QAnon: The Making of QAnon: A Crowdsourced Conspiracy

On January 6, chaos descended on Washington D.C. as supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the United States Capitol Building. Amid the melee, a longtime QAnon promoter known as “the Q Shaman” made his way onto the Senate floor and occupied the speaker’s rostrum. He was far from the only QAnon supporter on the scene that day: another led the charge into the Capitol.

Once again, this dangerous and eclectic conspiracy is in the spotlight. It has come a long way since its birth on a forum barely three years ago.

On October 28, 2017, an anonymous user browsing the /pol/ section of 4chan, a notorious alt-right imageboard, saw a post that read, “Hillary Clinton will be arrested between 7:45 AM — 8:30 AM EST on Monday — the morning on Oct 30, 2017,” and decided to respond. This user would later adopt the name “Q Clearance Patriot” (soon shortened to “Q”). Q hinted that they were a military officer in President Trump’s inner circle; their writings — almost 5,000 posts to date — gave birth to the QAnon conspiracy theory.

Most accounts of QAnon present this first “Q drop”, as Q’s posts are known by their acolytes, as the starting point of the Q movement. This is mistaken for two reasons. One is trivial: Q first gained an audience with a different set of drops, because their earliest efforts sank without a trace and weren’t rediscovered by anyone on 4chan until November 11 that same year. The other is deeply significant: Q’s origins can’t be divorced from the culture of /pol/, which was a rich slurry of racism, anti-Semitism, and (especially relevant here) right-wing conspiracy theories.

Therefore, QAnon was both an outgrowth and an evolution of /pol/ culture: not only were many of Q’s claims already popular on /pol/, but Q borrowed key themes and ideas from predecessors. The key to understanding the roots of Q is to understand the culture of /pol/.

Read complete rreport at: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/americas/2021/01/07/the-making-of-qanon-a-crowdsourced-conspiracy/

The EU's vaccine strategy - the key points

The European Commission, on behalf of member states, has sealed deals with six companies for up to 2.3 billion vaccine doses. The BioNTech-Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are so far the only jabs authorised in the EU, but the vaccine jointly developed by Oxford and AstraZeneca is expected to be approved on Friday (29 January) by the European Medical Agency (EMA).

With two doses per person needed for both authorised vaccines, the EU could vaccinate at least 380 million people - covering approximately 80 percent of the European population.

Read more at: https://euobserver.com/coronavirus/150747

Covid-19 vaccines: Less Than 1% of People Experienced Side Effects From Moderna Coronavirus Vaccine, CDC Says - by Alexa Lardieri

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report that 0.03%, or 1,266, of the more than 4 million people who have received the first dose of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine experienced adverse events.

Of the recipients with side effects, 108 were identified for further review as severe allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis – a life-threatening allergic reaction that the CDC says can occur after a vaccination, although rarely. It typically occurs within minutes to hours.

Read more at: Less Than 1% of People Experienced Side Effects From Moderna Coronavirus Vaccine, CDC Says | Health News | US News

The Netherlands shaken by third night of riots over Covid curfew

A third night of rioting has shaken the Netherlands as protesters rampaged through towns and cities around the country after government introduced a night-time curfew.

More than 180 people were arrested on Monday in Amsterdam and Rotterdam, where shops were vandalised and looted and the mayor, Ahmed Aboutaleb, issued an emergency decree giving police broader powers of arrest.

“These people are shameless thieves, I cannot say otherwise,” Aboutaleb said.But trouble also flared in smaller centres around the country such as Den Bosch, Zwolle, Amersfoort, Alkmaar, Hoorn, Gouda – where several cars were set on fire – and Haarlem, where police were attacked with stones.

Read more at: Netherlands shaken by third night of riots over Covid curfew | Netherlands | The Guardian

The Netherlands: Dutch police clash with anti-lockdown rioters in two cities

Authorities on Sunday used water cannon and dogs in a square in central Amsterdam, where hundreds of people gathered during the curfew that began on Saturday, public television NOS reported. Videos showed police spraying people grouped against a wall of the Van Gogh Museum.

Read more at: Dutch police clash with anti-lockdown rioters in two cities | Coronavirus pandemic News | Al Jazeera

USA: Covid-19 - another Biden heritage from Donald Trump: : US tops 25 million coronavirus cases

More than 25 million cases of coronavirus have now been confirmed across the United States. Experts say the true number is likely to be higher. More than 417,500 in the US have died with the virus.

The daily number of deaths has exceeded 4,000 in recent weeks - including on Wednesday when Joe Biden was sworn into office.

President Biden signed a raft of new measures last week, including boosting vaccinations and testing.

Read more at: Covid-19: US tops 25 million coronavirus cases - BBC News

The Netherlands: Everything you need to know about the curfew in the Netherlands

The curfew will be in effect from 9pm on January 23 until (at least) 4.30am on February 10. During these hours, members of the public will be expected to stay at home.

The Dutch government hopes that implementing a curfew will (significantly) reduce the number of social gatherings. The Outbreak Management Team said it would be particularly effective in preventing young people from attending / holding parties or meeting one another on the streets. Acting Prime Minister Mark Rutte hopes it will stop people from visiting the homes of family members and friends.

Read more at: Everything you need to know about the curfew in the Netherlands