Online far-right movements shatter in the wake of the Capitol riot last week, as some radical anti-government movements show signs of disillusionment with the relatively practical approach of some QAnon conspiracy theorists amid warnings about future violence.
Users on forums who openly helped coordinate the January 6 riot and call for insurgency, including 4chan and TheDonald, became increasingly excited about QAnon supporters, who largely still deny that President Donald Trump is no longer in the Oval Office will not be. 20.
QAnon supporters, who believe Trump is secretly rescuing the world from a cabal of satanist children eating, have identified Inauguration Day as a last resort and falsely believe he will force a ten-day nationwide eclipse that ends in the mass execution of his political enemies and a second Trump term.
Several QAnon supporters were arrested after storming the Capitol last week, including Jacob Chansley, whose lawyer said his client believed he was answering our president’s call.
QAnon believers have been sending chain letters via Facebook and text message over the past week, often removing the conspiracy theory’s origins from QAnon, in an effort to prepare friends and family for what they believe will be the coming day of judgment.
According to researchers studying the real consequences of the QAnon movement, the false belief in a secret plan for January 20 is irritating militant pro-Trump and anti-government groups, who believe that magical thinking is counterproductive for future uprisings.
Travis View, who hosts the QAnon debunking podcast QAnon Anonymous, said Q fans are waiting for a ‘miracle that prevents Biden from being inaugurated’, and it is starting to tarnish those who are anxious for more conflict in the real world.
“I’ve seen Trump supporters chastise people who promote QAnon-like conspiracy theories,” he said. “Some Trump supporters seem to be reevaluating their coalition and judging the QAnon wing.”
The rift appears on extremist forums like TheDonald, from which QAnon fans fled to an identical sister site due to constant care for their fantastic thinking on the original site. The new website is named after The Great Awakening, the mythical doomsday of mass arrests and executions.
This is also evident on viral TikToks and Facebook posts on the more common parts of the web.
“I can not believe the number of gullible people who are still there who say that Q will come to the rescue within the next five days, and that you will see military tribunals,” a user said in one viral TikTok video. “Look, I’m a full Trump supporter and I enjoyed reading all the stuff about the deep state, and I believe most of it.”
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who regularly quarreled with QAnon supporters, also voiced conspiracy theorists in a viral video earlier this week.
Supporters of QAnon have been predicting blackouts for years, citing placements of ‘Q’, the false digital prophet at the center of conspiracy theory. Q has regularly posted about routine disruptions to major services, pointing to them as possible warning signs of the Great Awakening. In August 2018, Q posted three times about interruptions to the video game service Xbox Live, wondering, “Does anyone have issues with their X-Box Live accounts?” to the followers of the conspiracy theory.
While several specific days of judgment have passed without any prophecies coming true, experts studying QAnon believe that another failed prophecy on Inauguration Day could slow the movement further.
Fredrick Brennan, who created the website 8chan where ‘Q’ is posted and has been trying for the past two years to have the website removed from the internet due to his links to white supremacist terrorist attacks, said he believes the reality is the movement on Inauguration Day can ruin.
“This week has been tremendously demoralizing so far and it will be the last straw,” he said. “Even though Q is currently based on Donald Trump, it is certainly possible for a significant faction to stand up who believes he has been in the deep end all along and thwarts the plan.”