“Q Anonymous,” better known as QAnon, is one or more bloggers who claim to have secret info from inside the Trump White House. The inside insights regularly fail to pan out, yet “Q” is still popular.

One or more web pundits called “Q” have claimed to have inside knowledge about the Trump administration and those working against it. But Q’s insights aren’t astute.

On Sunday, October 30, 1938, CBS Radio broadcast an Orson Welles dramatization of H.G. Wells’ novel War of the Worlds. The broadcast — framed as a series of news broadcasts — included a disclaimer at the beginning stating that it was fictional. Unfortunately, many people across the country tuned in late and missed that disclaimer. Some listeners thought what they were hearing were actual news reports interrupting an evening of musical programming. The fictional news reports were of a series of attacks by Martians. Those who were fooled by the production panicked as a result. Some reports indicate the panic was widespread; others indicate that it was rare. At any rate, those who panicked did so because they fully believed that Earth was being attacked by an advanced alien race.

It is an easy thing for those of us living in 2020 to view — with some amusement — those 1938 listeners as simpletons. After all, they actually thought Earth was under inter-planetary attack. How simple-minded can you get? But it is important to take into account the concept of confirmation bias.

People had been been writing about and discussing the possibility of advanced alien life-forms since at least the 1500s, and the term “flying saucer” dates to a January 25, 1878 newspaper article detailing the account of a farmer claiming he had seen one. With additional claims of sightings and news reports of “flying saucers” from the early 1900s to the late 1920s, the idea was well inculcated in the public mind. It is no surprise then that those who were predisposed to entertain (if not outright believe) such accounts would panic upon hearing what they believed were news reports of a Martian military invasion. It confirmed their bias. On October 28, 2017 — almost 79 years after War of the Worlds — an anonymous 4chan user employing the moniker “Q” claimed to have access to classified information involving the battle between the Trump administration and its opponents in the Deep State.

Again, the power of confirmation bias showed itself. Since it was obvious to any honest observer that President Trump was the victim of a tar-and-feather campaign, as well as a well-orchestrated witch hunt, Q seemed to “fill in the blanks” and explain what was really going on “behind the scenes.” As a result, many suspended critical thinking and took — as unquestionable truth — whatever Q proposed, including Q’s predictions of what would happen. This, even though no one knew who he (or much more likely they) was, and even when the conspiracy theories got wilder and wilder. That suspension of critical thinking — fueled at least in part by confirmation bias — continued even as prediction after prediction has failed to come to pass, and some theories even directly contradicted previous theories. There is a story (likely apocryphal) about Winston Churchill that illustrates this particular Q dynamic. It is said that Churchill attended a dinner party and was standing at the bottom of a staircase with his host. As two women began to descend, Churchill motioned to the women and remarked to his host, “There is the most unhandsome woman I have ever seen.” The host, shocked, replied, “That, sir, is my wife.” Without missing a beat, Churchill said, “I was referring to the other.” When the man informed him that the other was his daughter, Churchill downed the remainder of his drink, looked the man in the eye, and said, “Sir, I never said it.”

That story — though not likely to be true — is funny. What Q does is not. Another difference is that the mythical host did not likely believe that Churchill never said it, while Q followers are so bombarded with one fanciful theory after another that they likely can’t keep up with what was said and see where one claim contradicts something else that was said. However, it is not merely the contradictions that should give one pause where Q is concerned. Those contradictions are part of a larger picture of failed predictions — referred to as prophecies by some followers. Many of the failed “prophecies” also fit neatly into the category of contradictions, since they are merely the resetting of dates after the promised dates came and went without the “prophecies” being fulfilled.

And it’s not as though Q began with fulfilled predictions before stepping up to the plate, swinging for the fence, and hitting nothing but air. Q’s failures started with the first prediction, known as Drop #1 (Q posts are called “drops” and are numbered and dated).

Drop #1 — dated October 28, 2017 at 4:44 p.m. — was not entirely a prediction of the future. It also contained elements that it claimed were present and past. That drop read, “HRC [Hillary Rodham Clinton] extradition already in motion and effective yesterday with several countries in case of cross border run.” This, of course, assumed that Hillary Clinton was soon to be arrested. The drop continued, claiming that Clinton’s passport was “approved to be flagged effective 10/30 @12:01am.” The drop then stated, “Expect massive riots organized in defiance and others fleeing the US to occur. US M’s [military] will conduct the operation while NG [National Guard] activated.”

For those who doubted the veracity of the claims of Drop #1, Q offered this at the conclusion of the post: “Proof check: Locate a NG [National Guard] member and ask if activated for duty 10/30 across most major cities.” If those who read that drop at the time had taken that challenge, Q would likely have fizzled out, and there would not have been subsequent failed predictions — because there was no military operation, no activation of the National Guard, no mass riots, no Clinton accomplices fleeing the country. In fact, nothing predicted or claimed in the drop turned out to be true. Most notably, instead of Hillary Clinton being arrested on October 28, 2017 — beginning the end of the Deep State/DNC conspiracy — it turned out that two of President Trump’s former aides, Paul Manafort and Rick Gates, were charged on that date and turned themselves in. A third former Trump aide (George Papadopoulos) was reported that day to have already pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI.

Now, while the Deep State conspiracy is a reality, and there is certainly a battle taking place for the survival of America, one danger in the Q approach is that patriots who follow and cite Q in their discourse with others lose credibility with each failed prediction. For instance, if someone who follows and cites Q on issues related to the Deep State conspiracy attempts to share information about an issue that is well documented — such as the evidence of actual collusion between Clinton and Russia — people have already ceased listening because the credibility of the person presenting the information has been sacrificed by repeating Q’s myriad cries of “wolf!”

Perhaps it would ameliorate things to at least a small degree if Q had followed Drop #1 with something that had a shred of credibility, but instead, Drop #2 followed an hour and a half later with claims that “HRC” had been “detained,” but “not arrested (yet)” and enigmatic questions with no foundation in truth, such as, “Why did Soros donate all his money recently?” It is obvious two and a half years later that Hillary Clinton has not been detained or arrested. And — given his continued penchant for funding Marxist, anti-American programs and causes — George Soros had not donated all of his money by October 30, 2017.

Before moving forward with a more complete list of Q’s falsehoods, let’s spend a little ink and paper addressing the deliberately enigmatic nature of many Q drops going back to the very beginning. In what appears to a vain attempt at just enough mystery to keep from being called out as a fraud, Q often reads like Nostradamus. For example, Drop #4, dated October 29 at 12:11 p.m. reads:

Some of us come here to drop crumbs, just crumbs.

POTUS [the president of the United States] is 100% insulated — any discussion suggesting he’s even a target is false.

POTUS will not be addressing nation on any of these issues as people begin to be indicted and must remain neutral for pure optical reasons. To suggest this is the plan is false and should be common sense.

Focus on Military Intellingence/State Secrets and why might that be used vs any three letter agency

What SC [presumably “Supreme Court”] decision opened the door for a sitting President to activate — what must be showed?

Why is POTUS surrounded by generals ^^

Again, there are a lot more good people than bad so have faith. This was a hostile takeover from an evil corrupt network of players (not just Democrats).

Don’t fool yourself into thinking Obama, Soros, Roth’s, Clinton’s etc have more power present day than POTUS.

Operation Mockingbird

Patriots are in control. Sit back and enjoy the show.

There is more to unpack in that drop than the space of this article allows, so this writer will take what he sees as the three most obvious and important. First, the idea of “drop[ing] crumbs, just crumbs” sets a theme for the next 4,147 drops, as of this writing. Much of what Q posts is left up to the reader to divine and interpret, leaving Q free of any blame for any misinterpretation. If Q truly wants to expose something and help patriots along the path to enlightenment, wouldn’t it be better to be clear instead of deliberately vague?

Second, the claim that “POTUS will not be addressing nation on any of these issues as people begin to be indicted and must remain neutral for pure optical reasons” and that to “suggest this is the plan is false and should be common sense” is a plain cop out. Since no one Q has claimed would be indicted has actually been indicted, doesn’t it make more sense that President Trump has not addressed the nation on any of this because there is nothing to Q’s claims?

And third, the admonition that since “patriots are in control” we should all just “sit back and enjoy the show” creates a dangerous apathy. Someone who follows Q only has two responsibilities: Repost without verifying the veracity or credibility of any given claim, and stay out of the way. In other words, do nothing.

As an example of the Nostradamus-like nature of posts that leave followers scraping the Internet for clues to any meaning, consider Drop #672:

Find the roll.

1 of 4.

Find the 4th.

Find the film.

Not the capture.

Enhance.

Spread.

Will go viral.

Source _ archive offline.

Raw only.

More importantly, drop after drop is an exercise in data overload, with more contradictions and false claims than can be counted. For example, Drop #15, dated October 31, 2017 at 11:00 p.m., claims that Clinton accomplice John Podesta will be indicted on November 3, followed by Clinton protégé Huma Abedin on November 6. Furthermore, the post ends with the statement that “Soros is targeted.” But that was two and half years ago and it never materialized.

Thirty one minutes later, Drop #16 said:

Get the popcorn, Friday & Saturday will deliver on the MAGA promise. POTUS knows he must clean house (gov’t) in order to ‘free up’ and demonstrate who has authority in order to pass important legislation. This was always the priority. Remember, AG Sessions cannot look like an impartial player that is out to get all former Obama team members as we need him for other important work. All will come into focus and for anyone to think POTUS is not in control is kidding themselves. Also, he’s 100% insulated with zero risk of impeachment (fact).

Nothing of any importance to the dismantling of the Deep State or anything else happened the following Friday or Saturday. The only thing of note at all was that the president left for a tour of Asia on Friday, November 3, 2017. No one was fired. No one was indicted. It was a normal day in the business of the federal government. It appears as though that popcorn was wasted. Furthermore, it has since been demonstrated that former Attorney General Jeff Sessions was — at the very least — a weak player for Team Trump. And in a glaring example of a false “prophecy,” President Trump was subsequently impeached.

In drop after drop (#25, #32, #34, #38, #61, #67 #326, #647, and many more), Q claimed that the National Guard would be called up; key people (here Podesta makes another appearance, as if this prediction had not already been made and failed to come to pass) would be arrested; President Trump would make bombshell tweets; major false-flag operations would be conducted and exposed; and the purge of the Deep State would begin. Despite specific dates and details, none of it ever happened.

Drop #700, though being particularly enigmatic, does contain another clear example of a failed prediction. Following a series of drops about the coming storm that will destroy the Deep State enemies of America, the post read, “[Next week] [Next week] [Next week] Suicide weekend?” Not surprisingly, no suicides came to pass.

In Drop #1014, Q predicted that Mark Zuckerberg would resign from Facebook. That was April 4, 2018, and Zuckerberg is still at the helm of the company he built.

There are many, many more such examples, but that should suffice.

Perhaps a comparison between Q and this magazine’s parent company, The John Birch Society, will help illuminate what real patriot leadership looks like. Since its founding in 1958, The John Birch Society has published innumerable books, articles, and other documents to expose the forces bent on global control. In all of the claims made by JBS, four points stand out. First, they are all deliberately clear, never vague and obfuscated to create confusion or misinterpretation. Second, they have all been painstakingly researched and documented, usually including citations to original source material. Third, JBS has never been shown to have gone out on any limbs with unfounded theories. In other words, JBS has never credibly been accused of making false claims or predictions. And fourth, when JBS exposes a problem, it also proposes a solution that members and others can work to employ. In other words, the JBS recognizes that if we are going to save our freedoms, we must work to bring that about through our own hard work (while, of course, also recognizing the need for God’s help); we cannot sit back and watch the show, expecting somebody else to save our freedoms for us. None of this can be said of Q. And above and beyond all of that, JBS publishes a list of its leaders, both at its headquarters in Appleton, Wisconsin, and in the field staff across the country. While Q’s followers have speculated wildly about who Q is, no one knows. But given the facts populating this article, the question should be raised: If the Deep State wanted to discredit and neutralize American patriots, could it have invented anything that would have been better designed for that purpose than Q? Of course, considering the trollish nature of 4chan, it is just as likely that Q is a group of 20-somethings laughing themselves silly for having pulled of a large-scale Internet prank that has taken on a life of its own.

One thing is obvious: Q is not — as claimed — someone with access to classified information involving the battle between the Trump administration and its opponents in the liberal establishment and who is working to save America by sharing the truth.

Photo credit: AP Images

C. Mitchell Shaw is a freelance writer and content creator who focuses on matters related to the Constitution and liberty. A privacy nerd since before it was cool, he hosts and produces the Enemy of the [Surveillance] State podcast.

This article originally appeared in the June 8, 2020 print edition of The New American.