This article is more than 3 months old George Monbiot It’s not just anti-vaxxers. The themes of resisting power and regaining control of our lives have been cynically repurposed Anti-vax protesters in London, in September 2020. [ ] ‘How do we remain true to our countercultural roots?’ Anti-vax protesters in London, in September 2020. Photograph: Guy Bell/REX/Shutterstock ‘How do we remain true to our countercultural roots?’ Anti-vax protesters in London, in September 2020. Photograph: Guy Bell/REX/Shutterstock Wed 22 Sep 2021 09.00 BST -- circles, which have for so long sought to cultivate a good society, there are people actively threatening the lives of others. It’s not just anti-vax beliefs that have been spreading through these movements. On an almost daily basis I see conspiracy theories travelling smoothly from right to left. I hear right-on people mouthing the claims of white supremacists, apparently in total ignorance of -- The anti-vaccine movement is a highly effective channel for the penetration of far-right ideas into leftwing countercultures. For several years, anti-vax has straddled the green left and the far right. Trump flirted with it, at one point inviting the anti-vaxxer Robert F Kennedy Jr to chair a “commission on vaccination safety and scientific integrity”. Anti-vax beliefs overlap strongly with a susceptibility to conspiracy theories. This tendency has been reinforced by Facebook algorithms directing vaccine-hesitant people towards far-right conspiracy groups. Ancient links between “wellness” movements and antisemitic paranoia -- fear that a shadowy cabal is trying to deprive us of autonomy. There’s a temptation to overthink this, and we should never discount the role of sheer bloody idiocy. Some anti-vaxxers are now calling themselves “purebloods”, a term that should send a chill through anyone even vaguely acquainted with 20th-century history. In their defence, however, if they can’t even get Harry Potter right (purebloods is what