Thread by @docrussjackson

#THREAD

What's that sound?

It's every delusional Great Reset conspiracy theorist's head exploding on hearing the news that @elonmusk is set to appoint Linda Yaccarino as @Twitter's new CEO, who since 2019, has been Executive Chair of the World Economic Forum (WEF). 🤯🤣

World Economic Forum (WEF) founder Klaus Schwab launched an initiative called The Great Reset in June 2020, which called for "fairer outcomes" & reimagining how global investments were made in order to boost the world's economy following the economic downturn during the pandemic.

Conspiracy theorists across the world - but particularly from the free-market supporting Right elites in Britain & America - believed these proposals were a ploy to take down capitalism & create a New World Order under the guise of Covid-19 restrictions. 

brusselstimes.com/354123/conspir…

The conspiracy claims that a "global elite is using COVID-19 as an opportunity to roll out radical policies, such as forced vaccination, digital ID cards and the renunciation of private property."

theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

Schwab does discuss a "wealth tax" as well as stopping subsidies for fossil fuels - which no sane, rational, normal person would oppose. But his proposals are vague and would cover a huge range of areas including technology, climate change, and the future of work.

Schwab's term is more an adjustment of priorities rather than a raft of subversive policies bringing the world under the control of select elites. But our divided & paranoid times are fertile ground for another harmful pandemic - of conspiracy theories.

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1473053132859092998?s=20

The theory's vagueness combined with its launch by an influential organisation made it popular with anti-vaxxers, anti-lockdown activists, & people who believe - or want others to believe - that the #ClimateEmergency is a "hoax".

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1656284076582502402?s=20

What began as a fringe theory took off in November 2020. Although Schwab's proposal was intended as a way of reconsidering "economic & social foundations", it was initially seen as a threat by the American right, but was soon picked up in the UK.

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1604058279314964486?s=20

The Great Reset conspiracy theory was amplified by rightwing commentators such as Ben Shapiro, Tucker Carlson and Alex Jones who said that a global elite was using the pandemic to enforce radical policy.

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1603326012863008768?s=20

The Great Reset has led to over eight million interactions on Facebook and has been shared over two million times on @Twitter, according to the @BBC (conspiracy cranks also insist @BBCNews is left-wing, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary).

bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-tre…

On continental Europe, several Facebook groups in the Netherlands discussed 'The Great Reset', according to think tank Vision of Humanity, which tracked how the conspiracy theory spread in the Netherlands.

visionofhumanity.org/the-spread-of-…

It noted how political leaders can act as influencers when conspiracy theories circulate, citing Dutch far-right politician Thierry Baudet who embraced the theory and asked in Facebook posts if the coronavirus was used to create a "New World Order" as part of the "Great Reset".

Most ideas in the Great Reset conspiracy theory aren't new. Similar ideas of an authoritarian world order have existed since the 19th century. The 1903 antisemitic propaganda book Protocols of the Elders of Zion asserted Jews wanted to take global power.

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1614575288976809985?s=20

If you want to understand why some conspiracy theories are amplified, part of your research should involve 'following the money' - specifically: Who funds the media channels & politicians who push them, & how would their dissemination benefit them?

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1571842623236603906?s=20

Here's a recent example from the UK:

https://twitter.com/docrussjackson/status/1656284076582502402?s=20