When I hear the word witch-hunt, I immediately think of Salem in the 1690s. But this hysteria wasn't confined to the North American English colonies. Europe experienced similar episodes of fear and paranoia.

It's easy to view those sinking into the mire of fear, manipulation, and conjecture with derision. After all, authorities in Salem arrested a five-year-old girl named Dorothy Good for witchcraft. Can you imagine the tweets if that happened today?

Try to fight the impulse to judge (or judge quietly). A variety of factors went into these witch hunts. 

And in case you were wondering, Dorothy Good was released without trial or punishment.