Isabeau
Merdeuse
- Joined
- Sep 20, 2018
- Messages
- 7,480
- Location
- Montréal
Well, that was a fun and interesting read.
While it was probably a thing, I don't think it's ever been proven. I don't recall any documentation ever being produced, besides the testimony of ... Smedley, I think.Here in the U.S., as we presently try to foil the ongoing efforts of Fascist Billionaires to overtake our governenment, let's remember that overly rich businesspeople are, historically, inimical to democracy.
Why is so little known about the 1930s coup attempt against FDR? | Sally Denton | The Guardian
Between 1400 and 1775, a significant upsurge of witch trials swept across early-modern Europe, resulting in the execution of an estimated 40,000–60,000 accused witches. Historians and social scientists have long studied this period in hopes of learning more about how large-scale social changes occur. Some have pointed to the invention of the printing press and the publication of witch-hunting manuals—most notably the highly influential Malleus maleficarum—as a major factor, making it easier for the witch-hunting hysteria to spread across the continent.
The abrupt emergence of the craze and its rapid spread, resulting in a pronounced shift in social behaviors—namely, the often brutal persecution of suspected witches—is consistent with a theory of social change dubbed "ideational diffusion," according to a new paper published in the journal Theory and Society. There is the introduction of new ideas, reinforced by social networks, that eventually take root and lead to widespread behavioral changes in a society.
Makes sense. We're seeing the same damaging effect with the introduction of social media. People can share bad ideas that much more quickly, building momentum. "FEMA will take your land" is not a conspiracy that would have gotten much traction in the days before the internet.Wait, what? The invention of the printing press helped bring on the witch-hunting craze?
Oh yes. It was just the first iteration of an over-familiar pattern of foaming-at-the-mouth populists seizing the means of media production. Well, 2nd, rather, with the first being the pulpit as any Jew can readily attest. The printing press was also quite pivotal during the Wars of Reformation by raising the temperature to a fevered pitch on both sides. Nasty piece of work, there.Wait, what? The invention of the printing press helped bring on the witch-hunting craze?
How the Malleus maleficarum fueled the witch trial craze
Invention of printing press, influence of nearby cities created perfect conditions for social contagion.arstechnica.com