From The Great New England Vampire Panic:
Though scholars today still struggle to explain the vampire panics, a key detail unites them: The public hysteria almost invariably occurred in the midst of savage tuberculosis outbreaks….
“People find themselves in dire situations, where there’s no recourse through regular channels,” [Rhode Island folklorist Michael Bell] explains. “The folk system offers an alternative, a choice.” Sometimes, superstitions represent the only hope, he says.
Democrats and Never-Trump Republicans argue that Donald Trump’s potential return to the presidency poses a dire threat to American democracy. Some advocate drastic measures to prevent it, but true democracy demands nonviolent persuasion, even in the face of fear and uncertainty.
“You don’t stop being a fascist because you don’t get everything you want in your first term because you’re surrounded by people who aren’t fascists. They’re right-wing Republicans, they’re craven, but they’re not going along with fascism. You don’t get to do full fascism until you’re surrounded by fascists.”