I recall reading in Paul Johnson's
"History of the American People" about an incident in mid-17th century Maryland about a woman who was accused of witchcraft following an especially destructive storm. She was blamed for the storm, thrown out to sea and drowned.
Historian Mary Beth Norton in OAH magazine (July 2003) writes:
Quote:
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Originally Posted by OAH
Prior to the invention of weather satellites, for instance, hurricanes or other destructive
storms could appear from nowhere and disappear just as quickly. Before germs and viruses were identified, children, adults, and valuable farm animals could quickly sicken and die for no apparent reason. Under such circumstances, the putative actions of a malevolent witch could supply seemingly logical reasons for
someone's misfortunes.
Consequently, a person enduring "strange" losses or illnesses (the word "strange" was frequently employed in such cases) would search his or her memory for past clashes with a possible witch and then identify the malicious enemy responsible for the afflictions.
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How much have things really changed 400 years later, when we interpret our storms not in terms of the supernatural, but in terms of politics? How many threads do we have already linking the storm to politics? Need I add that it is mostly coming from the left side of the aisle?
plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose....
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