Tright here’s not a lot I can add to all that can be written about Wednesday’s day of infamy, when a mob of Donald Trump supporters stormed Capitol Hill, however I can maybe make clear one side of it — the function of “conspirituality” in fomenting the riot and in shaping the person who will go down as its poster boy: Jake Angeli, the “QAnon shaman.”
Conspirituality refers back to the overlap between New Age/wellness culture and conspiracy culture. I wrote about it last April, and in August I wrote a bit known as “Nazi Hippies” in regards to the overlap between New Age spirituality and far-right theories like QAnon.
The benefit of the rioters being anti-masker conspiracy theorists is we regularly know precisely who they’re and what they imagine. It doesn’t take any deep intelligence work to uncover these terrorists. They aren’t hiding.
So we are able to uncover so much about Angeli, a gullible schmo who was, sadly, simple meat for the Q virus. I analyze his beliefs not out of any ailing will however as a result of he performed a really seen function in an tried U.S. coup, and his mindset is an ideal instance of conspiritualist considering.
Jake Angeli (actual title Jacob Anthony Chansley) is a 32-year-old actor from Arizona, not massively profitable by the seems of it, whose now-deleted Backstage web page proclaimed he’s a “extremely proficient” voice actor who can do over 30 totally different voices.
He was beforehand within the Navy, then bought into psychedelic medication (mushrooms and peyote), and is now a “self-initiated shaman” who arrange one thing known as the Star Seed Academy — the Enlightenment and Ascension Thriller College. He’s a big believer in utilizing psychedelic ceremonies for psychological well being. In some way all these psychedelics failed to show him right into a liberal.
His Fb profile pic is a bizarre mixture of shamanism and American chauvinism:
In August, he organized a “pink tablet get together” at an astrology retailer in Arizona, and this was how he described himself on the Facebook invite:
Jake Angeli is a Self Initiated Shaman, Energetic Healer, Ordained Minister, Public Speaker & Printed Creator. He’s native to the Valley of the Solar and has labored within the behavioral well being subject for over 6 years and has walked the Shamanic path for over a decade. Throughout his Shamanic path, he underwent over 90 hours price of tattooing, wrote a number of books, influenced tons of of lives and spent infinite of hours in deep trance states and meditation. He’s a metaphysical warrior, a compassionate healer and a servant of the Divine Creator God.
He was interviewed on the Cosmic Gaia Podcast final yr, and this was how he described himself there:
Yellowstone Wolf aka Jake Angeli (whichever you like)…has walked the Shamanic path for 20 years and has had quite a few paranormal and UFO experiences.. He has additionally defeated darkish demonic forces, held sacred ceremonies, cleansed ecosystems and liberated minds.
The host of that podcast, Laura Eisenhower, stated:
We discuss Timelines, fractals, DNA, California fires, darkish weaponry and rising above it and likewise these wonderful patches he sells that helped to remedy his father of Late stage Most cancers and liver illness. They’re good for anti-aging, migraines, ache, detoxing, vitality circulation and extra.
For those who have a look at Angeli’s Facebook feed and YouTube channel, you’ll be able to be taught so much about him (each have been taken down this week).
We are able to be taught, for instance, that’s he’s a fan of Jamiroquai, who some folks mistook him for when he stormed the Capitol constructing.
He additionally shows sturdy elements of what psychologists name “patternicity,” which is to see hidden patterns, meanings, and company behind what others would see as random occasions. For instance, he ceaselessly shares posts displaying “vital” shapes in clouds.
Right here’s one other, the place God manifests as a sniper-shaped cloud (God is pro-NRA obvs).
He’s additionally gullible. His most frequent Fb shares have been posts that say one thing like “in the event you share this and say ‘amen,’ a miracle will occur to you.”
If I have been promoting a pyramid scheme, I’m afraid I’d goal Angeli (and the Qanon cult is mainly a pyramid scheme).
His mystical optimism — seeing the hand of God working behind all occasions — has a a lot darker aspect, which is to see demons, witches, and Satanic pedophiles hidden behind occasions, talking in secret indicators and codes.
For instance, his Fb web page (now taken down) featured a video of Angeli driving round Arizona in his face paint, stating secret pedophile codes in store indicators. That store promoting hen liver? Rooster liver is pedo code! He actually believes this medieval nonsense regardless of having a Nordic Valknut tattoo on his chest {that a} hypervigilant Pizzagate-conspiracist would possibly say was additionally pedo code.
