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I would like to thank my family, most of all my parents; my agent Nicola Barr for her tireless work, along with Hellie Ogden, Chris Wellbelove and Claudia Young; and everyone at Duckworth and the Overlook Press, in particular Jon Jackson, Suzannah Rich, Tracy Carns and Peter Mayer.

I would also like to thank the following for their ideas, encouragement and support at various points in the writing of this book: Lisa Baker, Lowdy Brabyn, Tom Bromley, Alex Burghart, Helen Coyle, Hermione Eyre, Thomas Hodgkinson, Louisa Joyner, Thomas Mogford, Mary Morris, Maggie Phillips, Damian Pitman, Henry Porter, Rebecca Rose, Charlie Smith, Laura Susijn and Roly Walter.

Who can we blame?

Family motto of the Earls of Gresham

In the beginning there was blame. Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed the serpent, and weve been hard at it ever since. It is our original sin, this refusal to accept responsibility for our actions. It is the reason we were exiled from the Garden of Eden, the reason we work and suffer. But why do we persist in this denial? Well, the blame games never made any sense its just an inbuilt system we have to deflect guilt elsewhere and make it easier to live the unexamined life. But now its working overtime; nothing is our fault, it seems. We blame as weve always blamed, targeting minority and marginalized groups when things go wrong. But weve found new and unusual ways of doing so too using pseudo-science and conspiracy theories and technology makes it easier than ever before to spread these dangerous ideas. Whatevers wrong with us, there might not be a cure, but theres always a culprit.