My wife and I want to thank the Press Herald for publishing the column by Alan Caron on May 2 (“Beware of ceding town square to politics of paranoia”).

We are both 89, and recall the recurrent use of paranoia as a political tactic during our lifetimes.

Mr. Caron presented an essay that, in our opinion, was balanced, even-tempered and historically accurate. His account of the devious attempts to frighten the populace as a means of persuasion seemed to us right on the mark.

We especially recall the McCarthy era, when we, starting our family as a young married couple, saw our country thrown into a vicious period of hate, suspicion and ruined reputations and careers.

Fortunately, some courageous print and TV journalists helped us deal with that ugly period, as well as other periods to follow.