What is QAnon and where did it come from? What to know about the far-right conspiracy theory

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

A growing right-wing conspiracy theory has garnered national attention after Twitter announced it was removing and suspending accounts associated with it.

Roughly 7,000 Twitter accounts tied to QAnon, a baseless conspiracy theory that alleges the existence of a "deep state" with ties to a child sex trafficking ring, were removed from the platform. Eventually, 150,000 accounts affiliated with QAnon will be impacted with less visibility for other Twitter users.

-snip-

What is QAnon and where did it come from?

The QAnon conspiracy theory baselessly claims that there is a "deep state" apparatus run by political elites, business leaders and Hollywood celebrities who are also pedophiles and actively working against Trump.

View described it as meta conspiracy theory that provides an underlying narrative for other baseless theories. According to View, its followers believe that this "worldwide cabal of satanic pedophiles" run "all the major levers of power," including government, media, business and Hollywood.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/qanon-where-did-come-know-203930929.html

QAnon believers want a derp state.

[SoonerPride]

1. I assume this is the handiwork of our "friends" the Russians

But that belief in and of itself may just be a conspiracy theory.

[RKP5637]

5. Yeah, I was just thinking the same and/or secretly funded by tRump and his henchmen.

... yep, you're right, would sound like another conspiracy theory. One that isn't ... there are a lot of naive, propagandized and stupid people in the US. All the adversaries know this.

[DTomlinson]

11. It came out of 4chan which is anonymous so who knows?

Could be just some random right-wing trolling that "went viral", so to speak.

[RKP5637]

2. This crap is so unbelievable. WTF is wrong with these damn fools! n/t

[ace3csusm]

3. They are the crazies your mom told you to stay away from...

[budkin]

4. I'm about to start an Instagram (and possibly TikTok) playing an idiotic Q disciple

I'll post it here for your enjoyment once it's ready to go!

[soothsayer]

6. Yay!

[Blue Owl]

9. OMG plenty of material there -- it'll write itself, practically!!!

[A HERETIC I AM]

7. What the hell is with the right wing obsession with pedophiles?

I realize there are sexual deviants who prefer sex with minors and children, and even stalk them and kidnap them on occasion, but the way the right wing paints it, every 3rd adult on the planet is fucking little girls and boys!

Is that some sort of default finger pointing argument? Like calling someone a “Commie” was when I was young? They don’t have a valid counter argument, so you MUST be a pedophile if you want equality, fair wages and universal healthcare!

WTF, seriously!

And BTW, I thought they thought QAnon was on THEIR side.

[DTomlinson]

13. I don't want to accuse any of them of projection, but...

[RKP5637]

15. K&R !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! n/t

[RKP5637]

14. Projection, pure and simple!

Psychological projection is a defense mechanism in which the human ego defends itself against unconscious impulses or qualities (both positive and negative) by denying their existence in themselves while attributing them to others. For example, a bully may project their own feelings of vulnerability onto the target.

[WyattKansas]

28. I WILL!

Nobody spends that much time obsessing about something and wanting to know more, unless they have those tendencies.

[KWR65]

8. This is playing wack-a-mole.

They will just change to Parler to spread their misinformation. They already use the Free Republic with daily updates.

[DBoon]

10. Meth. It's one hell of a drug.

During meth-induced psychosis, a person may develop delusions, hallucinations, paranoia, and violent behavior. These states may make it difficult for a person to separate their perceptions from what is real. It can also make them dangerous to themselves or those around them.

A person who abuses meth recreationally is two to three times more likely to develop psychosis than those who do not use this drug. Those who use the drug chronically, however, have an 11 times greater risk.

Prior to developing psychosis, a person who uses meth may encounter a pre-psychotic state that is marked by delusional moods and ideas of reference, or believing that everyday events have great personal significance. Delusions and hallucinations accompany full-blown psychosis.

https://www.addictioncampuses.com/meth/psychosis/

I really do think meth abuse is behind a lot of right wing craziness

[FM123]

12. The scary part is not that this crazy Q group exists, but how many folks think their ideas okay

Nearly 600,000 people have voted for candidates who support QAnon
The overlap of Q supporters with Trump’s base of support is not a coincidence.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/07/01/nearly-600000-people-have-voted-candidates-who-support-qanon/

[UTUSN]

16. "anonymous poster Q" - am not getting the specific origin

[crickets]

18. Nobody is, really, but here:

https://www.gq.com/story/what-the-hell-is-qanon

The whole thing started on 4chan. An anonymous user going by "Q," a reference to the highest level of security clearance, began posting in October of last year. According to Q, who claims to be one or more people high in the Trump administration, all past presidents have been involved in shadowy criminal dealings centered mostly on an international pedophile ring and a global sex trade of child slaves. Featuring prominently in this are the usual boogeyman: Barack Obama, the Clintons, George Soros, the whole gang.

Another eye-opening article about QAnon - very long but also very informative:

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2020/06/qanon-nothing-can-stop-what-is-coming/610567/

[hamsterjill]

19. I wonder if the originator based the name off Star Trek TNG

The character “Q” on that show is omnipotent. I wonder if that’s a factor in the choice of the moniker.

In any event, they are all “out there”. I have several old high school classmates who post this stuff and it’s pretty hilarious the extremes they go to in order to hate anyone who doesn’t worship Trump.

[UTUSN]

22. Thanks!

[crickets]

24. You're welcome! nt

[UTUSN]

25. That 2nd article *was* a challenge, but totally worth it!

[Midnight Writer]

17. Some people are saying Q is Karl Rove.

[UTUSN]

26. KKKarl is cutting, but BANNON would be more of my guess!1

[Talitha]

20. Ok, I finally get it... QAnon is the Republican Party!

[BGBD]

21. I don't believe there is a centralized Qanon

It most likely started out as a night of trolling and grew way out of proportion.

I think the original poster was a troll there to screw with the MAGA crowd, but they latched on to it. Several grifters saw opportunity so they jumped in and started running with it. I think the Trump campaign and Russia has likely co-opted it as well as a way to put rumors out there without having to touch them on their own.

Honestly, if you had a youtube channel or wanted to get big on Twitter, leaning into Qanon would have been a good bet. A mass of gullible folks ready to believe anything you tell them so long as it reinforces their need to worship Donald Trump. Any bad news that comes out, just twist it to either be a secret plan that Trump is in control of or the efforts of the evil Democrats/media to protect their pedophile demigods in Washington and Hollywood. Oh, and blame as much as you can on George Soros and the Illuminati.

That leads to instant 100K+ followers and then you can start making that sweet cash by grifting these fools on zinc tablets and vitamin C.

[crickets]

23. "Russia has likely co-opted it" - ding! Winner. nt

[BGBD]

27. I doubt

they are putting a lot of effort into crafting the theories, the crazies are doing that for them. I think they are amplifying it on social media.

[Drunken Irishman]

29. It's an open source conspiracy. Anyone can take the basics and tweak it into what they want.

[BGBD]

31. Open source

Yes, that's the best description of it.

It is a Wikipedia page. Plus you an tie in all the old favorites. Moon landing, chemtrails, Area 51, 9/11, Soros, Lizard People, Illuminati, Masons, etc.

[Catherine Vincent]

30. Good!

There's a lot of right wing idiots believe that crap and parrot it all over social media.