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Author Bio
After graduating from college in 1979, Daniel Martin stuck his thumb out on Interstate 94 in St. Paul, Minnesota, hitchhiking east. He returned a year later, still hitchhiking east. While on that journey around the world, he read Charles Mackay's "Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds," first published in 1841.
Mackay wrote about the tulip bulb mania and the poor sailor who mistook a priceless bulb for an onion and ate it for breakfast. He wrote about alchemy, which was practiced with all seriousness by great thinkers of the time like Thomas Aquinas and Roger Bacon. He wrote about the Crusaders who raped and pillaged their way to Jerusalem in order to save their souls. He wrote about witch burning, a popular delusion that at its peak killed more than five hundred women annually in England alone.
Daniel Martin was captivated by how relevant and relatable this history remained nearly two centuries later. Seventeenth-century tulip bulb markets bear a striking resemblance to today's cryptocurrency exchanges. Magnetizers and hypnotists still ply the back alleys of alternative medicine as they did two hundred years ago, but now they are accompanied by homeopaths, acupuncturists, and energy healers. Even in modern times, people still die from religious delusions like suicide bombing, Jonestown, and the Kenya Starvation Cult.
The idea of a sequel to Mackay's work percolated in the deep recesses of Daniel Martin’s brain for more than forty years and is finally now in print. The work includes volumes on Health Delusions, Financial Delusions, and Political, Cultural, and Religious Delusions.
Reading Mackay’s original work is not a prerequisite, and chapters may be read in any order. So pick your favorite delusion and enjoy!
Table of Contents
Volume 1 – Your Life (Health and Wellness Delusions)
The Anti-Vaccine Movement
Alternative Medicine
Chiropractic
Homeopathy
Naturopathy
Acupuncture
Essential Oils
Dietary Supplements
Detox Schemes
Cupping
Ear Candling
Reiki
Alternative Medicine for Pets
Fad Diets
Biodynamics
Monsanto and the GMO Delusion
Volume 2 – Your Money (Financial Delusions)
Dot-Com Bubble
U.S. Housing Bubble and Global Financial Crisis (2007-08)
Ghost Cities – The Chinese Housing Bubble
Cryptocurrency – The Reexamination of Money
The Bernie Madoff Ponzi Scheme
Whole Lotto Delusion
Multi-Level Marketing
Timeshares
Volume 3 – Your Soul (Cultural, Religious, and Political Delusions)
Cultural Delusions
Conspiracy Theories – An Overview
The Mother of all Conspiracy Theories
The Sovereign Citizen Movement
Holocaust Denial
Unidentified Flying Objects
Flat Earth
HIV/AIDS Denialism
Climate Change Denialism
Coronavirus Conspiracy Theories
Year 2000 Bug (Y2K)
Nessie, Bigfoot, and the Abominable Snowman
Chemtrails
The Birther Movement
Psychic Services
Alex Jones and the Sandy Hook School Shooting
Catfishing
Conspiracy Theory Satire - Birds Aren’t Real
Religious Delusions
Mainstream Religion
Televangelism
Faith Healing
Serpent Handling
Catholic Priest Sex Abuse Cover-up
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Jehovah’s Witnesses
Church of Eckankar
Dianetics and the Church of Scientology
The Unification Church (Moonies)
End Times – The Mayan Apocalypse
End Times – Heaven’s Gate and the Hale-Bopp Comet
Jim Jones and the Jonestown Massacre
Kenya Starvation Cult
Lighthouse Cult
Branch Davidians
Falun Gong
Intelligent Design and the Flying Spaghetti Monster
Political Delusions
QAnon, Proud Boys, January 6 and the Trump Delusion
Dominion Voting Machines
Suicide Bombing
The Kim Dynasty of North Korea
Albania – The Hermit Kingdom
The Communist Delusion
Epilogue
Notes and Sources
Buy the Book
eBook ($7.95) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DB5VWHX1
Paperback ($11.95) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DB5WJXTZ
Large Print ($18.95) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D9YMMDBF
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by Daniel Martin
Discover the captivating world of "Extraordinary Popular Delusions of Our Times" - a thought-provoking exploration of the delusions and misconceptions that shape our modern world. Dive into the author's insightful analysis and uncover the hidden truths behind the extraordinary beliefs that have taken hold in our society.