THE CONSPIRASPHERE FEATURES
NOEL ROONEY examines some unexpected side effects of the current pandemic, including a falling out among the alt-right and assassins armed with snotty tissues...
RUMOURS OF WAR
One of the hidden side effects of the coronavirus pandemic is the appearance of schisms in the alt-right Trump fan base. This novel form of social distancing is down to interpretations of the origins and purpose of the virus (there must be a purpose; there are no accidents or coincidences in the religiously oriented world of the alt-right): among the QAnon community, a whole range of theories has arisen, the most Q-ish of which is the idea that the whole thing is a cover for the Storm – finally Hillary and her Democrat baby-eaters will be arrested, and there will be no riots because everyone is indoors; for the more traditional, anticommunist right wing, however, this is the beginning of a war against an external foe – China.
The traditionalist patriots are slamming the QAnon crowd for not seeing the truth: about the virus and the terrible effects predicted for America; about the looming menace of China; and about the performance of the Donald, which many on the right see as tragically incompetent and inconsistent. A video popped up on quite a few conspiracy sites (including Rense, which was pro-Trump until quite recently) showing the Donald’s erratic comments on the crisis laid over a calendar, thus making it clear he has no idea what he’s saying or doing.
The Q people are sticking by Trump (not an easy task given how circuitous a route he is weaving through the crisis) and coming up with increasingly bizarre speculations on approaching comets and 5G technology. None of this, it has to be said, is coming directly from Q; there has been only one Q-drop on the coronavirus flap, which simply repeats Trump’s unique nomenclature – the China virus. But QAnon is a juggernaut under its own steam now; Q’s pronouncements are only a part of the bigger picture. In any case, given this is election year (assuming it doesn’t, like the Olympics, get postponed) it is not good news for the President that his support is divided just as his ‘economic miracle’ comes tumbling down in a fit of fever and coughing.
The cheerleaders for the war against China see things in stark terms. The virus (against all the scientific evidence to the contrary) is a bio-weapon, manufactured in China with technology and know-how stolen from the West (Chinese scientists working in the USA and Canada stole the plans; which rather begs the question of who started this whole thing). The virus is the opening phase in what will soon turn into a real, kinetic conflict, with millions of Chinese troops invading the USA when it is weakened and depopulated by the outbreak of Covid-19. Evidence for this impending threat includes the recent mobilisation of one million American troops; notwithstanding that all the personnel called up have medical skills and may just be on standby to help when hospitals are overwhelmed. The old story of FEMA stockpiling coffins has been dusted off too and updated to suit the coronavirus situation, an agglutinative gambit that grand narrative conspiracy theory often employs to freshen up fading memes.
Some conspiracists have taken this theory to uncanny lengths. Shepard Ambellas, a leading light on the conspiracy news site Intellihub, posted a video (since taken down) that purported to show the opening shots in the war. A young woman of east Asian appearance is seen to blow her nose in a tissue, then wipe the used item on the back of a park bench where a young white American male is sitting all unawares (‘white American male’, in alt-right speak, is of course a synonym, and symbol, for victim). The video is so obviously a spoof that you can practically hear the canned laughter, yet Ambellas takes it as evidence that the wicked Chinese are sending out teams of trained assassins, armed to the nose, to murder innocent Americans with second-hand snot. After such an insult, where else is there to go but full-scale war?