this post was submitted on 04 Dec 2025
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It all started as a joke. The purpose was to fool people to believe in this dumb shit. Then people did, and there was much rejoicing. Then more people did, and it got old. Then even more people did, and it got worrying. Then even more people did and now we have a whole industry of dumbfucks basing their lives and identities around something that started out as a joke at their expense.
Who's laughing now?
I'm reasonably convinced that the flat earther explosion was at least encouraged by nefarious actors to see what dumb shit people will actually believe. I feel like the flat earth videos on YouTube are directly related to the recent rise of the extreme right, it primed so many of these people to reject reality so completely.
When I say this was meant as a joke, it picked up steam in the /r/flatearth sub, which I saw back early, and it was kind of an inside reddit joke much like /r/birdsarentreal is today. Mark my words, that shit will be the next flat earth.
People work like this. A sub with 50K subscribers? Maybe there's something to it!
I had subs once. Big ones. They were taken from me. I know. Buy me a beer and I'll tell you about it.
Edit: And I swear unto god- I told'em. I TOLD'EM this would happen.
Hah, check out this guy who thinks birds are real!
How can birds not be real when we choose the owl that is most superb every year