Gary
Mind. Body. Light. Sound.
For the past two years, there's been a growing conspiracy theory movement called QAnon. It has flourished on social media, and it's not a US exclusive phenomenon. So with a Q & A (get it, because Q-I'll stop right there), I'll let ya about it, and we can talk about this weird little thing.
Q: What is QAnon?
A: It's stupid.
Q: Ha Ha. No really, what is it?
A: Hoo boy. Well, a while back, somebody referring to themselves as Q started popping up on 4Chan and it's late, somehow worse offshoot 8Chan. He claimed to actually be a high level insider working in the Trump administration. He claimed that Trump was a part of "The Storm", which is a purge that will target the Deep State. This will, among other things, target a Satanic ring of pedophiles (basically anyone the far right doesn't care for, as well as Tom Hanks of all people), that the Saudi Prince is actually an ally of Trump, that JFK Jr is alive...it's all hard to explain, so please turn to this article which will probably explain it better than I could.
Q: Wow, that sounds insane. So, you're telling me some guys on 4Chan are basically trolling a bunch of people into believing this shit?
A: As far as I can tell, that's the gist of it.
Q: So, how did what originated as an image board meant to discuss Anime become a part of this?
A: Their politics board /pol/, that's how. Also, because this is the world we now live in.
Q: So, does Trump know about this?
A: He does. He hasn't said whether or not it's real, but he's mentioned them and said he likes that they like him. It's his usual way of not acknowledging but also acknowledging something, as well as encouraging the worst in people.
Q: So, are there any major supporters of this?
A: Yep. The biggest one is Marjorie Taylor Green, who is running for congress and is likely to win. Others include some celebrities, and grifters like living facelift Bill Mitchell, who was recently banned from Twitter. As a matter of fact, Twitter and even Facebook have had to delete thousands of accounts and groups that support QAnon.
Q: Wait, so your saying this whole thing is actually dangerous.
A: As a matter of fact, yes-they've even become identified as a Domestic Terrorism threat. Unlike say, 9/11 conspiracy theorists which are annoying assholes but mostly harmless, QAnon has actually inspired some awful shit. Unlike that time Juggalos were declared a national threat, this is actually a big deal. Not to say they aren't annoying assholes-indeed it feels like you can't talk about how dumb this all is on social media or comment sections without hardcore believers telling you how wrong you are.
Q: So, what would a short way of describing this phenomenon?
A: A bunch of people who feel like they have no power have embraced a convoluted conspiracy theory instead of accepting the fact that Trump and his administration are incompetent.
Q: So it's like an online cult that's seeping into the modern world?
A: Exactly.
Q: So, will this all die out if Trump loses in November?
A: Oh, God bless you if you actually believe that. I have a feeling this is going to go on for a while. There will be a number of people (probably guys like Greg Abbott and Matt Gaetz) who will probably pay lip service to it, and more and more people who believe this conspiracy will enter the GOP and possibly win seats. In short, though there are Republicans who balk at the idea of QAnon, it's looking like the future of the party. Also, I would not be surprised if we see suicides, shootings, murders and "mercy killings" because of this shit if Trump loses the election.
TL;DR version-it ain't gonna get any better. All because an image board originally meant to talk about Anime has transformed into something that is actively ruining the world.
So, If you read all of this-congratulations! You read a lot of words, and you either learned something or feel dumber for reading all of it. Either way, if you hear about any QAnon bullshit, know people who believe, have seen it personally, or just wanna talk about whatever this hellscape of a thing is, then here you can post away.
Q: What is QAnon?
A: It's stupid.
Q: Ha Ha. No really, what is it?
A: Hoo boy. Well, a while back, somebody referring to themselves as Q started popping up on 4Chan and it's late, somehow worse offshoot 8Chan. He claimed to actually be a high level insider working in the Trump administration. He claimed that Trump was a part of "The Storm", which is a purge that will target the Deep State. This will, among other things, target a Satanic ring of pedophiles (basically anyone the far right doesn't care for, as well as Tom Hanks of all people), that the Saudi Prince is actually an ally of Trump, that JFK Jr is alive...it's all hard to explain, so please turn to this article which will probably explain it better than I could.
Q: Wow, that sounds insane. So, you're telling me some guys on 4Chan are basically trolling a bunch of people into believing this shit?
A: As far as I can tell, that's the gist of it.
Q: So, how did what originated as an image board meant to discuss Anime become a part of this?
A: Their politics board /pol/, that's how. Also, because this is the world we now live in.
Q: So, does Trump know about this?
A: He does. He hasn't said whether or not it's real, but he's mentioned them and said he likes that they like him. It's his usual way of not acknowledging but also acknowledging something, as well as encouraging the worst in people.
Q: So, are there any major supporters of this?
A: Yep. The biggest one is Marjorie Taylor Green, who is running for congress and is likely to win. Others include some celebrities, and grifters like living facelift Bill Mitchell, who was recently banned from Twitter. As a matter of fact, Twitter and even Facebook have had to delete thousands of accounts and groups that support QAnon.
Q: Wait, so your saying this whole thing is actually dangerous.
A: As a matter of fact, yes-they've even become identified as a Domestic Terrorism threat. Unlike say, 9/11 conspiracy theorists which are annoying assholes but mostly harmless, QAnon has actually inspired some awful shit. Unlike that time Juggalos were declared a national threat, this is actually a big deal. Not to say they aren't annoying assholes-indeed it feels like you can't talk about how dumb this all is on social media or comment sections without hardcore believers telling you how wrong you are.
Q: So, what would a short way of describing this phenomenon?
A: A bunch of people who feel like they have no power have embraced a convoluted conspiracy theory instead of accepting the fact that Trump and his administration are incompetent.
Q: So it's like an online cult that's seeping into the modern world?
A: Exactly.
Q: So, will this all die out if Trump loses in November?
A: Oh, God bless you if you actually believe that. I have a feeling this is going to go on for a while. There will be a number of people (probably guys like Greg Abbott and Matt Gaetz) who will probably pay lip service to it, and more and more people who believe this conspiracy will enter the GOP and possibly win seats. In short, though there are Republicans who balk at the idea of QAnon, it's looking like the future of the party. Also, I would not be surprised if we see suicides, shootings, murders and "mercy killings" because of this shit if Trump loses the election.
TL;DR version-it ain't gonna get any better. All because an image board originally meant to talk about Anime has transformed into something that is actively ruining the world.
So, If you read all of this-congratulations! You read a lot of words, and you either learned something or feel dumber for reading all of it. Either way, if you hear about any QAnon bullshit, know people who believe, have seen it personally, or just wanna talk about whatever this hellscape of a thing is, then here you can post away.
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