Voodoo Histories. How Conspiracy Theory Has Shaped Modern History

Our age is obsessed by the idea of conspiracy. We see it everywhere - from Pearl Harbor to 9/11, from the assassination of John F. Kennedy to the death of Princess Diana. In this age of terrorism, the idea of conspiracy can fuel radical or fringe elements to violence. The author, a journalist, sees a pattern among these inflammatory theories. They use similarly murky methods to insinuate their claims: they link themselves to the supposed conspiracies of the past; they carefully manipulate their evidence, to hide its holes; they rely on the authority of dubious academic sources. Most important, they elevate their believers to an elite, a group of people able to see beyond lies to a higher reality. In this book, the author carefully probes and explodes a dozen of the major conspiracy theories. He examines why people believe them, and makes an argument for a true skepticism: one based on a thorough knowledge of history and a strong dose of common sense--From publisher description.