"Claims that cannot be tested, assertions immune to disproof are veridically worthless."
― Carl Sagan
"What can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence."
― Christopher Hitchens
Say, what ever happened to QAnon?
With prognostication failures one after another, I haven’t heard much about QAnon recently. Somewhat curious, a diminutive inquiry rendered that the Cult of QAnon had more than 30 failed predictions. Perhaps the most substantial letdown for its adherents was The Storm that was predicted to occur on inauguration day. As expected, a good number of followers experienced disillusionment, though many became dismissive that they got suckered and just moved on with their lives.
But something else happened that was a veritable certainty. Recognizing how conspiracy theories shift and evolve, true believers change and redefine the nature of their predictions after an apocalyptic cult’s prophecies fail to occur. Oh, they’ll cite numerous reasons why they failed, why it didn’t come to fruition, modify various conditions and criteria, then go on to make new unsubstantiated claims and predictions. This is the way they work and true believers will almost never admit being wrong despite failure after failure.
When the Zeta's Planet X/Nibiru imminent cataclysmic collision failed to occur in 2003, cult leader Nancy Lieder went through a variety of redefinitions, backpedaling, and new intel on what happened and what was coming next. Of course, none of it ever happened. To this day there are true believers in the Zeta Cult who still give credence to Planet X nonsense. Their last failed prediction went largely unnoticed September of 2017. Their primary source of information? Group/Bubble-think forums on the Internet, citing information on astronomical and physics websites out of context, quote mining, and more. If you were a physicist, cosmologist, or astronomer that spoke out against Zeta, you were branded in on the conspiracy to cover it up. Is this starting to sound familiar yet?
Let’s say you were an ardent QAnon follower, but you didn’t want to seem foolish falling for its brand of nonsense; folks like Steve Bannon, Alex Jones, and Bill Still came to the rescue. One way to save yourself from disillusionment (and embarrassment) is to latch onto a redefinition of what QAnon is. To that end, fringe podcasters claimed QAnon was actually a psyop used to make its adherents look stupid. And who was behind it? Naturally, US Intelligence agencies working with the Cabal. This is a classic case of cognitive dissonance and motivated reasoning being used as a coping mechanism. It's an application of fallacious and textbook conspiratorial thinking because it’s easier to keep pedaling conspiracy theories than to admit being wrong and change one's behavior.
Is there any evidence for this conspiratorial switcheroo? Nope. None. Zilch. So, how can anyone buttress such a claim? Apparently, one way is to change origin stories and purport yourself the victim. Some conspiracy theorists now say QAnon was mirrored on a Russian counterintelligence operation from the 1920s, Operation Trust. This was a Bolshevik counterintelligence operation run from 1921 to 1926 aimed at neutralizing opposition by creating the false impression that a powerful group of military leaders had organized to stop a communist takeover. This may seem convincing to adherents given similarities of what’s being asserted. However, the adequacy of an explanation is no guarantee that it’s the correct one. Rather than admit being duped by their own tribe, it’s far better to shift the blame to some other entity or target on the opposition's side.
So ...
It isn't that Candidate A was defeated in an election and subsequently lost 60+ lawsuits challenging the results, it's that Candidate B was favored by the Cabal, and they were responsible for rigging the election and bending judges to their will. They didn't lose the election, they were victims.
It isn't that people in one particular in-group created a riot, it's that nefarious actors in the out-group, including federal intelligence agency members, wanted to make the in-group look bad. Naturally, the Cabal was ultimately responsible. Candidate A's followers didn't riot, they were victims.
It isn't that adherents of QAnon were wrong, it's that they got hoodwinked by intelligence agencies propagating one of the most successful psyops in history. Well, probably the Cabal's work again. QAnon wasn't on their side, they were victims.
Can you see how the Cabal is a bit like Nibiru the non-existent planet? Any bit of information that can be misconstrued to count for it is accepted and embraced, but anything going against it is dismissed out of hand. Speak out, and you're in on it.