TCTTS said:
I'm 100% in favor of condemning ALL batsh*t conspiracy theories, on both sides of the isle. I mean, I literally made an effort to call out of the left in my post that you just responded to. But asking that we condemn all conspiracy theories isn't the same as asking that we acknowledge that X is clearly more of logical leap than Y. We're talking about two different things here.
As for the damage you're referring to, it's hard to compare the psychological damage Q has caused - especially when it comes to our faith in democracy and elections - to the physical damage the BLM protests were responsible for. I mean, I know where I stand, but I'm also saying that I honestly don't know how to compare them. My main counter, however, is to your comment that BLM is largely based on "verifiably false narratives." I'm sorry, but I simply disagree. I believe that the heart of the issue - that systemic racism in America still exists - is 100% true. And I certainly don't believe that the black community acted only on "garbage conspiracy theories and propaganda." That's such reductive, insulting reasoning that completely strips them of the very real experiences many of them have on a daily basis. I believe that the response to the issue, in the form of nation-wide rioting and looting, was obviously taken way too far, and served only to harm the cause. In that sense, have certain core radicals hijacked BLM? Clearly. But I understand and empathize with the very basic - and very real - frustration of the black community, and I refuse to write it all off as some kind of mass delusion.
In the case of Q, there is literally nothing real at the heart of that narrative. It's pure fantasy designed to stoke nothing but rage. But there *is* a real issue at the heart of BLM - something many in the black community actually experience on a daily basis - despite many of BLM's worse proponents' attempts to twist the movement to meet their own, radical views.
You complain about whataboutism but continue to downplay the extremely problematic conspiracy theories held by the left because you are more closely ideologically aligned with those who believe them. You and I obviously disagree on the insanity of those claims and that's okay. IMO, the left believes in many conspiracies that are no less insane than those on the other side. Each side has its nuts and the should all be called out.
That being said in reference to BLM, it is based on verifiably false narratives. That's not a dig at the people who truly believe that black people are being hunted down by police. I feel for those people and find racism to be absolutely disgusting. Furthermore, I do not doubt there are racist A-hole cops out there that have no business on the job and should be removed. The thing is that the numbers do not back up those narratives. There is not an epidemic of black people being hunted down by police no matter how strongly their feelings say otherwise. They have been lied to. FBI statistics show that blacks are less likely to be killed by police than other races when you control for police encounters. Is there disparity in police encounters? Most likely, but that is more likely due to socioeconomic status and crime rates than racism.
BLM was founded by self described Marxists in an effort to push critical race theory which is simply a perversion of communist class division. The goal being to divide Americans. The Democrats and their media lackeys were willing to go along with it because racial division is politically beneficial to them. It's a disgusting shameless lie (conspiracy theory), nothing more!
To keep this relevant, where is the HBO docu-series on the founders of this extremely destructive conspiracy theory? They've had far more impact on national discourse than Q.
Link for research on racial disparity in police shootings:
https://www.pnas.org/content/116/32/15877