Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
February 16, 2025

Could the Salem Witch Trials have been prevented?

If you still do not realize the power of communication, consider the Salem Witch Trials.

One person had the power to stop the trials all along. How do we know? Because Governor Phips ended them after his wife was accused. We do not know if he suddenly opened his eyes regarding what he allowed or if the lies were so out of control that accusations were made against his wife. The allegations struck people from all over the colony, with a population of over 44,000 in Massachusetts. The population of Salem Village was only 400, from where the heinous plague of lies spawned.

The original accusation began there but did not end there. Courageous individuals tried to speak out against the liars but discovered they had no power when they became targets. They could not encourage others to take a stand with them. That brings us back to two individuals who did possess the ability.

It began with two girls in Reverend Samuel Parris's household pointing their lying fingers at others. What if Parris lived what he preached and honored the commandment about bearing false witness instead of using the attention the girls were receiving for himself?

Before Parris, there was Reverend George Burroughs. Long before the trials began, he was sent to the village in 1680. He tried to preach to parishioners to follow what Jesus taught about loving their neighbors. Tragic events of his wife Hannah dying after the birth of their fourth child, followed by the hardships his family suffered from not being paid, he was too beaten down to remain in Salem. He left Salem Village behind him in 1683. 

Samuel Parris was part of the group that forced Reverend Burroughs to be brought back to Salem Village to face charges of witchcraft in 1692. He was among the nineteen who were hung on Proctor's Ledge.

What if he did not give up? What if he noticed how many people in his congregation listened to and acted upon his sermons? Would they have realized how much power they had to do the right thing collectively? Sixty-two people collectively had the power to charge 300 because they claimed to be afflicted by them. They were locked up in dungeons and tortured, and twenty among them were murdered. What if the rest of the 44,000 joined together to take a stand?

What does what happened in Salem have to do with PTSD? Imagine being one of the accused and held in the dungeon, being tortured and fearing you may be the next to die for lies. Imagine finally being released and seeing those who falsely accused you. Imagine looking at others in your community, knowing they did nothing to spare you or others. Imagine being one of the family members who endured the trauma of their family member being executed or those who were being held in the dungeons. Then, imagine having to find the money to pay for the use of those dungeons and the shackles before they could be released.

The devil gave the accusers and judges the power to cause the carnage. The good people were too afraid to speak. After the trials ended and hardships continued, the leaders found something else to blame it on. They blamed God's wrath and called for a day of fasting and prayers to ask Him to forgive them. There always had to be someone to blame, but they never blamed themselves. Samuel Parris was forced out of his job, but he never really apologized for what he started. He simply claimed, "I may have been mistaken."

How is your spiritual health with PTSD

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
February 9, 2025

Some things are too ridiculous to respond to. Others are too dangerous to ignore.

Today's topic is religion vs. spirituality. If you think what is happening today is unique, it is a good time to remind you of another time. After all, religion was used as a weapon against anyone who did not "believe" the same as those in power. It has been used to control the people. It has been used and abused throughout history. The word itself has often been defined differently.

Britannica definition of religion

religion, human beings’ relation to that which they regard as holy, sacred, absolute, spiritual, divine, or worthy of especial reverence.

If you noticed the word "especial," you may have considered it a typo. But it isn't.

directed toward a particular individual, group, or end
sent especial greetings to his son
took especial care to speak clearly
of special note or importance : unusually great or significant
a decision of especial relevance.

Oxford defines religion as

a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices

Merriam-Webster's definition of religion

a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices
the service and worship of God or the supernatural
commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance
the state of a religious
a nun in her 20th year of religion
a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith

Oxford defines religion as

the belief in and worship of a superhuman power or powers, especially a God or gods.
a particular system of faith and worship.
plural noun: religions
"the world's great religions"
a pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance.

There are many different religions worldwide.

According to Learn Religions, there are over 4,000 different religions worldwide, and 85% of the population belongs to them.

The English word “religion” originates from the Latin term religio, which has a variety of definitions, including “to bind” and “awe or fear of a god or spirit.” Most, but not all, religions include belief in and worship of God, a god, gods, or spirits. Nearly all acknowledge a supernatural realm.

Nearly all acknowledge that a supernatural realm is far different from the "religion" they claim as their own. Being "religious" demands we submit to the rules of the group we choose to belong to. Being spiritual allows us to make choices based on our spirits, which are in direct contact with God, our creator, or our higher power.

Pew has a great article on spiritual people, with most adults in the United States considering themselves spiritual.

In recent decades, Americans have become less likely to identify with an organized religion. Yet a new Pew Research Center survey shows that belief in spirits or a spiritual realm beyond this world is widespread, even among those who don’t consider themselves religious. The survey finds that:
83% of all U.S. adults believe people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body.
81% say there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it.
74% say there are some things that science cannot possibly explain.
45% say they have had a sudden feeling of connection with something from beyond this world.
38% say they have had a strong feeling that someone who has passed away was communicating with them from beyond this world.
30% say they have personally encountered a spirit or unseen spiritual force.

Overall, 70% of U.S. adults can be considered “spiritual” in some way, because they think of themselves as spiritual people or say spirituality is very important in their lives.

As for church attendance, Gallop took a look at that last year.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As Americans observe Ramadan and prepare to celebrate Easter and Passover, the percentage of adults who report regularly attending religious services remains low. Three in 10 Americans say they attend religious services every week (21%) or almost every week (9%), while 11% report attending about once a month and 56% seldom (25%) or never (31%) attend.

Whichever one you choose to be, religion divides us, yet spirituality unifies us with others.

What Is Spirituality? on Taking Charge of Your Emotional Wellbeing has the following.

Experts’ definitions of spirituality

Christina Puchalski, MD, Director of the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health, contends that "spirituality is the aspect of humanity that refers to the way individuals seek and express meaning and purpose and the way they experience their connectedness to the moment, to self, to others, to nature, and to the significant or sacred."

According to Mario Beauregard and Denyse O’Leary, researchers and authors of The Spiritual Brain, “spirituality means any experience that is thought to bring the experiencer into contact with the divine (in other words, not just any experience that feels meaningful).”

Nurses Ruth Beckmann Murray and Judith Proctor Zenter write that “the spiritual dimension tries to be in harmony with the universe, and strives for answers about the infinite, and comes into focus when the person faces emotional stress, physical illness, or death.”

Spirituality is about us, all of us. It is not about "us" against "them." It is about contributing to others and not attempting to control them. It is not what the Puritans did in Salem Village (currently called Danvers) and Salem Town. It is not about false accusations spreading throughout Massachusetts. It is not about what they did to the twenty innocent people they murdered or those they tortured. It is not about any of the atrocities committed by those using their religion to accomplish such evil acts.

When the accusations started, maybe people thought the claims were too ridiculous to respond to. Most of us would have seen them for what they were. When they ignored what was happening, it became too dangerous to ignore. But it was too late. The accusers and judges attacked anyone challenging them.

The Devil was active in Massachusetts, but he was in control over the lying accusers and judges pushing to spread terror while using their religion to blame it on.

Imagine how many ended up with what we call #PTSD from all of that. Imagine how many could no longer enter the church doors after being subjected to what was allowed.

Even today, there are many of us no longer feel we belong to "religions" even though we believe in God, and most of us believe Jesus was/is the Son Of God. When you have PTSD, addressing your spiritual needs is just as important as seeking help for your mental and physical health.

The great news is that you don't need an appointment to receive spiritual help, and you don't need exercise equipment or a gym membership. You can do it whenever and wherever you want. There are no rules. There are no limits. All you have to do is pray or meditate on what you believe and grow it. No other person has control over your choice. There are no rules set down by elders or authorities. Best of all, no one will judge you other than yourself.

No matter what caused PTSD to invade your spirit, seek the ability to heal according to what you need, not what someone you know needs. There is nothing wrong with joining the religious group you want or not belonging to any of them. You have the power to choose as much as you have the power to heal. 

The plot began to crumble when people complained

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
February 5, 2025

Don't dwell on how it happened; focus instead on how it could happen again.

After a group was caught doing something wrong, they lied and accused others. Influential people saw an opportunity to use the group. They supported outrageous claims made because of the opportunity they saw to seek more power and control over the people. It worked when they accused marginalized members of society because they were easy targets.

It worked so well that they accused business rivals and others they simply had a grudge against.

The plot began to crumble when people complained. Those who dared to take a stand were accused. It wasn't that anyone believed them guilty. They were being used as an example to anyone contemplating stepping out of line. It became a matter of "them against us." 

No matter how many or how hard they tried to stop the insanity, it became clear that the accusers were willing to go after entire families.

They had rich and powerful people supporting them. The fate of the accused was sealed. 

The original small group of accusers gave others permission to attack others. They were empowered to accuse their enemies. It spread beyond control. 

It may all seem like the topic is about what is happening today. Still, it happened in 1692 when accusations caused the murder of twenty innocent people, another five died while being held in four different dungeons, and countless others carried their horrific confinements for the rest of their lives. Back then, there were no laws against torture. No one lied under oath because no one had to swear to God they would tell the truth. No laws existed to prevent torture, and all too often, children had been tortured.

There were no laws against double jeopardy. One was found not guilty, and the other saw her trial end. However, the judges didn't like the outcomes, so they tried again. 

Rebecca Nurse and her sister Mary Easty. Truth meant nothing.

Perhaps due to pressure from community around Easty, all of the accusers, except Mercy Lewis, began to back off their claims and Easty was released from jail on May 18.

The details of what happened next provide undeniable clues about the power of the accusers and the impossibility of conducting a fair juridical process. After Easty's release, Mercy Lewis fell into violent fits and appeared to be approaching death. Mercy Lewis later explained that Easty was tormenting her, and "said [Easty] would kill [Lewis] before midnight because she did not cleare hir so as the Rest did." (Salem Witchcraft Papers, I: 124) Mary Walcott, Abigail Williams and Ann Putnam were brought to her bedside in an effort to discover who was tormenting Mercy. Along the path to the Mercy's house, Ann and Abigail explained that they saw Easty's specter tormenting Mercy, strongly suggesting a collaboration effort had already taken place before Mercy began her torments. Frances Hill in A Delusion of Satan calls this episode a propaganda scheme to show doubting Villagers the dire consequences of freeing witches from jail. Mercy and four others cried out against Easty on May 20. Mercy's fits did not cease until Easty was back in prison in irons demonstrating the effective power of the accusers.

While Easty remained in jail awaiting her September 9 trial, she and her sister, Sarah Cloyce, composed a petition to the magistrates in which they asked, in essence, for a fair trial. They complained that they were "neither able to plead our owne cause, nor is councell allowed." They suggested that the judges ought to serve as their counsel and that they be allowed persons to testify on their behalf. Easty hoped her good reputation in Topsfield and the words of her minister might aid her case in Salem, a town of strangers. Lastly, the sisters asked that the testimony of accusers and other "witches" be dismissed considering it was predominantly spectral evidence that lacked legality. (Salem Witchcraft Papers, I: 303) The sisters hoped that the judges would be forced to weigh solid character testimony against ambiguous spectral evidence. The petition did not change the outcome of Easty's trial, for she was condemned to hang on September 17th. But together with her second petition, Easty had forced the court to consider its flaws.

It did not spare her life.

Easty was hanged on September 22, 1692. Her demeanor at Gallows Hill is documented by Calef: "when she took her last farewell of her husband, children and friends, was, as is reported by them present, as serious, religious, distinct, and affectionate as could well be exprest, drawing tears from the eyes of almost all present." Easty challenged the court to no personal avail, but she exposed the weakness of the court for the benefit of others.

Sister Rebecca Nurse was found not guilty.

Rebecca Nurse’s grand jury trial was underway by June 29. Sarah Good, Susannah Martin, Elizabeth Howe, and Sarah Wildes were tried at the same time. In the courtroom, Nurse’s daughter Sarah witnessed Goody Bibber deliberately stick her own knees with pins, pretending to be afflicted.

But that wasn't enough,

Nurse was found not guilty. The afflicted in the room reacted wildly. The outburst was enough to concern the magistrates and jury foreman. In particular, Chief Justice William Stoughton was not satisfied with the verdict.

A third sister, Sarah Cloyce, was also accused but was eventually released after being held for nine months, and the trials stopped.

Cloyce would eventually be transported to Boston jail and then Ipswich jail where she awaited her trial. By the third week of April, her sister Mary Easty was also arrested for witchcraft. Rebecca Nurse was hanged on July 19. Mary Easty was hanged on September 22, the last day of executions.

Most find it hard to believe that those behind the retched events were not just allowed to live out their days freely, but most were rewarded. Outwardly, they carried no shame, but Judge Hawthorne's great-grandson Nathaniel wrote that the trials stained the Judge's soul with blood. 

As for Salem Village, where it all began, you won't find it on a map. It no longer exists. They changed it to Danvers.

Michael Fanone, the modern day John Willard

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 22, 2025

Michael Fanone could be the modern-day John Willard.

Would the victims of the Salem Witch Trials have carried what we now call #PTSD? Absolutely! We know this because of what happened to Dorothy Good, who was forced to not only confess to witchcraft but accuse her mother, Sarah, of being a witch. She was only four when it happened and left the dungeon condemned to suffer for what was done to her.

There are modern-day victims of horrors who will never be the same. Never to be able to trust others in their own communities. Michael Fanone is one of them. What Mike Fanone Can’t Forget from TIME on August 5, 2021, tells his story.

Fanone—40, nearly broke, living with his mother, seeing ghosts, unable to return to duty in the only job he’d ever loved, possibly forever—had seen the footage a hundred times. But this was the first time he’d viewed it with other people, watched them witness what he lived through, see it through his eyes, feel his aggression, his valor, his abject terror. He sat there crying for a good 20 minutes. At some point he looked up and realized he was surrounded: everyone in the bar had come inside from the patio and gathered around him, watching the footage on the screen.

The months since Jan. 6 had not been easy for Fanone. Still recuperating from life-threatening injuries and posttraumatic stress disorder, he’d found himself increasingly isolated. Republicans didn’t want him to exist, and Democrats weren’t in the mood for hero cops. Even many of his colleagues didn’t see why he couldn’t just get over it. That very day, a GOP Congressman had testified that what had happened was more like a “tourist visit” than an “insurrection.” But no one could see this footage, Fanone thought, and deny what really happened that day. History would be forced to record it.

Michael Fanone files for protective orders against those who assaulted him on Jan. 6 NBC News

Michael Fanone, who was one of the law enforcement officers that responded to the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, has filed for protective orders against five individuals who assaulted him that day. President Trump issued pardons for federal criminal defendants involved in the attack who are now being released.

Fact: The Capital was attacked on January 6 by citizens and defended by officers risking their lives to save those inside the building. In the process, many officers were injured. They were vilified by some and hailed as heroes by others.

Evidence has shown that the reason for the attack was based on lies that the 2020 election was "stolen." The evidence used to put the attackers on trial was based on video footage and confessions. 1,500 were convicted and recently released after receiving pardons.

The threats against people who speak out for justice for the officers risking their lives to defend the Capital have already begun. One of them is Michael Fanone.

Listening to Michael Fanone speak about seeking protective orders from individuals threatening him and his family, it became impossible to avoid finding parallels to what happened in 1692 to John Willard and his family, along with many others of like mind who found the courage to speak out. In Massachusetts, there were no cameras to record evidence. There were no laws at the time to prevent what was happening to innocent people. The only thing necessary to subject innocent people to the horrors of the Witchcraft Trials were accusations.

In 1692, John Willard was a Deputy Constable for Salem Village, responsible for serving warrants and transporting people, including those accused of witchcraft, to jail. Later testimony during his trial claimed he was heard to say, “Hang them! They are all witches!” According to historian Charles Upham in his 1867 work Salem Witchcraft, however, Willard refused to arrest any more people by the spring of 1692, after spending time with both accusers and accused. Said Upham, “All he heard and saw, his sympathies became excited on their behalf: and he expressed, in more or less unguarded terms, his disapprobation of the proceedings. He seems to have considered all hands concerned in the business—accusers, accused, magistrates, and people— as alike bewitched.”

He was right. The accusers and judges must have been bewitched, but not by non-existent witches. There were other forces behind their bewitchment: power and greed. In today's terms, we would have suggested that Satan had the accused by the balls. John Willard was just one more example of what would happen to anyone trying to stop the torment, torture, and murders. He refused to arrest more people, seeing the injustice committed by the townsfolk.

When John Willard was examined, the magistrates made it clear they believed the fact that he’d fled arrest was a sign of guilt. Said Willard, “… I was affrighted and I thought by my withdrawing it might be better, I fear not but the Lord in his due time will make me white as snow.” The afflicted in attendance, among them Ann Putnam Jr., Mercy Lewis, and Mary Warren, fell into fits at Willard’s gaze. But it was the accusations leveled against him by his wife’s family that carried the most weight. “In 1692, the Wilkins family turned with particular ferocity against this outsider…,” said Boyer and Nissenbaum. “The finger of witchcraft was pointed at him by no fewer than ten members of the family.” Not only was he blamed for the death of Daniel Wilkins and the illness of Bray Wilkins, but he was accused of spousal abuse by family and neighbors. “For all his natural affections he abused his wife much and broke sticks about her in beating of her,” said his brother-in-law, Benjamin Wilkins.

John wanted his wife Margaret to be called to testify as to the charges he beat her. She wasn't called.  If the claim of John Willard beating his wife was valid, would she have gone to such lengths to free him?

John Willard denied the charges, saying they were all lies, and asked that his wife be called to testify. Margaret was never questioned. In early August, John Willard was convicted and condemned to hang. Two days before his scheduled execution, Margaret made a final attempt to free her husband. According to Marilynne Roach in her book The Salem Witch Trials: A Day-By-Day Chronicle of a Community Under Siege, Margaret somehow obtained John’s temporary release from prison. Says Roach, “… the necessary papers had not yet reached Salem. So Goody Willard made her way from Boxford to Salem, hired a horse, and headed for Boston to see for herself about the delay, however, to no avail.” She was too late. John Willard, along with John Proctor, Reverend George Burroughs, George Jacobs Sr., and Martha Carrier, was hanged on Proctor’s Ledge at Gallows Hill on August 19.

The 400 people of Salem Village were not satisfied, accusing other members of the Village. Their targets spread throughout Massachusetts. Nineteen innocent people were hung, and Giles Corey was crushed to death after refusing to make a plea of guilt, which would have spared his life or declared his innocence. His wife Martha was among those hung.

When anyone dared to speak the truth, they were targeted by those in power. It didn't end with them. The accusers targeted their family members.

We should all wonder who will stand for the truth and defend the innocent. Had there been more brave people in Salem in 1692, would there have been so many caused to suffer because fear consumed what was good and fed a banquet of hatred to the powerful?

No one checked facts during the Salem witch trials for a reason

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 9, 2025

Everything old...is back again!

If you're wondering about Facebook no longer having fact-checkers, they didn't have social media back then, but look at what they managed to pull off! 

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana proved he was either a genius or was paying attention. Those paying attention in our time are freaking out, and for good reason. It requires us to do whatever is in our power to prevent it from worsening.

There was a time in our history when we were under British rule. Freedom in 1692 meant remaining free from being thrown into the dungeon because someone held a grudge against them or coveted what they had. 

Those in charge knew they had to get their ducks in a row to pull off one of the biggest crime sprees in our history. There were many researchers over the decades trying to find reasons why what happened in Salem caused 20 to be murdered and hundreds thrown into the dungeon. No matter how many reasons you may have seen, there is only one plausible explanation...they lied. Sounds like they would know what #PTSD was?

When thinking about the Salem Witch Trials, the story of Martha Carrier, the "queen of hell," has many examples of how, after the trials ended, the trials of those falsely charged never ended.

In late July, as the witchcraft accusations in Andover swelled, Martha’s two eldest sons, Richard and Andrew, were arrested and brought to Salem. Initially claiming innocence of witchcraft, they were tortured into confessing (fellow prisoner John Proctor said they were “tied neck and heels till the blood was ready to come out of their noses”). They were soon joined in jail by ten-year-old Thomas and seven-year-old Sarah, who also confessed. Sarah testified that she had been a witch since she was six and that her mother “made me set my hand to a book.” Her baptism, she said, was in “Andrew Foster’s pasture.” Brother Thomas claimed to have been baptized in the Shawsheen River. One can only imagine the level of fear Martha’s young children experienced that would convince them to testify against her.

A tremendous amount of testimony was brought against Martha Carrier at her trial on August 2, with many agreeing that Goody Carrier was offered the role of “Queen in Hell” by the Devil himself. Although she claimed her innocence to the end (she was the only family member who did not confess), Carrier was hanged, along with Reverend George Burroughs, George Jacobs Sr., John Proctor, and John Willard on August 19, 1692, on Proctor’s Ledge at Gallows Hill. It is not known where her remains lie. Her children were eventually released from jail, although their guilt about testifying against their mother must have remained with them for life.

Imagine your children going through all of that and then having to live the rest of their lives knowing their mother was put to death after they accused her, confessed to also being witches, and sent to prison. While pondering that, think of what Thomas, her husband, went through with four of his children in a dungeon after his wife was put to death. 

Thomas Carrier petitioned for restitution on behalf of his executed wife and for the expenses incurred during his children’s incarceration. On October 17, 1711, Martha Carrier’s name was cleared of all charges, nearly twenty years after her death. By that time, the Carrier family had moved to Colchester, CT where they were among the earliest settlers of the area. Thomas operated iron works on the Salmon River. He died in 1735 at the reported age of 109. (The gravestone that stands in the Marlboro Cemetery in Connecticut, memorializing Thomas and several of his children and grandchildren, erroneously lists his death year as 1739. This stone, and three other Carrier family stones beside it, were reportedly moved to this cemetery from a family plot at the Carrier homestead in Colchester.) The New England Journal dated June 9, 1735 said, “His head in his last years was not bald nor hair gray. Not many days before his death he traveled on foot six miles to see a sick friend, and the day before he died he was visiting his neighbors. His mind was alert until he died, when he fell asleep in his chair and never woke up.”

In 1999, Billerica’s Board of Selectmen unanimously voted to rescind the 1676 banishment of the Carrier family.

And this points to the conspiracy against Martha Carrier, but also how the trials for them rest of them went.

Lacey Jr’s examination was held on July 21 during which she accused Martha Carrier of being a witch, stating that she had murdered several children by stabbing them in the heart with pins and knitting needles and also added that “Goody Carrier told me the Devil said to her she should be a queen in hell” (SWP No. 87.2).

A lesson in why the suffering never ended, topped off with garnished guilt laced with the poison of those who reaped the rewards. Be vigilant.

Wishing you a happier new year

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
January 2, 2025

I can't change anything that happened last year, the year before, or decades before. I can't change anything that happened yesterday. All I can change is right now.

Yesterday was the first day of the new year. The night before, I went to bed long before midnight. I made up for it by opening a bottle of champagne and drinking half the bottle. I was celebrating the first day of the new year with all its possibilities. 

I remember how sad it was to hear someone say "Happy New Year" when my life was a mess. One of my friends understood what I was going through and gave me hope when she wished me a happier new year. That was long ago, but to this day, I cherish it and her.

Sometimes that's all we need. Sometimes, being reminded that we can become happier is the best gift.

It's like when we need someone to listen to us, but they try to fix us instead of saying, "I'm here for you," which can hurt more than it helps. When they listen to us until we're done talking, maybe they give us a hug, perhaps they visit us, or they could call us. They do so many simple things for us because they know when we need them and what we need them for.

So, here's to a happier new year for all my readers with #PTSD because it can be a happier one for all of us.

Christmas isn't so merry for all of us

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
December 25, 2024

If you had a not-so-merry Christmas, you're not alone.

If you felt you didn't fit in with family and friends over the last few days, no one will ever see a commercial in which you are not celebrating. Commercials are intended to pull heartstrings enough to cause you to buy what they're selling, so reminding them that people are suffering instead of celebrating would be a downer. We get avoided and, most of the time, ignored. Many of us don't have anyone, so we spent today alone, remembering when we had people in our lives and reasons to celebrate.

I avoid news, coverage of Christmas parades, and anything related to Christmas on TV. Instead, I watch supernatural movies and shows on streaming channels, so I won't have to see commercials reminding me of how we're supposed to be happy.

If you have #PTSD, surviving the "IT" was just the start of our adjusting to the new normal no one warned us about. Usually, we're surrounded by people who don't know what it's like for us, and most of the time, it's because we won't tell them. It may sound strange, but we can isolate even with people around us.

Here are reminders that while you may feel lonely, you are far from alone.

You don't have to have PTSD to be alone.

America's top doctor declares LONELINESS an epidemic and warns it's as deadly as smoking 15 cigarettes a day

Millions of Americans will be celebrating on their own this Christmas amid a nationwide loneliness epidemic, a survey has revealed.

Lonely night: Interactive map reveals how many Americans will spend Christmas alone in YOUR state

A new poll showed that around 19 million Americans are due to spend Christmas alone this year, which is one in 14 adults.

Over a Million New Yorkers Are Spending Christmas Alone

A recent study found that more than a third of adults 45 or older experience loneliness, with nearly a quarter of adults 65 or older considered socially isolated.

The research cited in the report shows this has been happening even before the COVID-19 pandemic began. Increases in the risk of anxiety, depression, heart disease, dementia and stroke were also linked to the lack of social connection.

Spending Christmas alone this year? How to make the most of it New York psychologist Dr. Bryant Williams agreed, noting that being alone during the holidays "accentuates existing problems."

So there you have it. You are not alone being alone. Tomorrow will be a different day. I usually spend it shopping to buy things I need on sale. I have more money to do it since I'm not spending money on Christmas decorations no one will see. Gee one more helpful hint, look on the bright side of even this.

Understanding the PTSD painkiller is the start of healing

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
December 14, 2024

Change your brain's perception of the pain from PTSD.

When we have physical pain, doctors prescribe medication to block pain receptors in our brains. Cleveland Clinic explains how they work with this,

"...analgesics don’t turn off nerves, change the ability to sense your surroundings, or alter consciousness."

 What they do is this, 

"Analgesic opioids (also called narcotics) work by changing the brain’s perception of pain."

When you have #PTSD,  there is something that will not only change your brain's perception of pain, it will change your ability to alter your consciousness. It isn't magic, although some call it a miracle. It is waking up one day to discover suffering does not have to follow what you survived.

The only way for PTSD to strike is to survive something. The National Center for PTSD has a list of what can cause it. The first painkiller is understanding how many others are going through the same thing as you. YOU ARE NOT ALONE!

Part of surviving is the tendency to become paranoid of others, especially when someone causes the trauma. You can have panic attacks and mood swings and experience the flight or fight response. 

That was the most significant result I had to deal with. My first husband tried to kill me and then stalked me. I moved over a thousand miles away from him, but the memory of what he did followed me. He drove a muscle car, and the sound sent me over the edge. Logically, I knew it wasn't him, but my memories overtook my awareness. I still find it strange this event took such a hold over me that I couldn't shake it off until I became aware he passed away. I survived over nine other events that left residual, but I was able to shake off enough to overcome the emotional rollercoaster ride from hell.

Anger is one of those pesky responses that can push people you care about away from you. Yep, been there too. It isn't fun.

Knowledge is also a painkiller you don't need a pill for. The pain of survival could have taken over my life, but I am stubborn. There was no way I would allow it to rip me apart from what I believed. While there are dangers in the world and things happen, we have no control over them. I knew we only control ourselves. I am also an inquisitive person. I needed to know what PTSD was because of my husband. He survived Vietnam. While most people believe PTSD only strikes veterans, it strikes a large percentage of survivors. 

Some of us need a psychologist—I did. Most of us need to know that there is hope of living a happier life because we're humans. Having someone willing to listen to us without trying to fix us is a painkiller.

Having someone share why they understand us because of their own experiences is a painkiller.

Knowing my family loved me and my friends cared about me was a painkiller. They had no way of knowing what I was going through because I didn't. I couldn't explain it to them until I learned what was causing my changes. The strange thing is, that was over 40 years ago when I was researching Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to understand my husband. I understood what surviving did to me, so I was able to understand what it did to veterans. What I didn't know was I had a rare case of PTSD tied to my first husband because of a lifetime of survival and my knowledge of PTSD. If it sounds screwed up to you, it was to me too.

Once you decide you're tired of being unhappy, read all you can, talk to someone you trust, share what you are going through, and let people know it isn't caused by them. Learn to lean on someone, and then you can offer a shoulder to someone else. Be willing to become their painkiller and hope maker.

Veterans should ask for fewer government benefits?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
December 9, 2024

When a politician tells you their plan, you need to listen before you vote for them! 

Veterans are freaking out, and rightfully so. The first time Donald Trump was president, he wanted to cut veterans' benefits. Congress wouldn't let that happen. Now that he wants to do it again, they will likely let him do whatever he wants. 

Considering Trump is planning on cutting Medicare, which seniors paid for while they worked, more veterans will need the VA healthcare benefits they earned but did not apply for. Too many veterans rejected applying for benefits because they thought others were worse off than they were and needed it more. And now, making matters worse, the plan is to cut benefits for veterans!

CNN reported Hegseth and Collins’ push for cutting veterans’ health benefits alarms service members and veterans groups

If confirmed, Hegseth and Collins will have the opportunity to push for a dramatic overhaul of the military and veteran health care system, one that could significantly cut government health benefits for service members and veterans – many of which Hegseth says veterans should not be asking for at all.

It was March 2018, and then-President Donald Trump was meeting with his Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary, Dr. David Shulkin, about how to reform veteran health care. But it was Hegseth, then a Fox News personality, whose opinion Trump really wanted.

Hegseth, now Trump’s nominee to serve as secretary of defense, had been a vocal and persistent advocate for veterans having unfettered access to private health care, rather than having to go through the VA to keep their benefits. He’s also lobbied for policies that would restrict VA care and believes veterans should ask for fewer government benefits.
read the rest here

I've heard many veterans say they voted for him, but I didn't hear any of them say they listened to him. None of them had a clue, and now it's too late. The only thing we can do is make sure we do all we can so our members of the House and Senate stand up for us.

Where witches existed beyond the boundaries of imagination

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
December 7, 2024

When was the last time some change in your life turned out to be a good one? I know I was apprehensive any time it did. When you survive the thing that caused #PTSD, it changes you into a survivor.  Some people love to remind us of that, but when we deal with the changes it causes, we become terrified the next time something changes.

The Scribe of Salem: "Ministers of the Mystery by Kathie Costos is an enthralling debut in a series that seamlessly blends fantasy, supernatural horror, and elements of spirituality."

His life sucked! Every change that happened to him over the last seven years was terrible. It was September 13, 2019, precisely seven years after he survived a bomb blast in Afghanistan. He wasn't sitting at the bar of the Bishop Hotel celebrating. He has been lamenting his losses since then. PTSD killed his career as a combat journalist. When he returned home, his wife wasn't grateful he survived. She tried to kill him. That wasn't enough for her. She stalked him. Drinking to numb himself left him jobless and homeless. He couldn't leave LA fast enough, so he let his wife have their condo.

He took his time returning to Salem, visiting churches along the way, searching for God, and trying to fill the spiritual void. He didn't find anything to fill it. He left his hometown as a successful reporter. He came back as a successful failure.

So, he sat at the bar while his only friend poured him drinks and listened to him between customers. After listening to him every night for three years, Ed knew almost everything about Chris. What he didn't know was just an hour before Chris walked into the bar, he tried to kill himself.

And then it happened. The change entered the door and set off a series of events that would send Chris into a world no reporter had ever encountered: a world of secret societies and conspiracies, a world where witches existed beyond the boundaries of imagination.

Are you tired of people saying the Bible is the written word of God while failing to see that God didn't make mistakes or edit its errors and omissions? God inspired it, but we all know human thoughts, emotions, and agendas get in the way. We also know that other books were left out of our Bibles. Want to learn how you have the power to reach out to God on your own without anyone getting in the way? Want to know about the passages members of the clergy won't give sermons on?

Suppose you believe in reincarnation, spirituality, and gifts within all of our spirits and are willing to witness the transformation of this successful failure. In that case, you can read the series at half off. 

Get caught up before the 1st Witch Of Salem is published next year.

Get The Scribe Of Salem at 50% off! You can also read The Visionary Of Salem and the 13th Minister Of Salem at this discounted price with the link to the Ministers Of The Mystery Series.

Now is your best chance to find my entire ebook collection for a promotional price at @Smashwords as part of their 2024 End of Year Sale! Find my books and many more at https://www.smashwords.com/shelves/promos/ through January 1! #SmashwordsEoYSale #Smashwords

Are dark empaths using your pain?

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
November 22, 2024

Beware of dark empaths! They feed off your pain, grief, and fears!

Stay calm, but I've been working on the next book, the 1st Witch Of Salem. It won't be finished until 2025. I can't give the story away, but one of the significant themes addresses what makes us us. It is the spirit within us.

"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” John 4:23-24

I no longer consider myself "religious," but I still believe in God and Jesus. This may seem confusing until you understand that churches have managed to divide people with their manmade rules and conditions. Jesus made no such demands. I find more comfort and power when speaking directly to God through my spirit. So yes, you can be one while not being the other.

Our spirits are immortal because they are created in His image. Our bodies are biological, but our spirits hold meaning to our lives. Everything that makes us who we are lives in our spirit and the spirit lives in our minds. Psychologists have been trying to figure out the magical components dwelling in our minds for centuries. Recently, they concluded that there are findings they cannot put into a box of what has become rational.

They have been studying empaths. Empaths can feel your pain, grief, and fears. They pay an emotional price while trying to help you. After trying to figure out what makes someone a sociopath, some began to focus on dark empaths. They can feel all that comes from your spirit; instead of paying a price to help you, they feed off it and use it to manipulate you.

Dark empaths are skilled at expressing empathy in a cognitive way rather than an emotional way, and the emotional distance they retain while operating equips them with a laser focus to achieve their ends through manipulation, gaslighting, or bullying.

I discovered this while researching the meaning of empaths. I have empathy, but there are different types of empaths. Discovering the meaning became vital because I met an empath, Jennifer of Lilac City Paranormal. I sought her out because I needed to understand how no one seems to agree on what happens to spirits after our bodies die.

Some, like me, believe in reincarnation. I also believe in heaven and hell. The belief in a spirit realm made it more complicated, and ghosts exist. How can all of it exist? Jennifer explained that it can. She willingly accepts the emotional pain she has to endure because she uses her spiritual gift to help others. I could feel that and see it in her eyes. When she spoke about how much pain they were in, I saw her grief. When she talked about the people she helped, I saw joy. No one can fake that.

Dark empaths find faking they want to help easy to do. Knowing people have emotional/spiritual needs, they pretend to have the ability to make us feel better. The only one they care about is themselves. We may walk away feeling empowered by anger toward others and hatred for anyone we can blame for our pain. Sure, that can take our minds off the cause of our pain, redirecting our negative energy to the forefront of our minds, but the pain lingers. Sooner or later, we regret having trusted someone with our deepest emotions. We already find it hard to trust someone when we live with #PTSD. Encountering a dark empath can get in the way of reaching out for help from anyone else. It's hard enough to find hope, but once they get their claws into us, we give up.

It makes it worse when they could be in any position they choose to do. Religious leaders, politicians, lawyers, doctors, coworkers, and bosses can all be dark empaths. They hide it well unless you understand what they do more than what they look like.

If you fall prey to a dark empath, there is something that can offer you comfort. Some don't want to live that way, and they even seek help to live a better life.

While dark empaths can change—especially with counseling—they must first acknowledge and show remorse for what they have done to you and be willing to change for the better.

Dark empaths are not the same as the dark triad.

The term “dark triad” was coined by researchers in 2002 to identify someone with personality traits that don’t meet the criteria for a formal diagnosis of associated personality disorders.

It consists of three personality traits: psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism.

A person with the personality traits of the dark triad may have signs of one or all these traits. They may exhibit:

lack of respect and empathy for others
arrogance
an unhealthy fascination with themselves
manipulation and lying
a need for attention and praise
an unhealthy preoccupation with gaining power
violent or aggressive behavior
lack of remorse or regret

Once you realize that even they can change, you begin to understand their spirits are trying to wake them up. Until they do, you are better off staying away from them when you can, or if not, realize they cannot be trusted with your emotions. It is one thing for someone to say they feel your pain but never intend to help you. It is miraculous for them to say they feel your pain and then do what they can to help you. The good news is there are more givers than the users.

(The cover design for the new book is done)

Just because the witch trials ended, the suffering never ended

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
November 18, 2024

There are some things no one can take away from you. No enemy on this earth can take away your free will. No one has the power to remove your thoughts. No one can control what you believe. No one can force you to surrender all hope. You are the only one in control of all of that.

What you think can only be changed by you. Do you realize how much power you have to change other people's thoughts? If you dare to speak to those you disagree with, and both of you are willing to listen, you can stop seeing one another as the enemy.

Many things divide us because people seem too focused on our differences. Contemplate how some people use their free religious choice in an attempt to control what you make the free will choice to believe. That isn't new. Nothing we see is new.

I find myself shaking my head so many times during the day I need IcyHot to ease the pain in my neck.

Writing the First Witch of Salem, the fourth book in the Ministers Of The Mystery Series, it became clear how people used fear to gain power. Once they figured that out, the added hatred provided someone to blame for their miseries. 

Harsh winter; blame a witch. Crops fail; blame a witch. If someone gets sick or dies, blame a witch. It worked out so well for those in charge; they put 300 people in prison and took their possessions. They had an enemy list. When they couldn't get someone to point fingers at their enemies, they tortured and threatened people until they received the testimony they sought.

What a master plan! It twisted and corrupted the Puritans' faith, coupled with fear of retribution to prevent anyone from speaking the truth, and it worked.

One wonders what would have happened if the people of Salem Village and the town of Salem had stood up against all of it when the witch accusations began.

It wasn't as if they had no example of how wrong it was to do what they were doing. Connecticut beat them to it. They hung Alse Young in 1647. It took them until 1669 to change their minds.

John Winthrop Jr. became Connecticut's governor and chief magistrate in 1657 and a few years thereafter was given the critically important assignment of attaining an official royal charter from King Charles II. This charter established Connecticut as an independent colony and amongst other privileges, granted Winthrop the right to pardon offenders. Winthrop was able to overturn the conviction of Elizabeth Seager of Hartford at her third witchcraft trial in 1666 and save Katherine Harrison from a death sentence in 1669. Harrison's trial was notable in that it changed the way evidence is used in Connecticut, including determining that there should be a plurality of witnesses, at least two for every event. Additionally, Winthrop lead the way in determining that the burden of proof should be on the accusers rather than the accused and he lobbied to dismiss the use of spectral evidence (evidence based on dreams or visions). Over time Winthrop used his alchemist background to challenge the ideas of "diabolical magic".

Some courageous people in Massachusetts were willing to speak the truth, but there were so few that retaliation with accusations against them silenced others. Rev. Francis Dane was a preacher from Andover. His bravery in opposing the witch trials caused members of his family to be charged, and two of them were executed. The people of Salem should have considered what he said, especially since he preached against it long before it happened in Salem.

The sad truth about what happened in Salem was that none of it had to happen. If the people practiced their Christian faith and believed what they claimed they did, they would or should have been willing to do whatever it took to defend those wrongfully charged.

Many aspects of what occurred in Massachusetts over 300 years ago can be associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. One that never seems to be noticed is the guilt they felt when the trials stopped, and those held in prison were again among them. They would have spoken about the terror they experienced while being tortured, including children as young as four years old being terrorized.

You may ask how guilt can cause #PTSD. Some only associate it with survivor guilt, but there is a difference. It is also a moral injury. Remorse over what was done to others is powerful.

There is a great deal of overlap between moral injury and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Both begin with an event that is often life threatening or harmful to self or others. Guilt and shame are core features of moral injury and are also symptoms of PTSD. The betrayal and loss of trust that could be experienced with moral injury are also common features of PTSD. For example, someone who was assaulted by a loved one may feel betrayed and have difficulty trusting others, whether or not they also suffered moral injury or PTSD.

Think about what they went through watching 19 women and men hanging from ropes on Proctor's Ledge. Think about what they went through when they heard what happened to those who were forgotten while held in four different prisons. Then, think about what it was like for the accusers to have to see those they accused walking freely again while knowing the lies they told came back to haunt them. 

While some remained guilt-free because they had no conscience, many would have felt it in their guilt deeply in their spirits. It was too late to change what they allowed to happen. They made a lame attempt to atone for it by having a day of prayer and repentance. Still, no one was held accountable for what they did to so many innocent people.  Just because the witch trials ended, the suffering never ended.

Beware of the trickery this Halloween

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 30, 2024

Tomorrow is Halloween, and I'm dressing up as a witch. (No shocker there for those who know me.) All across the country, kids will show up saying "trick or treat," even though they never expect the trick. People will enjoy scary movies and eat whatever candy remains. No one expects a trick. Some people are getting ready to pull on us.

I keep hearing that some politicians are planning to toss out votes. This is a friendly reminder that voters must prove who they are no matter who they vote for. Once this is done, the ballots they fill out are anonymous. 

I've voted in every election since I was 18. Before voting, I had to prove who I was and where I lived to ensure I was voting in the proper precinct. Once I did that, I was handed a blank ballot. No one knew who I voted for, and the ballot was put into a machine without personal information.

I had to do an absentee ballot a few times in my life. I had to prove who I was, and the ballot was sealed without any of my information on it.

The ballots go into the same piles as everyone else's. Voting for the person you want in charge of this country's future is not only a treat but a privilege. When they win, you know you were part of putting them in office. When they lose, most of us accept it, but some will not be able to. They want to claim a trick was played on them, which was the only way the person they wanted received fewer votes. 

Politicians will then play a massive trick on their emotions and say they want to toss out ballots. It may sound good until you remember how the process works.

If you believe they can find the ballot they want to toss out, it just means it is the one they don't like. Don't let them pull a trick on you, or it will get a lot more frightening the next time you want to use the power of your vote!

I am retraumatized remembering what happened to me

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 28, 2024

I have heard too many people talking about being pro-life and pro-choice. The truth of what is behind all of the talk has been silenced. Once a choice is taken away from someone, it is taken away from all of us.

My heart breaks for all the people who have suffered because they had to go through horrifying medical emergencies. No one asked them if they wanted what they were forced to endure. It didn't matter if they wanted to be pregnant or not. It didn't matter if they were Republican or Democrat, Independent, or refused to vote for the people running for election. All that mattered was a female was pregnant and needed medical intervention.

Read Dozens of pregnant women, some bleeding or in labor, are turned away from ERs despite federal law from Associated Press to understand what has me re-traumatized.

The Biden administration says hospitals must offer abortions when needed to save a woman’s life, despite state bans enacted after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion more than two years ago. Texas is challenging that guidance and, earlier this summer, the Supreme Court declined to resolve the issue.

More than 100 pregnant women in medical distress who sought help from emergency rooms were turned away or negligently treated since 2022, an Associated Press analysis of federal hospital investigations found.

Some people live in states where they feel as if voting to codify the choice over what to do with their own bodies has made them safe from those horror stories. They failed to wonder what would happen if the people running for office had already stated they wanted to ban abortions across the nation. More perplexing is they do not seem to wonder what would happen to them should they need what they voted for and what they voted to take away from everyone.

I suppose I should consider myself lucky when a pregnancy went wrong and nearly killed me, but laws protect my life. It was in the early 80s when I was carrying twins. My husband and I were thrilled. He went to every doctor's appointment with me. That thrill turned into a deadly nightmare when I started to bleed. Our doctor told me to get to the emergency room. I was hemorrhaging in the wheelchair while the nurse was checking me in. As I was wheeled away, I left a trail of blood behind me, and the seat was soaked. One of the twins came out. The doctor had to abort the other one to save my life.

As bad as that was, my husband blamed himself because of Agent Orange from Vietnam. It didn't matter that our doctor explained that the egg had split wrong. His mild #PTSD became full-blown because he lost the ability to fight it. I had nightmares because when it all happened, I was in the maternity ward and had to listen to babies crying and people celebrating the joy of a new life in the world after I lost the two I hoped would come too.

There was no debate over if the doctor could be arrested for doing it. My doctor didn't have to wait for the hospital administrator to approve the procedure. There was no judge or politician to make us wait for their power to choose what happened to me. My life was saved without delay because the law protected me.

No one else had the power to get involved. No one claiming to be pro-life had the power to let my life end because what they decided was right for them gave them the ability to make decisions for me. All of this is playing out across the country, and I am retraumatized remembering what happened to me so long ago. I wonder if any of them have contemplated it happening to them.

I know I didn't think it could happen to me until it did.

I wonder if they ever thought that once this right is taken away from everyone because that is what they wanted, what is the next right they will see gone. I am pro-choice because of what happened to me, and I don't want the power to choose for someone else.

They didn't see it coming or know how to stop it back then

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 18, 2024

"Perhaps Satan’s goal had been not to recruit witches but to trick the court into executing the innocent."

That was from The Bill Of Rights Institute, The Salem Witch Trials, Malcolm Gaskill, University of East Anglia. In 1692, the demon was very busy in Salem Village. People were suffering and wanted to blame someone. The influential people gave them witches, and hate gave them the targets.

Usually, I stay out of politics. These are not usual times. What is happening now is correlated with what happened in Massachusetts in 1692. I am surprised so few noticed it.

People have been conditioned to blame someone else for their problems. Too many are pointing fingers at what they consider easy targets. Fueling hatred against others with no power to cause or fix their misery deflects the absence of efforts on their part to solve problems. It happened in Salem because it was allowed to happen. Everyone going against the ridiculous claims made became another target, and they found themselves accused. It was a vicious circle designed to keep it going so that enemies were caught in the web of lies. It is happening again.

"Villagers were emboldened to voice their own suspicions of other witches, which led to more arrests. The accused were brought to the public meetinghouses and urged to confess so they could be brought back into the Christian fold. Most people gave credence to “spectral evidence”, evidence based on visions and dreams, in which the afflicted claimed they could see invisible spirits flying around the room and causing them pain. Even a four-year-old girl, the daughter of one of the accused, Sarah Good, was imprisoned for witchcraft. Before long, the witch hunt had spread to several neighboring communities."

None of it was real. None of the accusers experienced what they claimed. They did not have to prove a single word they said; all they had to do was claim they believed it happened.

Samuel Parris, a corrupt minister, fueled twisted religious beliefs. After children in his household made outrageous claims, they blamed witches, and the plot to use them began. Realizing they had the power to manipulate others, the seeds were sown in the minds of others, like the Putnam family.

"Thomas Putnam (Jr.) was from the third generation of Putnams in Salem Village. He was the eldest son of Thomas Putnam (Sr.), who himself was the eldest son of John Putnam, one of the founders of Salem Village who had arrived from England in the 1640s. The Putnams were a powerful and wealthy family, yet by the 1690s, Thomas Putnam was seeing his prospects diminish as property continued to be divided with each generation. He watched as neighbors like the Porters and the Nurses, who lived closer to Salem Town, became more prosperous. Thomas Putman had also aligned himself with the new village minister in 1689, Samuel Parris, a man who did not have everyone’s support. Disagreements about the minister’s wage, and firewood, and ownership of the parsonage caused ongoing division in the community."

None of those in charge had any power to change the harsh winter, grow crops that could not be grown, or eliminate illnesses. None of them had the power to stop the indigenous people from attacking towns and villages to take back their land. They used their power to deflect attention from them and place it where it didn't belong, on other citizens. After all, solving problems requires work and a lot of thought. Pointing fingers was easy and added to their power and wealth. They confiscated the property of those they charged with witchcraft and billed them for the time they spent in jail.

They ignored the 10 Commandments when they falsely made accusations against others and were willing to murder. They broke the rule of requiring evidence and then broke another rule of not torturing to achieve confessions and naming others.

Dozens suffered under inhumane conditions as they waited in jail for months without trials; many of the imprisoned were also tortured, and at least one died in jail before the hysteria abated in 1693.

So much of the tragedy of the Salem Witch Trials comes down to the failure of the court and the laws during that time: Laws that made such things as visions, dreams, and even the testimony of spirits permissible evidence. And a court that accepted accusations so flimsy they would seem laughable today if they weren’t so horrifyingly unjust…(New England Law)

The more I see what is happening today, the more I think about what happened in 1692. People claim to be Christian, much like the Puritans did. With real evidence, some claim it's nothing more than a witch hunt, which requires no proof. They want to control what other people believe and how they worship. They want to control how other people live while proving they don't care about them. They only care about themselves and how they can use their power for their gain and not for the sake of the people they claim they want to serve.

The rights we have today to protect us from what the people of Salem Town and Village endured are still under the 1st Amendment because of what people got away with. Read the list of Amendments to see what other rights we have and discover how many of them apply to what happened in Salem.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The difference between us now and the residents of Massachusetts back then is that we see all the signs because of technology. They didn't see it coming or know how to stop it back then.

Kathie Costos

Author of The Scribe Of Salem, The Visionary Of Salem, and 13th Minister Of Salem.

They got away with murder in Salem Village

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
October 15, 2024

They got away with murder in Salem Village just by saying they believed someone was a witch!

The accusers were responsible for the murder of 19 people found guilty of witchcraft and one crushed to death without a trial. Reading the list of those who accused innocent people may make you wonder if any of them were put on trial. The answer is no because there was no way to prove what they claimed to believe were nothing more than lies from their lips. Imagine the trauma inflicted on the colony of Massachusetts because the accused came from all over it. 

The accusations ran their course in Salem Village but not in Andover, where 48 were accused compared with 23 in Salem Village, says Burns. “A lot of people were against spectral evidence, so confessions were now the gold standard to find people guilty. The confessions that came before were from people with no agency whatsoever, like little Dorothy. But when they got to Andover, the magistrates were really good at interrogating people in private. By September, they could coerce people like clockwork. There, a lot who confessed were children as young as six.” National Endowment For The Humanities

There were many reasons for what happened there and what was behind it.

Evidence points to several factors that may have contributed to the mass hysteria: “An influx of refugees from King William’s War with French colonists, a recent smallpox epidemic, the threat of attack from Native Americans, a growing rivalry with the neighboring seaport of Salem Town, and the simmering tensions between leading families in the community created the perfect storm of suspicion and resentment.” Many historians believe the “witches” were also victims of scapegoating, personal vendettas, and social mores against outspoken, strong women.

But it didn't just happen in the colony of Massachusetts. The following is from New England Law.

The Salem Witch Trials occurred just as Europe’s “witchcraft craze’’ from the 14th to 17th centuries was winding down, where an estimated tens of thousands of European witches, mostly women, were executed.

The Puritans believed physical realities had spiritual causes. For example, if the crops failed, the Devil may have played a role. With this worldview, it was not a stretch for them to accept 'spectral evidence' of spirits and visions—which was the primary evidence used as proof of guilt during the Salem Witch Trials.

The thought of bad things happening as acts of God goes back to Biblical times. If people suffered, it was God judging them. If they prospered, then it was God's reward. This begs the question, if God was doing it to them, then how did they place blame on the Devil and witchcraft? How did they come full circle and again set their miseries on God and not the Devil? When the trials were over, they had a "Day of Atonement" to ask God to forgive them; that is precisely what they were led to believe instead of continuing to blame witches and the devil.

Whatever reason the accusers needed, it was provided. The list included torture, which made them very good at getting accusations "in private."

Aftermath of the Salem Trials
After the prisoners awaiting trial on charges of practicing witchcraft were granted amnesty (pardoned) in 1693, the accusers and judges showed hardly any remorse for executing twenty people and causing others to languish in jails. Instead, they placed the blame on the "trickery of Satan," thus freeing themselves from any sense of guilt. Jurors and townspeople also managed to maintain a clear conscience by claiming that, after all, many victims had confessed to their "crimes" and that the Salem, Massachusetts, community had been tricked by the devil. Yet families who had lost loved ones and property during the trials were expected to go on with their lives as if nothing had happened. Their attempts to regain social standing and receive financial compensation through formal legal channels took several years.

But we know the "clear conscience" they claimed wasn't real. Shame caused them to rename Salem Village. It became Danvers.

After the Witch Trials: Welcome to Danvers
By September of 1692, the peak of the witch hysteria was over and 25 innocent people were dead. 19 people were hanged. Five people had died in prison, and one elderly man was pressed to death. The vast majority of those executed came from rural areas, the majority from Salem Village.

After the trials, “in both Salem and Danvers, there was shame over what had happened here and a reluctance to deal with the trauma of the trials,” says Dan Lipcan, a library director and curator of the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts.

Slowly, Salem Village—the epicenter of the hysteria—began to move on, building a new meeting house in 1701 and abandoning the bad memories of the former. In 1706, Ann Putnam made a public apology, stating, “As I was a chief instrument of accusing Goodwife Nurse and her two sisters, I desire to lie in the dust and to be humbled for it.”

Putnam made her confession simply to be admitted back into the church, the same faith that supported the lies that caused so much suffering. She didn't list all the other people she falsely accused. Could it be that she couldn't be bothered enough to remember all of their names? According to Dr. John Howard Smith, there were 300 accused.

During that one year, 20 people were executed as witches, which Smith suggested “indicates a certain degree of restraint, considering that nearly 300 people were accused.”

But we also know that it didn't just happen in Salem. It happened in Connecticut, too.

Between 1647 and 1697, about three dozen people (the exact number is disputed, as many court records have been lost) were charged with witchcraft in Connecticut. Eleven were executed, all by hanging. Nine of the 11 were women. The two men executed were hanged along with their wives. Of those who weren’t executed, some fled their community; others were banished.

Having PTSD, we don't need to guess what all of this did to the people involved as victims, nor do we have to imagine what it did to the rest of the people in the area. They knew it could happen to them at any moment. They also knew the truly guilty got away with it once, and nothing could stop them the next time. No one was held to account for anything, and they were "free" to move on from what they did. Those who suffered were never free to move on.

Imagine knowing the accusers were free to continue their lives as if nothing had happened, and there was no reason to feel guilty. Imagine knowing the judges were rewarded for their actions instead of held accountable. This is from the History of Massachusetts Blog.

According to Emerson W. Baker in his book, A Storm of Witchcraft, these nine judges were considered the elite of the Massachusetts Bay Colony:

“As a group, the judges represented the proverbial 1 percent – the merchant elite who were wealthy, intermarried, and exercised power in social, political, and military circles. In short, they were the superrich of Massachusetts. Simply calling them ‘merchants’ shortchanges them…Most had considerable political experience, having served as deputies and assistants in the General Court.”

Look at the site and see what happened to the judges like William Stoughton, Chief Magistrate.

From 1694 to 1699 and again from 1700 to 1701, Stoughton served as acting governor of Massachusetts after Governor William Phips was recalled to England. He also continued to serve as chief justice of the Massachusetts courts until his death on July 7, 1701.

In 1697, Samuel Sewall was the only one to apologize for his part in horrific events. The others simply signed a letter.

And then there was Judge John Hathorne, who "was one of the most vocal participants during the Salem witchcraft trials."

Hathorne’s great-great grandson was Nathaniel Hawthorne, whose works reveal Hawthorne’s guilt over the sins of his ancestor. It is speculated that Nathaniel Hawthorne added the “w” to the family name as a means of distancing himself from the wrongdoing of his great-great-grandfather. It is equally possible this change was merely the result of a fashion of the period, as many families were altering their names to reflect the original English spelling. It is interesting to note that Hawthorne did hold particular disdain for his ancestor, as Judge Hathorne appears as the antagonist Judge Pyncheon in Hawthorne’s 1851 novel The House of the Seven Gables.

When you consider what was done to those accused of witchcraft, imagine being afraid of being the next one to be wrongfully charged, imprisoned, tortured, and held in horrid conditions. At the same time, they not only took what you owned, but they made you pay money for what was done to you before they would release you. Then imagine living the rest of your life while discovering none of them were held accountable for what they did to you.

You don't have to use much energy imagining if you were the victim of a crime and they got away with it. You don't have to imagine it if you saw your day in court and the guilty got away with it because of a technicality. You don't have to if you suffered from medical malpractice, but lawyers said it would cost them too much money to pursue the evidence.

No matter what caused PTSD to strike you after you survived it, it should be easy enough to understand what the people of Salem Town and village, now called Danvers, had to endure. When you read what they went through before the accusations were made, you'll see what we now know as traumas that can produce PTSD.

We are not only aware of what PTSD does to us, we are aware of what our families go through while we suffer.

This research showed that Vietnam Veterans have more marital problems and family violence. Their partners have more distress. Their children have more behavior problems than do those of Veterans without PTSD. Veterans with the most severe symptoms had families with the worst functioning.

We also know that none of it had to happen. As for Vietnam veterans, the research was left out a detail. While it wasn't easy, my husband and I have been married for 40 years. He got help to heal, and so did I. We believed in God, but we also believed in science. Ironically, that's how the people of Salem stopped blaming God and each other when other bad things happened to them.

Kathie Costos author of The Scribe Of Salem, The Visionary Of Salem and 13th Minister Of Salem