Far right Idaho Republicans fight for control

[Albion]

QAnon is the name given to an imagined secret cabal of evil-doers. Members are accused of being Satanist pedophiles who cannibalize babies and drink their blood.

That's what has been said of all sorts of people over the centuries--Catholics, Masons, and on and on!

But none of them actually did it.

So this info is indeed an answer to my request, but it doesn't establish that there's any right wing fringe group that actually engages in such stuff.

And THAT brings us back to my other point that it would be helpful if everyone on all sides would stop using such allegations in order to smear the broader group of people who are either more conservative or, alternately, more liberal, than the speaker would like.

 

[Strathos]

That's what has been said of all sorts of people over the centuries--Catholics, Masons, and on and on!

But none of them actually did it.

So this info is indeed an answer to my request, but it doesn't establish that there's any right wing fringe group that actually engages in such stuff.

And THAT brings us back to my other point that it would be helpful if everyone on all sides would stop using such allegations in order to smear the broader group of people who are either more conservative or, alternately, more liberal, than the speaker would like.

They're not saying that there is some group that engages in that stuff. They're saying that there is a popular conspiracy theory in which a right-wing group falsely believes that all left-wing politicians engage in that stuff.

 

[jayem]

That's what has been said of all sorts of people over the centuries--Catholics, Masons, and on and on!

But none of them actually did it.

So this info is indeed an answer to my request, but it doesn't establish that there's any right wing fringe group that actually engages in such stuff.

And THAT brings us back to my other point that it would be helpful if everyone on all sides would stop using such allegations in order to smear the broader group of people who are either more conservative or, alternately, more liberal, than the speaker would like.

No one here has accused conservatives of engaging in atrocities against children. I’m just saying that there’s an element of the right wing—generally on the far right—who believe such acts are being committed by a shadowy leftist conspiracy. My concern is that this not mentally healthy. It’s highly dysfunctional thinking that can have serious consequences. I know you’re a rational person, and I hope you’d agree.

 

[Albion]

They're not saying that there is some group that engages in that stuff.

Sorry, but that alibi won't fly. It's there in black and white.

 

[DaisyDay]

QAnon is the name given to an imagined secret cabal of evil-doers.

No, QAnon is the person/group that supposedly is exposing the evil cabal of Democrats and high government officials who are doing these evil things.

Members are accused of being Satanist pedophiles who cannibalize babies and drink their blood. Hillary Clinton is claimed to be a prominent member. Along with other liberals.

Yes, they accused Clinton and her aide, Huma Abedin, of murdering children, wearing their faces as masks, drinking their blood and harvesting certain cells that will allow them something, maybe immortality or eternal youth (although I think that bird has flown the coop).

In reality, QAnon is just a bizarre fabrication that has suckered in gullible believers through the internet. And there is, unfortunately, an element of people (mostly conservatives) who think it really exists. The GA congresswoman I mentioned was one. As was that “QAnon shaman” buffoon who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, in face paint and wearing a bison head fur with horns.

The link has more details. It says believers number in the thousands.

What is QAnon? - BBC News

And Donald Trump is the hero that is supposed to right these wrongs!

See "Frazzledrip".

 

[driewerf]

QAnon is the name given to an imagined secret cabal of evil-doers. Members are accused of being Satanist pedophiles who cannibalize babies and drink their blood. Hillary Clinton is claimed to be a prominent member. Along with other liberals. In reality, QAnon is just a bizarre fabrication that has suckered in gullible believers through the internet. And there is, unfortunately, an element of people (mostly conservatives) who think it really exists. The GA congresswoman I mentioned was one. As was that “QAnon shaman” buffoon who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, in face paint and wearing a bison head fur with horns.

The link has more details. It says believers number in the thousands.

What is QAnon? - BBC News

Wait. Is QAnnon the satanic baby eating cabal or is QAnnon the people who believe that there is a satanic baby eating cabal? I am confused now.

 

[Desk trauma]

Wait. Is QAnnon the satanic baby eating cabal or is QAnnon the people who believe that there is a satanic baby eating cabal? I am confused now.

So are they.

 

[jayem]

Wait. Is QAnnon the satanic baby eating cabal or is QAnnon the people who believe that there is a satanic baby eating cabal? I am confused now.

As I understand it, the name originally referred to the conspiracy theory. But I’ve also seen it applied to those who believe the theory is real. And to the supposed cult of pedophilic cannibals.

 

[Albion]

As I understand it, the name originally referred to the conspiracy theory. But I’ve also seen it applied to those who believe the theory is real. And to the supposed cult of pedophilic cannibals.

The conspiracy theory in this case deals with QAnon allegedly believing that there is a cabal of cannibalistic pedophiles in high government places, not that QAnon or its alleged followers engage in such practices themselves.

 

[RocksInMyHead]

As I understand it, the name originally referred to the conspiracy theory. But I’ve also seen it applied to those who believe the theory is real. And to the supposed cult of pedophilic cannibals.

To clarify, it's the name of the conspiracy theory, which is derived from the person (or persons) who invented it. The theory originated on 4chan, where anonymous posters are known as "anons" for short. There were a number of "anons", both actual (i.e. posting under the universal "Anonymous" ID) and self-described (i.e. "FBIAnon", "CIAAnon", etc) who got the ball rolling around the 2016 election with claimed insider info and speculation about the Clinton investigation and Pizzagate. "Q" (aka "Q Clearance Patriot" - Q clearance being a top-secret clearance related to nuclear weapons) showed up a bit later, and is the one who kind of tied all of those elements together into one neat global conspiracy theory. So the combination of "Q" and "Anon" gets you "QAnon". The name gets applied to those who ascribe to the theory as a shorthand, but I've never seen it refer to the supposed cult that the conspiracy theory purports to expose. "QAnon cult" is a thing, but that's referring to believers in the QAnon conspiracy theory as well, since the behavior of its adherents can be rather cultish at times.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Idaho GOP riven by primary civil war
A charged-up version of the divisions playing out nationally set off primaries against the sitting governor, attorney general and a congressman.

“Some people would describe it as conservative, and then far-right conservative,” said Tom Luna, the chair of the state Republican Party.

It’s not just Gov. Brad Little, whose reelection campaign became national news when Donald Trump endorsed a primary challenge from Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin. The state attorney general is staring down a challenge from a former rabble-rousing member of Congress. The senior of Idaho’s two GOP House members is facing a primary that has drawn millions in spending. And contentious open races for lieutenant governor and the secretary of state — Idaho’s chief election official — echo some of the national divisions within the party.

The normally invisible secretary of state race illustrates the situation. Two of the three candidates running in the GOP primary — state Sen. Mary Souza and state Rep. Dorothy Moon — said they did not believe that President Joe Biden fairly won the 2020 election. Ada County Clerk Phil McGrane, who oversees elections in the state’s most populous county, said that Biden did win the election.

“It’s just this national rhetoric, and running to a narrative created by Trump that he started when he knew he was going to lose, and started telling the lie,” said Ahlquist, who is critical of the far-right slate of candidates. “And that filters down to Republicans in our state. And in a state as red as ours, that’s still the narrative because that’s what they do to get elected.”

 

[essentialsaltes]

It’s not just Gov. Brad Little, whose reelection campaign became national news when Donald Trump endorsed a primary challenge from Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin.

Governor Little staved off the primary challenge. He will face some Democrat whose name I don't even know who will lose.

 

[Arcangl86]

Governor Little staved off the primary challenge. He will face some Democrat whose name I don't even know who will lose.

The fact that Little, who is fairly conservative, had to fight for the nomination is a bit scary.

 

[durangodawood]

These far right people arent remotely conservative.

They are reality-disconnected radicals.

Proper conservatives used to pride themselves on being reality-motivated. But that attitude was born in the late 60s early 70s, in opposition to the left's flirtation with fantasy based radicalism. My how the pendulum has swung.

 

[essentialsaltes]

528 has an interesting look in their wrap-up at how 2020 election deniers and doubters performed in the GOP primaries. In the Idaho governor race, all of the candidates denied it was legitimate or raised doubts:

Brad Little* ID Gov. Denied legitimacy 52.8% ✓ Won
Janice McGeachin ID Gov. Denied legitimacy 32.3% ✗ Lost
Edward R. Humphreys ID Gov. Denied legitimacy 11.0% ✗ Lost
Lisa Marie ID Gov. Denied legitimacy 0.4% ✗ Lost
Cody Usabel ID Gov. Raised doubts 0.2% ✗ Lost

 

[Tom 1]

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The dream world for Idaho’s ascendant far right is one where state lawmakers run a sovereign nation-state free of federal oversight. It would be a place where they can outlaw all abortions, dictate what is taught in schools, have complete say over public health rules and gun laws, and take control of federal public lands, which make up more than 60% of the state...

Far-right Idaho Republicans battle to control party, state

I’ve never been to Idaho. It sounds like a political insane asylum. Do these far right wing-nuts really think they can become a sovereign nation-state, confiscate federal land, and reject all federal regulations?

Looks like Idaho has more than just potatoes buried in the ground. Like their brains, too.

It’s hard to fathom if these people actually want to live in some kind of puritanical death cult, or if they are just hopelessly naive.

 

[jayem]

It’s hard to fathom if these people actually want to live in some kind of puritanical death cult, or if they are just hopelessly naive.

Naive and stupid. If Idaho should ever become a sovereign nation, independent of the US, then their residents will be living in a foreign country. Medicare doesn't cover medical treatment in a foreign country. Idaho will also have to foot the entire bill for their citizens on Medicaid. And unless the nation of Idaho has a totalization agreement with the US government, their citizens will not collect Social Security benefits. Despite all the railing against socialism, let's see see how Idahoans will fare with no Medicare, Medicaid, or SS.

 

[GreatLakes4Ever]

Naive and stupid. If Idaho should ever become a sovereign nation, independent of the US, then their residents will be living in a foreign country. Medicare doesn't cover medical treatment in a foreign country. Idaho will also have to foot the entire bill for their citizens on Medicaid. And unless the nation of Idaho has a totalization agreement with the US government, their citizens will not collect Social Security benefits. Despite all the railing against socialism, let's see see how Idahoans will fare with no Medicare, Medicaid, or SS.

Also, about 60% of Idaho is federal land. Do you think a foreign government is just going to hand that land over to Idaho? The new nation is going to look like Swiss cheese. The longer you look at a plan for a state to leave the union, the dumber it looks.