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By: Cristian Karagiorgos

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Step 1: Take advantage of the public’s fear

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Step 1: Take advantage of the public’s fear

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Following the victory of WW2, Americans were faced with the Red Scare, the fear that communism was present in the US. Government officials went under loyalty review programs, and the fear of communism struck into the hearts of the people. Also, China had recently fallen to communism, and the thought that the US was losing the Cold War was prevalent in society. Taking advantage of the public’s fear, little known senator Joseph McCarthy saw this as the perfect time to gain political power. If you want to start a communist witch-hunt, the first thing you need to do is strike at a time of chaos and panic.

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Step 2: Make an accusation in front of a large audience

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Step 2: Make an accusation in front of a large audience

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In a speech to women in West Virginia, senator Joseph McCarthy said that he had a list of 205 government officials that were involved with communism. This claim caught the attention of the press, and McCarthy now had the public’s attention. His word got out, and eventually he and his claims were known nationwide. To start your witch-hunt, grab the attention of the press by announcing your accusations in public. As the nation will be in panic, your claims will be heard and the scared people will come to you without hesitation.

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Step 3: Rise from your popularity and gain power

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Step 3: Rise from your popularity and gain power

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In 1953, McCarthy became chairman of the Senate subcommittee on investigations, which forced government officials to testify about their alleged communist affiliations. His investigations became witch-hunts, with him searching for disloyalty based on fears and weak evidence.
With this new power, accusing government officials became much easier. It is essential that you achieve higher power in your witch-hunt to gain credibility and popularity, as well as making it easier for yourself to keep accusing people. If you keep making your claims at a lower level, you might not have the power to assure the public that you are telling the truth.

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Step 4: Make sure that you dont lose trust

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Step 4: Make sure that you dont lose trust

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McCarthy’s tactics consisted of harshly accusing his victims, and then refusing to accept their answers, something that made people feel very suspicious. In 1954, McCarthy began to look for soviet spies in the US Army. He questioned and bullied the officers, accusing them of misconduct and harassing them about details. His popular support began to fade. When you are accusing your targets of communism, make sure that you keep your tactics believable and focus on maintaining the fear you caused. If not, you will eventually lose trust and popularity like McCarthy did.

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Step 5: Dont allow the build-up of doubts to end your witch-hunt

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Step 5: Dont allow the build-up of doubts to end your witch-hunt

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At his final attempt to strike back at the Army’s lawyer, Joseph Welch, McCarthy brought up the past of one of the workers at his firm who had connections with the communist party during law school. Welch, who had enough, exploded at McCarthy for possibly ruining the man’s career. Spectators cheered, as Welch had said what many Americans were thinking. McCarthy was then censured by the government and died 3 years later in 1957. The flaw in McCarthy’s witch-hunt was that his methods and tactics built up suspicion and doubt, and pushing his accusations too far caused his fall. To avoid this, make sure your methods of accusing dont allow suspicion to grow, and avoid taking it too far. By following this step by step instruction on how to start a communist witch-hunt, your goals will be met, as long as you avoid doing what McCarthy eventually fell to.