Last week was kind of lousy. The Patriots lost the Super Bowl, and then I came down with a horrible plague. Both events caused me to look for scapegoats. Which isn't unusual: When bad things happen, people often look for scapegoats. The question is: Why?

Over in my weekly column at the DG, I ponder this question. 

Here's an excerpt:

"I came down with a nasty little plague this week, and I immediately went looking for someone to blame.

Who was responsible for my sickness? Where had it come from? How did I get it?

As usual, Facebook offered some clues.

When I glanced at the site on Monday evening, I noticed that my cousin was complaining about having a stomach bug. I had seen her two days earlier at a family gathering. But I didn’t blame my cousin. I blamed her 1-year-old daughter. Little kids are germ magnets, and it seemed highly probable that the lone child at Saturday’s party was the culprit.

Being sick makes me sad, and throughout the week I was often struck by pangs of sorrow. But when I wasn’t feeling sorrowful, I felt angry. And in my angrier moments, I wished there was someone I could lash out at. A 1-year-old child was not a suitable target.

Then my dad informed me that my entire family had gotten sick after Saturday’s get-together, except for my youngest sister, Lesley, who had been sick prior to the event. 'So this is Lesley’s fault?' I asked. For some reason, I found it strangely satisfying to blame Lesley for the plague.

Is it normal to look for a scapegoat when you’re sick?"

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