ostrichism

1. (derogatory) A policy of burying one's head in the sand, that is, ignoring the reality of a situation.Examples: "[Torpey] had, upon the principles of ostrichism, sewn up a valuable diamond in the waistband of his trousers, which he fondly intended for his fond and loving wife; and accomplice in his crimes; […]"; "First let us have no ostrichism in our preparations against an invasion of this island. There are still some who scorn the idea. Can [Adolf] Hitler succeed where Napoleon failed? No, they say, the Channel is impregnable. We would do better to prepare for the worst."; "[…] Greece was truly 'in a league of its own', with its combination of persistent fiscal imbalances and protracted losses of competitiveness. At the bottom of this was a peculiar form of ostrichism, an ostrich-like behaviour, eagerly adopted by Greek policy makers; in fact, they buried their heads in the ground, almost uninterrupted, until well into 2009. Routine deviation from targets, over-optimistic assessment of planned procedures and missed timetables quickly came to define the Greek approach to its obligations under the Stability and Growth Pact."derogatoryuncountable