Watching the msnbc documentary Witch Hunt about the 1984 roundup and wrongful conviction of several Bakersfield couples as child molesters and it just reminds me how easily people are persuaded to do or believe the craziest things in the name of ‘good’ or ‘justice’ or ‘truth.’
It’s good to be aware of just how vulnerable we are to mob mentality when fear is based on the threat to our children, our society, ourselves. I remember this when it happened and the later-to-come satanic allegations. With experience, you come to read anything with a healthy dose of skepticism. There are flawed people out there too, and always will be; those who believe that torturing children with threats that result in convicting their parents of false crimes is an okay thing to do. Innocent people were emotionally tortured by a well-meaning society and it’s not something that can never happen again. People weren’t dumber back in 1984 than they are now, science and technology is always new and different, but the rest of man’s realm of knowledge has changed very little; two and two still equals four, and the purpose of a semicolon is the same, carrots are still orange and celery is green.
People can still be made to believe anything. Scary, huh?
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology
It is scary to think how easily we’re persuaded if we just see something in the news enough. I think I remember that story in the news. But it was also a period in which I pretty much ignored the news, for one reason or another. Maybe I was better off.