Witch hunts

I have seen this type of phenomena fairly often, both in the kink and skeptic communities. What do i mean by witch hunts?

First, person X claims something about person Y. The community then rears its ugly head to go and attack person Y, without asking for their point of view, because person X's claim triggers fears that this might be true. Often, the only people who know what is and isn't true are the two (or more) people involved. Any dissenters or individuals who question this course of action then also become targets of the witch hunt, with varying consequences. And so the witch hunt then drags in not only the offender but any who may try to add some reason into the hysteria.

The second is situational, where situation A is perceived to be a problem and course of action M is proposed. Where i have seen it, there is a lot of investment in M and it is thought to solve all the issues of A. Individuals who question whether M will actually address A and who may or may not come to the conclusion that M will be ineffective are then targets for those who want M to work. Dissenters are then demonized and accused of actually encouraging A, and so the witch hunt begins.  

Perhaps it is mostly an online phenomenon that has the very real potential to spill out into everyday life. still, I think the trend is a particular detrimental one and encourages the sort of blind faith and acceptance that X or M is right and fails to look from a more skeptical viewpoint. It is a trap that I think we should all be aware of falling in to.