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Hunting the Satanists

by Alex Tabarrok

Marginal Revolution

Oct 15, 2021

Michael Flynn, the former Trump National Security Advisor and QAnon promoter, is now being accused by QAnon of being a Satanist.

Now, here's another story--this one about an email sent by a Yale law student from the Native American Law Students Association (NALSA) to fellow classmates. The email in question reads:

The email seems to me like a light-hearted invitation to a party but, of course, not being one-of-the-elect I can't read the secret, esoteric meaning. According to Yale's Diversity office the email was actually a coded message to celebrate white supremacy with a blackface party.

These two cases illustrate that the worldview of QAnon and Yale's diversity office are surprisingly similar. Both see a world in which Satan, literal or metaphorical, is an active force in the world corrupting individuals and institutions. Satan is powerful but hidden. He only reveals his influence when the corrupted slip-up and by the incorrect use of a word, phrase, or gesture reveal their true natures.

Since Satan is powerful and hidden the good people must constantly monitor everyone. The moment a slip-up is spotted, no matter how small, the corrupted must be denounced because anyone who even unwittingly associates with the corrupted will themselves become corrupted. "Legions" and "rays"? Satanist! "Trap House." Satanist! "Red shoes." Sex-trafficker! "Federalist Society." Satanist society! Repeating the prayer? Duping hundreds of Christians into joining the ritual! Attending a party? We condemn this in the strongest possible terms! Condemn the non-believers to hell! It's all the same.

The other similarity, of course, is that both views are disturbingly common and completely bonkers.

Photo Credit: Getty Images.

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