Our digital age has brought many benefits. Lately, though, I’ve noticed how it’s enabled the spread of a persistent malady.

Call it the digital-era version of “spaniel selective hearing.”

Sometimes it’s willful ignorance. Other times it’s just denial. Either way, it’s intellectual evasion wrapped in self-satisfaction.

In her book ” The Invaders ,” paleoanthropologist Pat Shipman explains that modern humans and dogs have been partners for 40,000 years. Over time, we developed specific dog breeds optimized for various jobs like herding, protection, and hunting. Once firearms became common, even ordinary people could hunt waterfowl. So we developed spaniels with excellent noses, all-day energy, non-territorial instincts, and a gentle, cooperative temperament.

The latter qualities were e

See Full Page