Many of the same conspiracy theories that have surrounded the CoVid pandemic arose during other pandemics centuries ago, for example the elite were accused of introducing cholera to cull the lower classes, foreigners were blamed for spreading the Black Death by poisoning wells, and some suggested the ‘Spanish flu’ was created by the Russians as a weapon transmitted through electric lights. Combining both distant and close reading, they show what is new and what isn’t, and make a compelling argument that these conspiracy theories are often rooted in legitimate concerns and social anxieties. This book will appeal to anyone interested in conspiracy theories, misinformation, culture wars, social media and contemporary society.

This amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive book synthesizes the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Carl Von Clausewitz with the historical legacies of statesmen, warriors, seducers, and con men throughout the ages. Langdon is instantly into a clandestine world of Masonic secrets, hidden history, and never-before-seen locations - all of which seem to be dragging him toward a single, inconceivable truth. It quickly becomes clear that few, if any of us, are exempt from conspiracy thinking but while some theories are reasonably benign and have no or few mild consequences, others can risk the mental and physical well-being of their adherents, and pose a danger to society at large. What Shermer's book does is delve into the reasons why we are so ready to believe that, to borrow a phrase from perhaps the ultimate conspiracy theory work of culture, the X-Files: The Truth is Out There.

What he discovers is unimaginable: a deadly vendetta against the Catholic Church by a centuries-old underground organization -- the Illuminati. Purchase from Booktopia* *As an affiliate of Booktopia I may earn a small commission on your purchase at no additional cost to you. For many years he worked for an international consulting firm where his main job was to convince LDCs (less developed countries) around the world to accept multibillion-dollar loans for infrastructure projects and to see to it that most of this money ended up at Halliburton, Bechtel, Brown and Root, and other United States engineering and construction companies. Betrayed on all sides, she finds herself fighting not only for her country but for her life, and in the end, for the life of the man she loves.

Long a fringe part of the American political landscape, conspiracy theories are now mainstream: 147 members of Congress voted in favor of objections to the 2020 presidential election based on an unproven theory about a rigged electoral process promoted by the mysterious group QAnon. and time and time again, what he wrote transfixed me and transformed how I moved and acted in the world.

Michael Shermer (SANTA BARBARA, CA) is the publisher of Skeptic magazine, a Presidential Fellow at Chapman University, the host of the popular podcast The Michael Shermer Show, and the Skeptic Substack weekly columnist.