"Q," the mysterious leader behind the far-right QAnon conspiracy theory, has emerged online for the first time since December 2020. The "Q" account, which the New York Times reports contains the same unique identifier used on previous posts, posted on the anonymous far-right message board 8kun Friday night, "Shall we play a game once more?" A later post read, per the Guardian, "Are you ready to serve your country again? Remember your oath." And in response to someone asking why Q had gone dark for so long, the account posted, "It had to be done this way." The Times notes that Ron Watkins, a computer programmer whose father owns 8kun, is widely believed to run the Q account and he is currently running for Congress in Arizona; he's expected to lose.
The Times calls Q's return "ominous," noting that the bizarre conspiracy theories peddled by QAnon followers were used to rally support for former President Trump, who, according to the conspiracy theory, was secretly working to take down a "cabal" of elite, Democratic pedophiles and sex traffickers with links to the "deep state." Many of those at the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot were QAnon followers. And now, those same followers are all over Telegram channels and message boards linked to QAnon to talk about the latest so-called "Q drops." Some in the community believe the latest series of Supreme Court rulings, including the overturning of Roe v. Wade, could be a sign that Q's predictions will still come true. (More QAnon stories.)
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