Bill Gates Paul put out a video critical of the q-anon movement and how it’s leading its followers astray
A came to similar conclusion about how Q has failed to deliver on any of its prophecies. There is no plan, no ‘mass arrests’ of Hollywood pedophiles and democratic officials, and no storm. Just the same as usual, in which elites, whether in Washington and in tech or in finance, continue to gain more power. Just a few day ago it was revealed that Ilhan Omar’s husband received $635k in Covid-19 bailout. So much for draining the swap. The PPP (penis protection program) has been among the biggest boondoggles ever. It is a joke.
The first Q postings appeared on 4chan on October 28, 2017. From wiki:
A user named “Q Clearance Patriot” first appeared on the /pol/ board of 4chan on October 28, 2017, posting in a thread titled “Calm Before the Storm”,[14] a reference to Trump’s cryptic description of a gathering of United States military leaders he attended as “the calm before the storm”.[14][51] The “Storm” became QAnon parlance for an imminent event in which thousands of alleged suspects will be arrested, imprisoned, and executed for being child-eating pedophiles.[3] The poster’s username implied that they hold Q clearance,[52][53] a United States Department of Energy security clearance required to access Top Secret information on nuclear weapons and materials.[54] An Internet community soon developed around interpreting and analyzing posts attributed to Q, and among these conspiracy theorists, several individuals became minor celebrities within the community.[55][56]
Initially, Reddit and 4chan communities were enthusiastic about Q. But as months passed and none of the events Q foretold came true, such enthusiasm turned to skepticism, cynicism, and then derision. Now Q is relegated to being a ‘boomer meme’ and disregarded by much of /pol/ and Reddit.
I first became aware of Q after seeing a posting linking ‘a shadow, a mug, the Apple logo, and Air Force 1.’ I was intrigued for about an hour and after doing some research realized it was bullshit and lost interest.
I disagree with Ramz that Q is an inside job, as there is no evidence to substantiate such a claim. Rather than being controlled opposition, I think it is approved opposition, in that the liberal media is constantly promoting Q. Much like how media campaigns against drugs and cigarettes can backfire by making drugs ‘cool’ as an act of rebellion, the same is going on with Q. The liberal media is constantly talking about Q, such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, not just to debunk it (which is trivially easy and does not need a dozen articles every week about it), but to make Q seem ‘edgy and cool’ in hope of leading podetial right-wing dissidents astray down a dead-end.
I disagree that there will be disillusionment among Q supporters if Trump fails to be inaugurated. Just as Q supporters have been able to rationalize Q being wrong for the past 3 years without losing faith, they will find a way to rationalize Trump losing, too, as part of the conspiracy. The nice thing about conspiracy theories is that they can be modified to take into account new information, without having to abandon the conspiracy: any new information that counters the conspiracy becomes a part of the conspiracy. This is not an attack on conspiracy theories and those who believe in them, because conspiracy theories can sometimes be true, but stubbornly holding on to a conspiracy theory after it has been discredited/refuted, is unproductive.