veganerd wrote:
Ive visited the sites. Fascinating history there. People sure can get nutty when they stray from an evidence based system of belief and or justice.
I listened to a lecture series on the witch phenomenon a few years ago. It was really good, not sure if it was one of the Great Courses or on Coursera or somewhere else. Anyway, IIRC Salem was odd because it was very late in the phenomenon, one of the last instances and it involved mostly young people. In Europe typically it was the old village hag, hence the stereotype, who was accused of being a witch. It was usually an old woman who lacked family connections yet owned property that was accused, i.e. someone who had something others wanted and little recourse for support. Which in some ways makes the whole phenomenon somewhat more rational if not even more evil.