Confronts imagined conspiracies and social panic attacks including millennial terror in the 10th century, the Great Fear of the 18th century and today's fear of the apocalypse in various forms. This is a laundry list of fears through the centuries, reasons they materialised, how they have affected society and an explanation of how baseless they really are or were. A critique of conspiracy theories, of ill-considered panic, then and now, including Cockburn's own controversial views on global warming.