The fact that the conference was likely a COVID outbreak and superspreader event has been almost entirely ignored. A group of unvaccinated people who attended a huge conspiracy conference in Dallas earlier this month all became sick in the days after the event with symptoms like coughing, shortness of breath, and fever. Instead of blaming the global COVID pandemic, however, the conspiracy theorists think they were attacked with anthrax. This far-right conspiracy claim began after a dozen people spent time together in a confined space at the ReAwaken America tour event in Dallas over the weekend of Dec. 10. And the fact that this was likely a COVID outbreak and superspreader event has been almost entirely ignored. (…) After Oltmann made the claim about anthrax—without providing a shred of evidence—the conspiracy was boosted by other election fraud conspiracists like former New Mexico State University professor David Clements, and Overstock.com founder Patrick Byrne. The bogus claim was also boosted by QAnon influencer-turned-Congressional candidate Ron Watkins, who called for prayers for those affected. After Oltmann made his initial claim, other conspiracy-minded folk highlighted a video from the event that showed a fog machine operating during the conference, suggesting that this is how the anthrax was spread—ignoring the fact that no anthrax outbreak has been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or any other agency.
via vice: People Got Sick at a Conspiracy Conference. They’re Sure It’s Anthrax.