"And they(QAnon) are also very invasive, even deceptive, about who and what they’re all about. They don’t want to divulge some of the more bizarre aspects of their conspiracy theories, but would rather say,
“Oh we’re just here to save children,” when in reality that’s not all that they’re about."
Rick Ross interviewed by Medium - quoted from article below.
As Trump meets with QAnon influencers, the conspiracy's adherents beg for dictatorshipWith Trump's days in office dwindling, QAnon influencers have become increasingly restless and militant, urging the president to "#crosstherubicon.”Dec. 22, 2020, 2:15 PM PST
By Ben Collins
NBC News
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www.nbcnews.com]
Cult Deprogrammer Rick Alan Ross on NXIVM, QAnon, and What Makes Us Vulnerable“We predispose ourselves into being vulnerable because we dismiss cults as crazy”Alex Kantrowitz Medium - Big Technology
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onezero.medium.com]
Rick Ross comments on QAnon
Quote
I want to spend the last few minutes talking about QAnon, a group that believes there are folks coming after Trump and that he’s going to save people from a cabal of pedophiles, something along those lines. I’m curious how you began to be interested in QAnon and whether they fit the definition of a cult.
I gained interest when it became apparent that they were highly organized and that they were involved in activities in which they were targeting people, issues, politicians, et cetera. I think that QAnon fits the criteria for a destructive cult with one exception. We don’t know who Q is. Who is the person that perpetuates these conspiracy theories and drops them online? According to the organization or according to the followers, Q is some high-level, top-secret clearance individual in government with access to secrets that none of us could ever access without Q.
But that isn’t necessarily the truth. It’s very likely just a myth, and Q could be a person or a collective or just a scam. What’s interesting is that like many cults, Q uses a front organizational name in order to attract attention and recruits. They pose behind the moniker “Save the Children.” Now, there’s a real organization called Save the Children that is very reputable and it’s been around for a very long time. But QAnon would like to take that mantle and say, “Oh, we’re trying to save children from this pedophile conspiracy that includes all kinds of political leaders, et cetera.” And at times, this can be very volatile, when you look at the QAnon demonstrations and you see how people don’t question anything that is coming from QAnon by and large.
And they are also very invasive, even deceptive, about who and what they’re all about. They don’t want to divulge some of the more bizarre aspects of their conspiracy theories, but would rather say, “Oh we’re just here to save children,” when in reality that’s not all that they’re about.
Do you find it concerning that some of the behavior you’ve seen in cults has started to make its way into our mainstream politics?
Yeah, it’s very scary. It’s scary to think that someone in a position of power is making decisions based on their acceptance of conspiracy theories that have been repeatedly debunked and disproven. And what kind of national secrets or what position in national security will a person have who’s elected to congress and how will it affect their thinking and their performance on the job if they’ve bought in bizarre conspiracy theories perpetuated by QAnon.
It’s a real conundrum and a real problem and I don’t think it’s going to get better. I think before it does get better, it’ll get worse.
We started by talking about how the internet can be a fertile recruiting ground for cults, and what do you know? This is something that lives almost entirely online and now it’s seeping into the physical world.
What I said about cocooning yourself in a bubble online, in an echo chamber, is exactly what so many QAnon supporters do.
They feed off of each other, they reinforce each other, they follow each other on Twitter, on Facebook, on Instagram, and they watch each other on YouTube. Now, some of the social media platforms are beginning to regulate this and purge some of it from their platforms, but by and large, these people can create their own alternate reality online, which is very scary.
I’ve dealt with them trolling my sites, trolling my social media, and when I interact with them, they’re so detached from reality, it’s almost impossible to communicate. Very much like a person that’s delusional and under the undue influence of a cult.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/23/2020 09:44PM by corboy.