The QAnon Conspiracy Has Stumbled Into Real Life, And It's Not Going To End Well

[turbinetree]

POLITICS 07/24/2018 08:01 am ET

Armed men showing up and demanding answers to conspiracies. That can’t be good.

By Andy Campbell

On June 15, when he packed his AR-15 and drove an armored vehicle onto the bridge near Hoover Dam, Matthew Wright had a mission. He’d gleaned it from a berserk conspiracy theory that circulates mainly online, and now here he was, offline, near a very real dam, with a not-at-all-virtual rifle.

As he blocked traffic, he held up a sign. “Release the OIG report,” it read. He wanted the same thing that so many others that subscribe to the all-encompassing QAnon conspiracy theory want: some sort of proof of a “deep state” conspiracy, run by the liberal elite and Hollywood, to commit and then cover up an array of atrocities, from child sex trafficking to false-flag shootings. And they thought they would find at least some damning evidence in the Department of Justice’s inspector general report on the FBI’s handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation.

The report he was looking for had actually been released the day before, and it didn’t have any of the information he and the rest of the QAnon followers sought. Of course, the theory’s adherents believe there’s another inspector general’s report they haven’t seen, one with all the “true” information, and they’ll fight to get it.

On the day he was arrested in Arizona on a variety of federal charges, Wright was acting as a soldier for “Q.” That’s the handle of an anonymous poster on equally anonymous message boards 4chan and 8chan and on Reddit since late last year. In letters Wright wrote from jail, intended for President Donald Trump and various government offices, he signed off with the QAnon motto: “For where we go one, we go all.” He also referred to a “Great Awakening,” another likely allusion to QAnon.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/qanon-conspiracy-real-life_us_5b54bbafe4b0b15aba8fe484

[scheming daemons]

1. The people qho believe the QAnon nonsense are the same people who bought PizzaGate lie.

Low IQ, white, easily manipulated...... and armed.

[Initech]

2. And also the Birther lie.

And Benghazi. And Hillary's emails. And the Clinton Foundation funneling money from Haiti. And all of the hundreds of bullshit lies and conspiracy theories we've had to put up with the last 40 years.

[Scurrilous]

3. I could think of a better way to spend my summer.

[FM123]

4. I am usually very dismissive of these idiotic kooks that can barely tie their own shoes

but one line in this article, gave me a chill....
"and now here he was, offline, near a very real dam, with a not-at-all-virtual rifle"
Yes, these armed men showing up and demanding answers to conspiracies. That can’t be good.

[VOX]

5. Conspiracy addiction "justifies" ownership military-style firearms.

Let’s face it, these are addictions for disturbed and simple-minded individuals. They cannot get enough of it.

How many weapons-freaks have been on record as saying they own firearms to “stop a tyrannical government”? That particular fantasy is doubly ironic:
1) There NOW exists a genuinely tyrannical government, but it’s “their guy,” so that earns not only a pass, but a hearty endorsement;
2) Their AR-15s wouldn’t be much of a match against any government that can deploy drones (of various capacities and sizes), uses communications/tracking satellites, and possesses armaments that make an AR-15 look like a pop-gun.

These feral people lead hopeless lives, separated from anything loving or nurturing. All they see/hear is how their white skins are gradually losing exclusivity, their lives are miserable, and they’re desperate to stay off the bottom of the pile. Into that gaping void comes Alex Jones, Rush, Hannity, Breitbart, 4Chan, et al with THE reason they’re so down-and-out: It’s the “godless liberals,” POC, women, gays, intellectuals, Democrats, a free press, etc., so the litany goes, day after day.

Given this volatile mix, what are the odds that some of these ferals will be suddenly inspired to make a “heroic” assault on these identified “enemies” of America?

Is there anyone with a sane mind today who does not experience deep concern that something very bad (with no quick, easy fix) is coming? That all reason and order are teetering on a razor’s edge?

[haele]

7. Trump would love a couple OKC type events in Blue States. So long as his properties are OK.

He figures can act Prezidential enough that the Press will fawn over him and "his enemies" will have to leave him alone.
And the spotlight would be on him for the rest of his residency.
Best of all, he doesn't really have to do anything - just put shit out there and stand aside.

Haele

[Oneironaut]

6. The QAnon people are like flat earthers. You can try to change their mind until you turn purple.

If you debunk part of their theories, they either make another theory to explain what you disproved, or start launching ad hominem attacks against you.

[superpatriotman]

8. Let's empty the baby jails

And re brand them q anon re education centers.