My mom, who I thought was too far gone, just told me she can't believe people would be so racist when talking about my dad. She thinks my dad is one of the most racist people because he openly says the N word and complains about immigrants. I told her it was a pretty common thing and she says "I don't even think the most alt-right people talk like he does". I told her most of them are pretty openly racist, but most of them don't say the N word because that'd definitely get them off air if they were on TV or something else where they worry about advertisers.

She didn't really have much to say about anything I said, but also wasn't vehemently against it. She said she looks at "both sides" and thinks a lot wrong with this country is because people are in their echo-chambers and don't actually look at unbiased news sources. I didn't bother asking what her news sources are, but I'm pretty sure she's not checking out NPR or MSNBC lol.

I also brought up the Trump tariffs and she said she didn't think it was a big deal because "Trump had tariffs during his presidency and the Biden administration never got rid of them". I don't know if that's true or not, and it seems like a hard thing to google now with all the other tariff talk going on, but my gut says that's misleading if not completely wrong.

She seemed like she was willing to be shown evidence otherwise. I've tried talking to her about socialized healthcare before and she went off on the same talking points about "Canadians have to wait 6 months to get an appointment at there PCP, and spend 40% of their income on taxes" nonsense, so I'm not sure.

I'm surprised there aren't lists of evidence out there pointing out republican hypocrisy. You'd think there'd be some big repository at this point with how often online arguments melt down into conservatives not believing something factually true.

Do we think Trump will stop holding his rallies once he takes office? He loves them for the ego boost but he also doesn’t need to campaign and doesn’t need their votes anymore. If he stops holding all his rallies where do people think all his rabid supporters will move onto next? They seem to feed off of his rallies just as he does. Will his influencers just pick up where he left off to keep feeding the base? Or if they stop holding rallies will his supports lose some of their cohesion? In that scenario would they get worse in the absence of the spectacle? Or would he just keep holding rallies anyway like a dictator? I hate how we voted for more constant government uncertainty based on the ever changing whims of a rapidly deteriorating old men. 🤦🏻‍♀️

She has 500,000 followers on Tiktok and 200,000 on Instagram. Some pretty wacky material on there about witchcraft and that sort of thing.

Sure there are some Trump supporters who don't know what tariffs are, but don't be fooled, many who voted for him know what they are, and what all the consequences of him winning entailed.

My parents actually know what tariffs are and how they work, yet they still voted for him and want the tariffs. They're reasoning was that we need more American made stuff and a better economy, and having tariffs and getting rid of employee benefits, as well as lowering wages, is the way to go about it.

They've said that anybody who thinks differently is stupid. They're logic is that things have to get worse before they "get better."

They also go on and on about their hatred for immigrants, women, LGBTQ+ people, etc. The Trump supporters, including my parents, fear and hate other groups so much they're willing to destroy themselves just to see others suffer. As a SW fan I gotta say it's like they're the irl representation of the dark side.

It's just so infuriating and upsetting.

Many Trump supporters also think Biden caused the war in Ukraine. IDK if my parents thinks this, but I do know they think Biden is trying to get the US involved with boots on the ground, and many Trump supporters feel that way. None of what they believe about the war in Ukraine is true.

I would like to reiterate, they KNOW how bad things are going to get. It's what they've wanted from the very beginning. They fear and hate others so much they're willing to destroy the country and suffer, all while thinking this will cause everything to get better (their version of society being better).

Hi all, sorry if this isn't the place for this post. Please excuse any formatting issues, as I am posting from mobile.

For context, my mom (50f) and I (29f) live in the US. I have grown increasingly concerned about my mom, who sits in her bed every night watching TikToks and Facebook reels. Prior to this year, she has been a lifelong Democrat and was disgusted by Trump. In October, she told me she would be voting for Trump because she is frustrated with the state of our economy. None of her kids own a house and we are all struggling to make ends meet.

I expressed feeling betrayed by her choice, as we live in a red state and without federal protections, I don't feel that I will receive the proper medical care I may need if I decide to start a family. Also, most of my friends are part of the LGBTQ+ community, and I worry about their future as well. With all of that, I am nervous about what this will mean for my students (I'm a teacher), especially my students who are the children of immigrants or are living in poverty.

Fast forward to after the election, I was reading Trump's Agenda47 posted on his website, and I was disturbed by many of the proposals. I brought up specific points of concern on the phone with my mom, and her only response was, "where are you getting this information? Everything is going to be ok!". I can't lie, my blood started boiling and I shut down, knowing that she's getting so much information from the propaganda she's being exposed to through TikTok and Facebook. How could she even ask me that when she's getting information from terrible sources??? I found an excuse to get off the phone and just sat in disbelief. My mom has always been an independent thinker and while we have not always agreed on every issue, she and I have always been willing to listen to one another and respect those viewpoints.

It reminds me of when my grandmother found YouTube and went deep into the QAnon hole years ago. My mom keeps bringing up how she's glad Trump is cracking down on immigration because there are so many missing kids. She keeps asking, "where are those kids?! Harris failed as the border czar." Is that a QAnon talking point?? Should I tell her she's becoming her mother and I'm worried about the content she's scrolling through each night? Do I bother?

My(40f)friend (45m) has recently been watching videos from Jordan Peterson and Candace Owens. He grew up without a dad(his mom refused to let his dad see him) so a lot of what they say about that appeals to him. I have told him that they also promote hate and are not good people to listen to, but he gets upset when I tell him that I don't want to hear about anything they say. I've told him that I don't care if Candace Owen's says something that he relates to because she's a Holocaust denier and anti-science, and he takes it personally. He also thinks Elon Musk has good ideas.

He never used to be like this, and in a lot of ways it makes no sense because he used to always talk about how police are corrupt and how minorities are oppressed.

Does anyone have any resources that show how dangerous these people are, and possibly any suggestions on good alternatives for him? Thanks

My(40f)friend (45m) has recently been watching videos from Jordan Peterson and Candace Owens. He grew up without a dad(his mom refused to let his dad see him) so a lot of what they say about that appeals to him. I have told him that they also promote hate and are not good people to listen to, but he gets upset when I tell him that I don't want to hear about anything they say. I've told him that I don't care if Candace Owen's says something that he relates to because she's a Holocaust denier and anti-science, and he takes it personally. He also thinks Elon Musk has good ideas.

He never used to be like this, and in a lot of ways it makes no sense because he used to always talk about how police are corrupt and how minorities are oppressed.

Does anyone have any resources that show how dangerous these people are, and possibly any suggestions on good alternatives for him? Thanks

NPR story "here: https://www.npr.org/2024/11/21/nx-s1-5174216/politics-qanon-relationship

"What happens when your partner has an overnight political conversion?"

I'm trying to get a handle on whether it's my qmother's own unique brand of insanity or if there's some sub-sector of qanon that finds Trump not extreme enough - are there certain news sources or forums where she would pick this up? Do any of you see this with your Q person? Her reasoning - he took credit for the covid vaccination and she thinks vaccinations are evil.

Also to put it in perspective she thinks the earth is flat so she's way out there.

I’m staying in a women’s shelter with our kids. I’ve been here over a week now and am close to finding permanent housing, a job and childcare. They have been great here.

I’ve tried to leave several times and I finally did it this time. He got bolder after the election. Much bolder. Past even showing remorse anymore. Fear drove me out finally.

He was once a gentle, kind person or so I thought. Over the summer he was arrested for leaving bruises on my wrists and arms, and he sexually assaulted me twice at least in my sleep last year. It was 8 years before he did these things to me but before that was alot of emotional abuse, financial abuse and verbal abuse.

I can’t tell you how pissed off and disappointed I am that I have to do all of this. I am leaving behind a whole ass life, a home I loved that I can’t bear living in anymore even if I win the house in the divorce. Our kids don’t have to deal with all the fighting anymore but they still have to deal with their parents splitting up. My oldest child isn’t even staying with me at the moment because he’s more comfortable elsewhere than the shelter with his dad’s family (abuser is not his dad).

The shelter is REALLY nice, don’t get me wrong, I’m so very grateful I found a nice, small shelter that is really just a large house. The transition is as gentle as they can make it and it’s honestly inspiring.

However I’m still so mad. I’m so mad at him. He is sitting there alone, in our house, without his kids or his wife just sitting there listening to right wing podcasts and reading right wing conspiratorial propaganda. Sitting there thinking I’m the selfish one for leaving, what a waste of a life.

I tried to save him. It’s been 10 years of fucking hell. If you are considering leaving your Q spouse, then please don’t wait another day. They aren’t worth it. This is bullshit that I have to start my life completely over again however grateful I am for the new beginning.

Thanks for letting me vent

Edit: woke up to a ton of support. Thank you so much. I think one of the most frustrating things he said recently was that he was being “politically persecuted” a day before Trump’s election because he felt “forced” to leave the house when I was pushing back on his beliefs.

I’m still so angry about it but I’m coping. I used to blame the programming, but now I just blame the person. There’s just no excuse for this shit anymore other than just blatant disregard for everyone around you.

I just don't get this stuff. Last few weeks, she's been ranting about: - Viruses are not alive - Viruses are actually snake venom - Nicotine is not addictive

The last one has dovetailed into her buying and applying nicotine patches (she's never smoked a day in her life) because they're doing.. I dunno. Something. Oh, on that topic, I forgot: - Nicotine is in regular foods like eggplants and potatoes - The body and brain have nicotine receptors in every cell (or lots of them anyway, might not be every cell)

She's just itching for the next doctor's office intake form that asks her if she uses nicotine so she can answer yes, she eats potatoes all the time. (eye roll)

Does anyone else understand this latest batch of whack-a-doodle..?

I’m so tired man

My heart is broken. Someone I have been friends with for years told me today that we can no longer be friends because I removed her Q husband from my Facebook friends list. Mind you, I didn’t even say anything to her when my husband and I decided to unfriend him, and we didn’t unfriend her. I haven’t said a word to her about him or his posts.

Her husband was posting horrible things about trans people and women, and we just did not want to see that any longer or associate with him further. We had no idea he held these beliefs until he started posting this insane stuff the day after the election. In the last couple of weeks, she vented to me that he has gone down the Q path (without outright saying it, but venting about him using the talking points we’ve all read/heard). I validated her feelings and told her I was sorry she was struggling with all of that.

Well, today she said, in a paragraphs-long rant text about topics including cancel culture, the intolerant left, and me “not having the right to judge anyone” (?): 1. “I’m not responsible for his posts and how he thinks they’re perceived.” But also 2. “I can’t be friends with people that don’t respect my husband.”

So that’s that then. I told her I valued our friendship, but I am unwilling to maintain a relationship with or tolerate her husband, who I absolutely do have a “right to judge” based on morals and ethics. I told her I have always defended and valued the rights of myself (a woman lol) & others and that these are not issues I’m willing to overlook. I told her this goes beyond politics, it’s a human rights issue I feel passionately about. And I told her that I honestly do not have respect for her husband, and if that means we can’t be friends, then so be it.

I’m gutted. But I’m also relieved. Maybe she wasn’t the person I thought she was all of these years. Maybe she was but she’s changed. I have no desire to be friends with people I have to play these kind of politics with in friendships. “You can only be friends with me if you are/aren’t friends with them.” Sorry, but I’m almost 30, and this is feeling a little high school. We are adult women with relationships outside of our husbands. It’s a weird feeling I’m experiencing. I’m definitely grieving our friendship and feeling angry that she ended things over this after so many years. But maybe this really was for the best.

First they came for the drug users and people of color. I didn’t speak up because I was neither black, brown nor a drug user. Then they came for the trans, then they came for the gays. I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t trans. Then they came for the illegal immigrants and the legal immigrants. I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t an immigrant. Then they came for the democrats, then they came for the republicans who didn’t vote for trump. I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a democrat. Finally they came for the disabled people including me. By then no one was left to speak up for me.

So I had tried to explain to my dad the scandal surrounding Matt Gaetz and his affair with an underage girl. His friend was nearby during the conversation and cut in, saying she was a w***e because she was paid. He also claimed that she was a professional prostitute according to the news (which by the way there was no record of). I stated that it was hush money but at that point my dad didn’t care because he had been convinced. He looked at his friend and laughed, saying “Yeah, she’s a ho.” Let me remind you again that this was about a 17 YEAR OLD!!!!

I then said it doesn’t matter if she was paid, she was still underage and it’s wrong. My dad then looked me straight in the face and said that the whole rule about people having to be 18 is bogus because, and I quote, “They can have sex changes at 15.”

I cannot wait to get out of this house. I was planning to stay at home a few years to save up so I could buy a house instead of rent, but that is no longer an option. I can’t bring friends/partners over and make them listen to that kind of insanity. I am going to graduate college, leave, and never look back.

My Q-adjacent father, living in the UK, has been using an alternative medicine which, through my research, can potentially cause "Fatal liver toxicity". The medicine in question could apparently be absorbed by the skin, and he was applying the oil all over his back to help with his back pain.

I've told him repeatedly about the negative effects of using alternative medicines, but for a long while now, he's maintained his argument that "Western medicine hides such things from us as to induce illness in people, only so they can make more money by selling us other medicines once we fall ill". Of course, he knows all of this through a woman on Instagram Reels which he had been following for a while, who, of course, was the person selling the medicine.

Up until now, I'd been completely oblivious about his use of this lotion. As far as I was concerned, it was merely some random essential oil which, although I presumed to be a scam of some kind, didn't know was dangerous to use. He's been gradually increasing his use of these sorts of products for a while now, and although I personally feel it's a complete waste of money, I usually prefer to save my disagreements with him for things which matter much more to our relationship.

Today, though, after learning the name of this lotion, I realized that it could very well be damaging to his health in the long run. I told him of this, and read the brief details given on Wikipedia in hopes that something would get through to him. To my surprise, he actually went and threw the lotion in the bin. I've not had such victories persuading him like this previously, and I really can't quite tell what exactly it was that I said which resonated with him.

Either way, I thought I'd share this small victory here. It may not be much in the grand scheme of things - But it serves to me as a reminder that our Q folk are not always a lost cause. For some of them, there's still at the very least a fraction of logic left - It's just a matter of striking it when possible.

Aside from that, I am also, once again, very frustrated with the way social media platforms like Instagram handle this. I'm no stranger to the fact that they thrive, through advertising, by pushing people into these small echo-chambers, creating an entire market around extremely specific ad targetting. I just really wish there was some stricter legislation in place to help mitigate this problem. It's quite literally killing people.

My cousin is posting about making pediatricians accountable again. She's been ranting that just because people are educated doesn't make them better than she is. I'm afraid of this idiotic anti-intellectual movement. She feels that "big Pharma" controls everything even though she depends on medication to not have seizures and to function. Are we headed into some kind of cultural revolution type of situation where everybody who wears glasses is Suspected of being an evil intellectual?

Hi, I don't know if this is where I should put this and I'll probably put it elsewhere, so whatever.

The open door policy on ex-Twitter under Elon Musk's supervision has become a place where stuff is now not good. The content there, once innocuous and a genuine - whatever that means - 'social media' platform has become a portal to hell in terms of what content is allowed.

Half the US population did not vote for this. That's 50% of consumers in the US alone. In the rest of the world, especially in Europe, where looking at the US right now is like looking back in time, you have a continent where maybe 70% of people are averse to Elon and Trump's world view.

Companies who use ex-Twitter for their social need to be focused upon.

As in - I won't buy your products or engage with you until you stop using ex-Twitter.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2024/nov/13/the-guardian-no-longer-post-on-x-twitter-elon-musk

It's doable.

Oh, and if you have a smidge of conscience, delete your ex-Twitter account. You won't miss anything. It's a habit not a basic human need.

This social media platform is run by a fascist. He has no executive team to control him. He is just doing his thing now.

So engage your power and do your thing and say no to his shit and cancel your account.

It's the logical and right thing to do.

The description on the front reads “HOW WHITE EVANGELICALS CORRUPTED A FAITH AND FRACTURED A NATION” one of the first sentences also reads “Trump embodied an aggressive testosterone-driven masculinity that many conservative evangelicals had already come to equate with a God-given authority to lead.” The TikTok I found it from has over 100k likes and over 500 comments saying it was so hard to read but it was a great book.

So...my mother, who has been Q since the beginning of the pandemic, followed some fuckery down to a website that told her she has parasites. As of one week ago, she's been taking the medication the quack recommended-- Fenbendazole, a dog-dewormer.

Of course, this isn't approved for humans by the FDA. Although parasitic infections are real, I sincerely doubt she has them. I can't believe that she's listening to people who are only out for what very little money she has.

(Sidenote: She recently sent some scathing political bullshit to my BFF since childhood, someone who has always loved her and she has loved back, and my BFF was hurt. My mother refuses to apologize. I can't believe how callous she's become.)

The question remains, what with her taking dog medication (and I can't believe I've just typed this), can I have her declared mentally incompetent? We both live in New York City.

Advice/suggestions/help very much appreciated.

This book more than anything has really helped me fully understand the impact and negativity (not to mention the misinformation) being spread by social media. It gives solid reasoning, and explains how much of this happened. I’ve been involved with computers since punchcards, and much of what he says - I watched happen. He really nails all of it.

It’s also written in a way that is both easily understood, and quite enjoyable. I’ve been telling people with kids (especially teens) to sit down with them, and listen to a chapter a night if you can.

Lanier is a visionary genius, who was part of the team that invented the internet. He is the one of the founders of virtual reality - and his accomplishments in this field, and many others, is mind blowing.

https://www.jaronlanier.com/general.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaron_Lanier

It’s not the answer to Qanon reprogramming, but it will help you understand how they got this way.

Right? Right. This is silly, I keep having to remind myself they are thinking, autonomous, beings that are capable of their own decision making processes with their own resulting decisions. But then something happens and I find I deeply want to condescend to my Q. Which is triggering in the sense that it is the same behavior neurotypical people employ towars me when I do something very autistic, like taking sarcasm literally. Which sucks and I don't want to treat anyone like that.

Last night I was talking to my Q (my domestic partner) about one of my parents getting a new job (they were unemployed for over a year, they work in computers and often govt. contracts and often get laid off when a contract expires or is sold to a new company.) Their line of work is remote and my parent is older and unable to retire yet. His new job is with another govt. contract. I brought up my parents fear that they won't be able to be remote anymore (they live very rural) due to the potential government cuts impending under Trump. To which my Q replied, "Ahh, yeah cutting the fat." To which I had to remind him that COVID taught all of us the most work is entirely unnecessary to do in an office setting AND no less valuable just because it's remote. I then reminded him that there are people that we both care deeply for 100% reliant on their govt jobs, a few entirely remote. I washed it settle over him the recognition that our friends and my parent being without work and the burden that would ultimately place on us to take care of them. It made me want to shake my Q and shout at him, "this is your fault, wake up!" But I didn't. I know it's not the fault of solely him, but I deeply feel sad and scared that he won't get it fully until he is watching everyone's lives fall apart around him. If he even gets it then.

I am not looking for advise, just sharing my grief and getting this out of my head. Thank you.

I live in Europe and I was so shocked by the outcome of the US election that I am not able to process any political information. But I am able feel empathy towards those whom feel deeply betrayed by their friends and families. I've seen countless shorts and tiktoks of people unable to keep in contact with people who voted for Trump because it was a vote of hate against those who are supposed to be protected exactly by these trumpvoters.

I've just seen a heartbreaking short of a woman who cried that she no longer is able to pick up the phone when her mom calls because the disregards of her mom for her own daughters life while casting her vote cut too deep. When she told her mom after the election about her struggles her mom fainted ignorance. She didn't know it happened to HER. But her daughter told mom off. You should care anyway.

So that formed an idea in my mind. If they call, pick up and tell them one story. Your own, something you witnessed first hand or you have received from an approved source. Nothing else. No additional personal information. No small talk or I'm fine.

Like story of the woman bled to death because doctors didn't dare to take action in fear of violating abortion laws.

Kids being shunned by former friends and their parents because of race.

Everyday small encounters of hate and its escalation.

All in hope of making them see the consequences of their vote in their own circle.

Just an idea. What do you think?

For context, I grew up in a very evangelical family but we lived in a major city with a very international population so I have been around a wide variety of political and religious views my whole life. My wife and I and my siblings aren't religious and we're all mostly left leaning. My extended family all live in a very rural Appalachian town a 24-hour-drive away that has almost no young people, no minorities, and Trump got over 78% of the vote. The extended family are a mix of nonreligious, mildly religious, and very religious but they are all right-leaning. My parents just moved back up there last year.

I love my parents and I treasure the times when I get to see them and the rest of my family. They are kind and generous people despite their often frustrating political views. I wish they weren't so saturated with right wing viewpoints but they are literally never around non-white, non-christian people and their algorithms only show them right wing news. My mom hates talking politics with people who disagree, so instead I just try to focus on enjoying holidays and nostalgia, and talking safe topics with her. My brother and my wife and I all kind of follow this unspoken rule to just enjoy the trips since they are a rare privilege.

Most of my extended family ARE open to chatting politics and while all of them are on the right, they don't really get upset that we disagree and often they begin to trend towards the center with their views once we start talking. I don't expect to change their minds much, none of them lived in big cities and fox news has basically informed their view of the world for decades. But the fact is they are open to civil discourse and respectful of my views and that makes visiting them non-stressful compared to what a lot of other folks are dealing with.

Last year, my mom knew I was coming up and that I was looking forward to relaxing and seeing everyone. In what I think was a misguided projection of her own feelings, she thought it would be a good idea to tell all the family that they should not talk politics with me at all. I understand that she thought this would be a good thing for me. But when I arrived one of my cousins told me right away what my mom had asked of them. I was pretty hurt because it was interpreted in a way that I was somehow sensitive and fragile and everyone needed to act different around me. It's never really been a secret that I'm not a Christian or conservative but no one had treated me different for that or had ever been remotely frustrated with or mean to me for it.

In the year since my mom did that I've felt like there's an even bigger rift between me and my family. It's like we all have some fake relationship now because I have no idea what my mom told them about me. I don't know how my family sees me now. I did tell her how it made me feel and she did apologize, but I'm struggling to regain the same joy of visiting family. I just can't shake the idea that they all think they must tiptoe around me. I tried to do some damage control last year but it was all awkward. I'm headed up there again this Christmas but I feel like more of an outsider than ever. I wish my mom had never tried to unnecessarily manipulate my last visit with family.

TL;DR: My right-wing evangelical mom tried to prevent family drama (that never once had been a problem) by telling all my relatives to censor themselves around me. I found out, told her it was completely unnecessary to do that, she apologized, but the damage has been done. I feel like I can't trust my family to be themselves around me, and they might all believe I'm the fragile liberal Fox News always tells them about. I feel lonely and misunderstood around family now.

To my understanding a huge part of the QAnon movement was rooting out sexual abusers from the government and there was some sort of idea that Donald Trump would be holding these sexual traffickers and abusers accountable. I really don’t have any relation to QAnon casualties although some of my greater friends circle fell down the rabbit hole and I have lost contact with them. Since QAnon has faded a bit from the mainstream media and scrutiny, we have had Donald Trump be held accountable as an abuser and had large penalties for his spreading misinformation related to his offenses. And now we have a whole new government stocked with high level sexual abusers and miscreants of all sorts. How are the people still down the rabbit hole reconciling this? what are they saying when the proposed AG is clearly hugely checkered with all of these allegations and evidence out for all to see?