The relationship between the direct attacker and the self-righteous followers (and among them) gives the emotional plague its conspiratorial aspect.

Now that the players have been identified, let’s move on to some of the more typical characteristics of an emotional plague attack, and how the Tiger Woods situation illustrates them. One hallmark of a plague attack is that the target, in some way or ways, represents natural, healthy functioning. Here, the target is a handsome and sexually attractive, hardworking, extremely wealthy and enormously successful individual with a beautiful wife. Mr. Woods can be said to be close to representing the American dream, as he embodies a great deal of what is esteemed and valued. However, the target of an emotional plague attack need not have so many admired qualities. Indeed, individuals who become the target of a plague attack will have flaws. It is these flaws that are seized upon to justify and legitimize the attack. That is, the direct attacker and self-righteous followers are correct that there is an imperfection or fault in the target, and it is this "partly right" element that legitimizes the assault.  Mr. Woods’ many outstanding, esteemed qualities have now been overshadowed by his “bad character.” The superior, morally righteous followers can now, with “good” reason, minimize or turn a blind eye to the whole of his tremendous achievements that should continue to be a cause for holding him in high regard.

What’s behind this radical shift in perception and the turning against Mr. Woods? The answer lies in two elements of the emotional plague that are always present: intense longing and hatred. Natural functioning (especially sexual functioning) arouses longing in armored man. The perpetrators of a plague attack immediately and unconsciously feel envy and then hatred. The feeling of enmity, fueled as it is by intense longing and jealousy, can be tremendous, driving the self-righteous relentlessly forward to destroy their victim.

To summarize, further elements in this emotional plague attack are as follows:

Healthy functions being targeted: Sexuality, professional accomplishment, and success.

Stated (legitimizing) reason for the attack: Public deserves the right to know. It's wrong to have affairs.      

Real reason for attack: Jealous hatred for what Woods is, a superstar and pubic darling.      

Partly right element: He has had affairs, behavior that can be destructive in a marriage.  

Most of the essential elements are in place for a full scale emotional plague attack against Tiger Woods and they are being played out before us. Whether Mr. Woods will be destroyed or merely very damaged as a result remains to be seen.