QAnon

A Counter Narrative?

John Fraim

 

A lot of people would have you believe that the hop cultural topic today of QAnon is the creation of Harley-riding, right wing, red neck conspirators. That they believe in crazy kinds of conspiracies throughout recent history. Like conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination of JFK. That aliens are running the government. That a global cult of pedophiles are controlling much of the world. Hollywood knows of satanic cults and many know the secret codes of communication today with those in control.

This is the way it is with a lot of people in the nation feel at this time. Their feelings hardly ever have anything to do with experience of what QAnon really means. Few in popular culture have taken the time to do any type of investigation on QAnon. Their views, like so many other things, not from experience but from others telling them how their experience would be if they ever had the particular experience.

The designation “QAnon” is bonded with other words that cultural controllers spend millions on giving bad names to. Specifically, the word “conspiracy” and words associated with it such as conspiracy theorists, conspiracy theories. And, whistleblowers.

There is no question that those in cultural control have been relegating the word QAnon and anything associated with it to something below the conspiracy theories of, say, even Alex Jones. The media and cultural police are really out to put an end to QAnon.

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Yet, the group has garnered status as a topic of The New York Times via an article about the group in an article in mid-August. It is a short but good article that hints at the growing power of QAnon. While the article chastises the group and its connection to a crazy group of right-wing, deep “dark web” conspiracy theorists, the subtext of the article is a sense of worry and concern about the growing size of the group although attempts have been made to slow its growth. The leading technology reporter for the Times, Kevin Roose, is the major source for the article. He has covered QAnon extensively. And Kevin makes some interesting observations,

Social media platforms play a big part in it. “It’s still very fringe in terms of its ideology, but not in terms of its scale,” Kevin said. “We’ve seen QAnon Facebook groups swell to hundreds of thousands of members, and they are routinely driving conversations on social media.”

The article in the NYT continues. This week, NBC News reported that an internal Facebook investigation found thousands of QAnon-supporting groups and pages with millions of members and followers. Twitter permanently suspended thousands of accounts associated with the movement last month. And, TikTok has blocked searches for QAnon-related hashtags.

Kevin Roose makes an interesting comment. These companies have “realized belatedly that this is a major problem,” he says. “The horse has left the barn.”

QAnon Demonstrator

The pandemic, which led many people to spend more time online, has also bolstered the movement. In the Times article, Roose says, “Our social interactions are mostly taking place online, and that means that the communities that have power online, including QAnon, are a much bigger part of the discourse.”

The Times article speculates much of its growth also comes from QAnon’s ability to attach itself to, and then absorb, both legitimate causes and “every major conspiracy theory of the past 50 years,” Roose says.

Its followers are “deliberately attempting to radicalize new groups of people,” he noted, by infiltrating Facebook groups focused on vaccine safety, parenting, and natural food and health.

The most interesting part of the article – for me – was the end of the article. At the end of the article Kevin Roose throws a broad net over the group called QAnon. Might they be the modern digital version of the Tea Party in 2009? He provides a much broader definition of who QAnon is and who are the people attracted to it when he says the following: “These are people who might be skeptical of mainstream science or authorities,” Roose says.

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Humm. Thinking about this. It seems like this might be a pretty large group in America at this point in time. Roose continues that not only are they skeptical of information today but also that they have taken a concerted action into culture. It is a growing message. Roose defines it best at the end of the article in The New York Times.  “They’re inserting their messages to those communities,” he says. “So that’s what people need to be made aware of – these aren’t people hanging out in the dark corners of the internet anymore.”

Those in control have worked their magic again by associating letters and words with ideas and emotions for mass culture. And, mass culture believing in all of the words the controllers have given them. The word conspiracy has had perhaps the worst reputation of any word in the language of media. The bad reputation has been built up over the years by the controllers. They have spent millions in advertising and branding to tell the populace that the word “Conspiracy” is a bad name, a bad brand. A poison brand. Something to stay away from.

Associating QAnon up with the bad name “Conspiracy” meme in popular culture, seems the least expensive and most powerful way to discredit QAnon. Don’t attack QAnon directly. Simply associate QAnon with that bad brand in culture … called “Conspiracy.” And why wouldn’t it be a bad brand as the entire TV media is saying this.

But what if QAnon are not a bunch of right-wing red-necks but something else? If one might be able to get past consideration of something else, then give us a few moments to present the real story of the early years of QAnon.

The Motto of QAnon

Certainly, these early years should be important for anyone truly interested in knowing anything about QAnon. Yet, hardly anyone ever attempts research into this area.

Those who might investigate would find that QAnon was really developed by a young boy who could not leave his wheelchair. He had some type of condition since birth. I’m not going to give out a bunch of links. All I can tell readers is to search “QAnon” on Google. Many links. Who knows if there are more links knowing that Google doesn’t approve of this type of search. You’ll discover the real birth of QAnon in this young boy who was wheelchair bound. Not much of a Harley Rider here.

Whether one believes in what you hear about QAnon today, it is always a good idea to explore something before proclaiming a hate for it. A hate not from one’s one experience but the experience of another. The substitution of one’s own self to a particular media personality different from the real personality of a person. This type of strange possession is happening all over American culture today. I think anyone who wants an explanation about QAnon – admittedly filtered via Google search that is against QAnon – can still find many resources from original posters. How long this will be available is a good question.

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In searching about QAnon, I found the short YouTube video “Dark to Light” posted above by a member of QAnon called Joe M. It starts with children in a classroom saying the pldge of allegiance to the flag and putting their hands over their hearts. The words of the narrator: “There was a time when our children stood at attention, put their hand on their heart, and in one united voice, recited the Pledge of Allegiance. When strength and honor meant something.” Under the post with the sub-head under the YouTube “QAnon is a far right conpsiracy theory detailing a supposed secret plot by an alleged deep state against the U.S. President Donald Trump and his supporters.” But for anyone watching the short video it is difficult to find it as the work of a far right wing conspiracy theory. 

Tea Party Protests / Summer of 2009

There is much to find out about QAnon. As I say, I’m a novice to all of this QAnon stuff. I don’t spend my days in the QAnon Internet universe.

Whatever it is, there is no denying that QAnon has those controlling the main political narrative today worried. QAnon offers a serious challenge to this narrative. In the same way that conspiracy theories have offered a challenge to the main narrative of the government in modern times. Many place the beginning of this modern conspiracy era with the Kennedy assassination.

Is QAnon a bunch of crazy right-wing conspiracy theorists? Or, might it be a modern reincarnation of the Tea Party in our time of lock-down and increasing Internet surveillance? Are new patriots in the nation involved with QAnon?

Or is this just another conspiracy theory?

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See this short video “Q for Beginners: Part I” from a QAnon member known as Prayingmedic, who says he is a researchers for QAnon. Also, stay on this video after it ends for the second “Q for Beginners: Part II.”

For more of a deep dive into QAnon, take a look at “Research Resources” for QAnon.