About Book

This book examines how waves of political hysteria and mass extremism have repeatedly shaped U.S. history, from the early anti-Masonic movement and the Red Scare to McCarthyism and the aftermath of 9/11. Andrew Burt argues that these episodes reveal a recurring cycle in which fear, conspiracy theories, and exaggerated threats destabilize democratic institutions. By contextualizing modern political extremism within this broader historical framework, the book offers critical insights into the roots of contemporary polarization and radicalization